ABU DHABI // Emiratis are being encouraged to become tourists in their own country and explore all seven emirates.
Local tourism helps UAE nationals to understand what their country has to offer in nature and in history, said Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak, Minister of Culture, Youth and Community Development.
“This tourism helps to deepen understandings and encourage a dialogue between children of the different emirates, and spreads unity between them,” said Sheikh Nahyan, who is also head of the National Council for Tourism and Antiquities.
Sheikh Nahyan told the Federal National Council this week the tourism council was doing everything in its power to promote it.
Even with a small budget, the council has been able to spread awareness of the importance of local tourism, use media to present touristic opportunities and support tourism establishments to meet Emiratis’ needs.
He said the council had worked to offer Emiratis the same benefits offered to tourists coming from abroad at reasonable prices, and had already arranged for local tours. A tourism database is being compiled, listing all the tourist attractions in the country.
A film promoting tourism in the UAE has been made, along with tourist maps of each emirate.
However, Sheikh Nahyan said the tourism council was still not meeting expectations and its budget was too low.
“To be honest with you, I have noticed in my short time here in the council that its efforts and programmes are little of what is aspired to and expected of it,” he said.
“That is for many reasons, the most important of which is the little resources and budget it has, also interrelated relations between federal activity and local activity in this field.”
Since taking his role at the council, he has ordered a nationwide study covering all aspects of tourism and challenges the local and federal government were facing.
FNC member Ali Al Nuaimi (Ajman) said he would respond and explain what he believed was keeping Emiratis from taking “stay-cations”.
“This issue is very important because a lot of Emiratis do not know all the regions in the country, and this goes back to several reasons, mostly due to high costs,” he said. “There is no kind of encouragements from hotels, like discounts or incentives.
“Unfortunately this has led to little tourism among Emiratis internally.”
Mr Al Nuaimi sympathised with Sheikh Nahyan, who is newly appointed to the council and constrained by a low budet,
“He said he was new and the council was performing lower than they should, therefore I saw no need to bring him in,” he said.
“I thought it would be better to give him a chance to see what would be the result of this study. But Emiratis expect and hope that high tourism costs will be addressed.”
Mohammed Al Dhaheri, director of strategy and policy at Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority, said developing domestic tourism was vital in getting more residents and Emiratis to experience the UAE.
“It is important to see what your country offers,” he said, and nationals who know the country well could become ambassadors for the UAE.
Mr Al Dhaheri said the government and private sector were both providing incentives to travel around the UAE.
“Investment in infrastructure and businesses’ communication of special offers and discounts all encourage people to travel.”
He said the authority was working on enhancing the information on what is available in the form of domestic tourism, which was vital in increasing travel within the Emirates.
osalem@thenational.ae
* Additional reporting by Thamer Al Subaihi