The UAE plans to bring millions more tourists into the country in the next five years, promoting adventure tourism alongside culture and tradition in its cities, deserts and mountains.
Hotel groups and travel agents on Sunday set out plans on the opening day of Arabian Travel Market (ATM) to draw in China's huge middle class, Russia's aspiring globetrotters and more of the millions of Europeans who visit every year.
Mid-price hotels charging less than Dh550 ($150) per night or less are crucial, travel experts said, as is “offering more than just shopping and looking at tall buildings”.
Last month Colliers International, ATM's research partner, estimated that 8.3 million visitors from Europe will visit the GCC by 2023 - 1.9 million more than in 2018. The bulk of that will be in the UAE, with a forecast 6.15 million.
“You simply cannot expect to do mass tourism by only offering people seven-star hotels,” said Tim Cordon, Middle East senior area vice president for the Radisson hotel group.
“It needs to be competitive and we have seen that recently with the average cost of a hotel room in Dubai staying around the Dh550 mark."
That compares to 2014 when the average daily rate was Dh882, according to consultancy STR Global.
Dubai - which is the fourth most visited city in the world after Paris, London and Bangkok at number one - has set a target of 20 million visitors by 2020, which would require a significant increase from 2018 when 15.9 million visited. It has been said Expo 2020 Dubai will bring that boost.
Sheikh Hamdan last year set a goal of 25 million visitors by 2025, hoping to unseat the three rivals.
You simply cannot expect to do mass tourism by only offering people seven-star hotels
“If any other city in the world was trying to achieve these numbers you just wouldn’t think it was possible,” said Mark Willis, chief executive officer of the Accor Hotel group for the Middle East and Africa region.
“However, this is Dubai where anything is possible.”
Arabian Travel Market is taking place this week Dubai's World Trade Centre.
More than 39,000 travel professionals, government ministers and international media are attending.
Dubai received 15.92 million visitors in 2018 with India being the top source market with more than 2 million visitors.
Saudi Arabia was the second most popular market for tourism in Dubai with 1.6 million visitors, followed by the UK (1.2 million) and China (857,000), which climbed up to fourth spot thanks to a 12 per cent year on year increase.
The largest percentage increase in visitors came from Russia (678,000) - a 28 per cent year-on-year rise.
Mr Willis said the recent $3.4 billion trade deal between the UAE and China was only going to help increase the number of visitors to this region.
“Europe and Russia have always been fantastic markets for Dubai and that is not going to change,” he said.
“China however stands out. The agreement the UAE signed with China is only going to increase the level of visitors from there to this region.”
The other emirates have a key role to play in the 25 million by 2025 target, said managing director of travel website wego.com
“It is very feasible that Dubai will reach this number and part of that is down to the diversification of the other emirates,” said Mamoun Hmedan.
“While people still associate Dubai with being a shopping destination, Sharjah is seen as offering a more authentic Arabic experience while Ras Al Khaimah is seen as an adventure destination.
“It’s no longer just about going shopping or looking at the tallest buildings.”
Leander De Wit, Yas Waterworld Abu Dhabi general manager, said there had been a clearer strategy in recent years to draw in more visitors to the country.
“That is starting to pay off and while I think the locations where visitors are coming from won’t change, the numbers will certainly expand especially among younger people.”
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Which honey takes your fancy?
Al Ghaf Honey
The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year
Sidr Honey
The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest
Samar Honey
The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Results
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Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
The biog
Favourite film: Motorcycle Dairies, Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday, Kagemusha
Favourite book: One Hundred Years of Solitude
Holiday destination: Sri Lanka
First car: VW Golf
Proudest achievement: Building Robotics Labs at Khalifa University and King’s College London, Daughters
Driverless cars or drones: Driverless Cars
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
The Word for Woman is Wilderness
Abi Andrews, Serpent’s Tail
Results
Ashraf Ghani 50.64 per cent
Abdullah Abdullah 39.52 per cent
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar 3.85 per cent
Rahmatullah Nabil 1.8 per cent
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How Islam's view of posthumous transplant surgery changed
Transplants from the deceased have been carried out in hospitals across the globe for decades, but in some countries in the Middle East, including the UAE, the practise was banned until relatively recently.
Opinion has been divided as to whether organ donations from a deceased person is permissible in Islam.
The body is viewed as sacred, during and after death, thus prohibiting cremation and tattoos.
One school of thought viewed the removal of organs after death as equally impermissible.
That view has largely changed, and among scholars and indeed many in society, to be seen as permissible to save another life.
