Residents Helping Sustain Abu Dhabi Tourism

YAS HOTEL: ONE OF THE VENUES DRAWING VISITORS TO ABU DHABI

TDIC spokesperson insists UAE and GCC residents have contributed to Abu Dhabi’s steady tourism growth.

Strong visitor numbers from within the UAE will help sustain Abu Dhabi’s tourism drive even as the economic crisis continues to affect global occupancy rates.

Mahra Khalid Al Qassimi, spokesperson for Abu Dhabi’s Tourism Development & Investment Company, insisted that even if international visitors to the UAE capital dropped, it could still draw people from the six other emirates.

“Bear in mind our tourism is not just from abroad but also local,” she told commerce-magazine at Cityscape Abu Dhabi.

“We have seven emirates, so there are many people from Ras Al Khaimah or Sharjah or even the GCC coming here. Instead of going far away they like to come to Abu Dhabi for a weekend.”

According to the UAE tourism report for this year’s second quarter, hotel guest numbers in Abu Dhabi climbed just two per cent from 2009. It added that domestic visitors had contributed to the moderate growth.

The report said that hotel occupancy rates in Abu Dhabi and Dubai dropped nine per cent and 13 per cent respectively between January and October last year.

Fewer arrivals from Europe and US where the economic fallout was particularly tough contributed to a drop in UAE hotel occupancy rates for 2009, the report said. But it forecast a brighter outlook for the industry, with a slight growth rate expected in 2012.

While tourism in Dubai and Abu Dhabi is expected to pick up, Al Qassimi dismissed suggestions the emirates were competing for visitors.

“I find it very healthy competition and complementary to each other,” she said. “If people are looking for different things they can either find them in Abu Dhabi or in Dubai. We are sister emirates and you can enjoy them; it’s one country and package.”

Al Qassimi also said recent press coverage over two British people who were jailed for kissing in a Dubai restaurant would have little impact on UAE visitor numbers.

“Everyone should respect the rules,” she added. “That’s what I do when I go to Singapore, the UK or States; I know the rules and I have to respect that to stay on the safe side.”