The Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority has signed up with two charter companies to increase the number of tourists from Europe while looking to ramp up its tourism infrastructure for people with disabilities.
The emirate will receive tourists through two weekly charter flights from the Polish tour operator Itaka from November through May, and another weekly flight with the German travel company TUI will bring visitors throughout the year. It has an existing year-round charter flight deal with the tour company Coral Travel to bring visitors from Russia.
RAKTDA has also signed up with Brussels-based European Network of Accessible Tourism (Enat) to promote tourism for people with disabilities.
The agreement is an expression of commitment to ramp up services related to accessible tourism, Haitham Mattar, the RAKTDA chief executive, said at a World Tourism Day conference in the emirate on accessible tourism. “Over the next three years, we will … honour our commitment to this code by establishing accessible tourism products and practices in the emirate.”
“We are spending 85 per cent more this year than last year on marketing, branding and partnerships,” Mr Mattar said on the sidelines of the conference.
He declined to provide investment details.
As part of the ramp-up of its tourism infrastructure, Ras Al Khaimah will open a via ferrata, or protected climbing route, on Jebel Jais in November with three ziplines, ranging from 48 metres to 300 metres. It is in talks with three companies to commission the world’s longest zip line.
Mr Mattar declined to give the length of the longest zip line, but said it would beat the existing world’s longest zip line at 2.3 kilometres in Puerto Rico.
While hotels in the emirate and the UAE are typically wheelchair-friendly, accessible tourism also includes training staff to interact with the people with disabilities, and putting in place services that go with it besides making destinations and attractions, such as shopping malls and websites, accessible for people with disabilities, said Ivor Ambrose, the Enat managing director.
Access needs could include those that come with age-related disabilities, such as mobility, visual and hearing impairments, but also include those with learning disabilities, different stature and long-term illness.
“Seniors in Europe are 65 per cent of the accessible tourism market and they make six to seven trips a year,” Mr Ambrose said.
Germany, the UK and Russia form the top three source markets for Ras Al Khaimah, followed by India.
“[Accessible tourism] is also more sustainable,” he said.
People with disabilities travel with more people, stay longer and spend longer per trip, he said.
Saleem Mogral, the general manager of Al Majid Travel and Tourism in Dubai, said the inbound market to the UAE will be phenomenal in the coming year because it gives a value for money with its infrastructure, leisure activities, entertainment parks and ease of getting a visa.
“As for accessible tourism, it will take some time to take off as you also need to think of how to take care of people with disabilities when they are here,” Mr Mogral said.
Tourism expenditure within the UAE last year was Dh95.5 billion and is expected to rise 3.3 per cent this year to touch Dh98.7 billion, Mohammed Al Muhairi, the undersecretary to the UAE Minister of Economy, told the conference.
The share of travel and tourism sector in the country’s GDP was Dh134bn, or 8.7 per cent last year.
“The Ministry of Economy is developing a national tourism strategy to coordinate effort [and] to develop and promote tourism [in the country],” he said.
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Four reasons global stock markets are falling right now
There are many factors worrying investors right now and triggering a rush out of stock markets. Here are four of the biggest:
1. Rising US interest rates
The US Federal Reserve has increased interest rates three times this year in a bid to prevent its buoyant economy from overheating. They now stand at between 2 and 2.25 per cent and markets are pencilling in three more rises next year.
Kim Catechis, manager of the Legg Mason Martin Currie Global Emerging Markets Fund, says US inflation is rising and the Fed will continue to raise rates in 2019. “With inflationary pressures growing, an increasing number of corporates are guiding profitability expectations downwards for 2018 and 2019, citing the negative impact of rising costs.”
At the same time as rates are rising, central bankers in the US and Europe have been ending quantitative easing, bringing the era of cheap money to an end.
2. Stronger dollar
High US rates have driven up the value of the dollar and bond yields, and this is putting pressure on emerging market countries that took advantage of low interest rates to run up trillions in dollar-denominated debt. They have also suffered capital outflows as international investors have switched to the US, driving markets lower. Omar Negyal, portfolio manager of the JP Morgan Global Emerging Markets Income Trust, says this looks like a buying opportunity. “Despite short-term volatility we remain positive about long-term prospects and profitability for emerging markets.”
3. Global trade war
Ritu Vohora, investment director at fund manager M&G, says markets fear that US President Donald Trump’s spat with China will escalate into a full-blown global trade war, with both sides suffering. “The US economy is robust enough to absorb higher input costs now, but this may not be the case as tariffs escalate. However, with a host of factors hitting investor sentiment, this is becoming a stock picker’s market.”
4. Eurozone uncertainty
Europe faces two challenges right now in the shape of Brexit and the new populist government in eurozone member Italy.
Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG, which has offices in Dubai, says the stand-off between between Rome and Brussels threatens to become much more serious. "As with Brexit, neither side appears willing to step back from the edge, threatening more trouble down the line.”
The European economy may also be slowing, Mr Beauchamp warns. “A four-year low in eurozone manufacturing confidence highlights the fact that producers see a bumpy road ahead, with US-EU trade talks remaining a major question-mark for exporters.”
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How to apply for a drone permit
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What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
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