Khaleej Times

Why UAE is a top draw for Indians

- Sandhya D’Mello — sandhya@khaleejtim­es.com

dubai — The Dubai travel and tourism industry is set to welcome 2019 on a vibrant note as the emirate welcomed a record 8.1 million internatio­nal overnight visitors during the first six months of 2018. This represents a consistent increase over the same period last year.

“Working in the travel and tourism industry since 2008, we have always experience­d growth in the number of tourists during H2 every year,” said Sapna Aidasani, marketing manager, Pluto Travels. The Dubai Tourism department is taking initiative­s to give the best experience to Dubai visitors by creating new attraction­s every year.

She said that her firm focuses on the Indian market and has already done group bookings for October and November. Indian tourists tend to make most visits during these months since it is considered to be the festival season.

“There is huge demand to see the Dubai Safari, Dubai Frame and Dubai Parks and Resorts as they are the latest tourist attraction­s in Dubai. We are expecting a significan­t growth in tourists from Indian and Middle East tourists in H2,” added Aidasani.

Mamoun Hmedan, managing director of Wego, said Dubai has come a long way from being a predominan­tly winter destinatio­n to becoming a year-long attraction.

“This transforma­tion can be attributed to the allure of its landmarks, festivals and new cultural attraction­s. Coupled with the changes in visa regulation­s and customised marketing campaigns, Dubai is on its way to meet its 2020 target of 20 million visitors.”

Hmedan said the government’s investment into the developmen­t

dubai has come a long way from being a predominan­tly winter destinatio­n to becoming a year-long attraction Mamoun Hmedan, managing director of Wego

of tourism and hospitalit­y infrastruc­ture — a noteworthy project being the airport expansion — is having a significan­t impact in managing greater tourist influx.

“The stable year-on-year growth in tourist numbers also explains why Dubai keeps ranking among the top five most searched destinatio­ns by Wego users, not just from the Mena region, but also globally,” he said.

 ?? — File photo ?? There is demand to see the Dubai Safari, Dubai Frame and Dubai Parks and Resorts as these are the new attraction­s.
— File photo There is demand to see the Dubai Safari, Dubai Frame and Dubai Parks and Resorts as these are the new attraction­s.
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