Tourism tips

Dubai has maintained its tourism growth momentum with 5.18 million international overnight visitors in the first quarter of 2024, marking an 11 per cent year-on-year increase. The data was released by Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) at the 31st edition of Arabian Travel Market (ATM), which opened today.

As part of the Dhofar Governorate’s preparations for the launch of the Khareef Dhofar 2024 activities and in cooperation with the Ministry of Heritage and Tourism to promote the tourism season in Dhofar Governorate, the Dhofar Municipality participated in the Arabian Travel Market 2024 exhibition, which is hosted in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, from May 6 to 9. This participation was under the wing of the Omani Ministry of Heritage and Tourism.

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) 2024 Economic Impact Research (EIR) has revealed Italy’s Travel & Tourism sector contributed €215BN, representing 10.5% of Italy’s total economic output last year, underscoring the sector’s prominence as a backbone of the Italian economy. The sector also proved a significant source of employment in 2023, breaking all records generating nearly 185,000 new jobs, raising the total to 2.97MN nationwide, representing one in every eight jobs across the country.

Hatta Resorts and its Wadi Hub is proudly taking part in this year’s edition of the annual Arabian Travel Market (ATM), which opened yesterday and will run until 9 May at Dubai World Trade Centre. Known for glamping and its impressive line-up of exhilarating adventures amidst the picturesque natural landscape of the Hajar Mountains, the Hatta region is an all-rounded haven for a quick city escape. As Dubai’s largest nature reserve, Hatta is a multi-faceted sustainable destination that has an undeniable appeal for those seeking to relax or to engage in their next thrilling adventure. With over 351,000 visitors from September 2023 to April 2024, Hatta Resorts and its Wadi Hub had a successful season welcoming guests from the UAE and across the globe — a remarkable 40.4% increase to last season’s figures. Visitors to the Hatta stand, located in the Department of Economy and Tourism pavilion, at the conference, can also expect an exploratory introduction to the resort through visual and sensory demonstrations highlighting the resort’s offerings from the perspective of travellers.

Gulf-wide collaboration, ease of inter-regional travel and infrastructure development were placed under the microscope at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2024, which saw a selection of policymakers discuss the streamlining of the GCC’s thriving tourism industry. The 31st edition of ATM is being hosted at Dubai World Travel Centre (DWTC) until Thursday 9 May.

Emirates has signed a number of Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) on the first day of Arabian Travel Market (ATM) with Tourism Malaysia, Türkiye Tourism Promotion and Development Agency (TGA) and the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce. These agreements demonstrate the airline’s commitment to entice more travellers across its network of more than 140 destinations to experience the sights, culture and attractions of each destination, in addition to supporting travel opportunities for local UAE companies and SMEs.

Aseer Region Development Authority (ASDA) will join worldwide tourism leaders at ATM annual event in Dubai, to officially launch the new Aseer brand identity regionally, following a local launch and VIP ceremony held in Rijal Alma the previous week.

Nikos Chardalias, Governor of the Attica Region, Greece, has hailed the role played by the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) in Dubai in bringing together all tourism and travel companies, airlines, and industry stakeholders from around the world under one roof.

Capitalising on China’s projected tourism growth was a key topic at yesterday’s Market Insights Summit at Arabian Travel Market (ATM). The summit, which took place on the Global Stage at the Middle East’s leading travel and tourism exhibition, explored the potential of the developing markets such as China. 

At U.S. Travel’s IPW – the largest generator of international inbound travel to the United States – Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman shared a vision to make travel a national priority, solve barriers to visitation growth, and become the most-visited nation in the world.

India is rapidly emerging as a crucial source market for global tourism, driven by significant economic growth, demographic shifts, and infrastructural improvements, as highlighted on the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2024 Future Stage, as the Middle East’s leading travel and tourism event returned to the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) for its 31st year. During the session Unlocking the True Potential of Indian Travellers, Virendra Jain, CEO and Co-Founder of VIDEC, a travel, tourism and hospitality boutique advisory and analytics firm, shared key insights, including market opportunity assessments, channel and distribution analysis, characteristics and behaviours of Indian travellers and projections of Indian outbound travel trends over the next decade.

Tourism Malaysia participates in the 31st edition of Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2024, showcasing the country’s latest attractions and destinations to attract more tourists from West Asia. The four-day prestigious event held at the Dubai World Trade Centre from 6 to 9 May 2024 marks Malaysia’s 31st year of participation, demonstrating its enduring commitment to this burgeoning market.

Miral, the leading creator of immersive destinations and experiences in Abu Dhabi, announced record-breaking visitation numbers in 2023 across Yas Island and Saadiyat Island, witnessing an extraordinary surge in destination visits and setting a new benchmark. Revealed during Arabian Travel Market 2024, Yas Island recorded over 34 million visits, a rise of 38% compared to 2022, which recorded 24.9 million. Similarly, Saadiyat Island saw a 44% visitation growth compared to 2022.

Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett is calling for a more aggressive push for human capital development which is critical to future proof tourism for small island states like Jamaica. The Minister made the call during ‘The New Age of Island Tourism’ panel at Arabian Travel Market in Dubai. “The future of tourism will depend on innovation, agility and creativity from our workers who are at the heart of our hospitality machinery. It is through the dedication and commitment of our tourism workers that the industry has been able to recover from the pandemic and grow.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) led 64 Thai tourism entrepreneurs and associations to showcase Thailand’s tourism attractions, products and services at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2024 currently taking place in Dubai. Running until Thursday at Dubai World Trade Centre, the ATM 2024 is claimed by the organiser to be world’s third largest tourism promotion event this year.

The Saudi Tourism Authority (STA) marked the start of this year’s Arabian Travel Market (ATM) by showcasing the Kingdom’s spectacular summer destinations to trade partners as the country’s tourism sector continues to go from strength to strength, said the Saudi Press Agency on Tuesday.

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett is urging Jamaicans to seize the multitude of opportunities available within the tourism sector, emphasising the industry’s potential to generate significant economic benefits for the entire nation.

Everyone at the IPW travel trade show in Los Angeles was banking on doing big business for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, but several tour operators told us much of it would be coming from corporations and large groups.

Disney’s executives said Tuesday they see strong attendance at the company’s theme parks and said they would be “leaning heavily” into cruises in the coming years.

Many American tourism marketers are well-paid. Visit California CEO Caroline Beteta recently collected more than $1.5 million in compensation. Brand USA CEO Chris Thompson recently took home over $700,000.

Namibian authorities have heavily criticised a group of tourists who posed naked on the popular ‘Big Daddy’ dune in the Namib desert.