UAE travellers opting for shorter trips
TRAVELLERS FROM UAE ARE OPTING FOR SHORTER TRIPS OF HIGHER FREQUENCY
Young travellers are seeking out new destinations that are off the beaten track Mamoun Hmedan,
Managing director for the Mena and India region at Wego
Families are opting for shorter trips that allow them to unwind without having to dig deep into their wallets Shilpa Mahtani,
COO at bnbme
dubai — With the power of technology at their fingertips, travellers from the UAE are becoming smarter, braver and bolder, when it comes to making decisions on how and when they want to go on vacation and travel, experts said.
The days when residents would settle for a month long vacation once a year — often back to their home countries — are now a distant memory, signalling a shifting trend in the region’s travelling industry.
“We have noticed that young travellers seek out new destinations that are still not very commercialised and are off the beaten track; yet close enough for shorter trips of higher frequency,” said Mamoun Hmedan, managing director for the Mena and India region at online travel marketplace, Wego.
On the other hand, he noted that families still prefer to embark on one or two long vacations every year. A recent study by Visa also revealed that UAE residents have been taking 4.8 international trips in the last two years. But, this number is slated to increase to 5.4 international trips in the next two years.
“We have also noticed that while travellers from the UAE are willing to spend prudently on their holidays, they are also looking for value for money in terms of quality and service,” he said. “The region’s travellers have truly come of age, when it comes to being more experimental in their selection of new destinations and experiences. For instance, more Mena travellers are now visiting Norway, for the Northern Lights, and Nepal to scale some of the world’s tallest mountains. Even when visiting a country that they had previously travelled to, they are very willing to check out hitherto unexplored cities in search of new adventures.”
India is a vital tier one source market for us, which is providing more and more hotel guests for us each year Mubarak Al Nuaimi, Director Promotions and Overseas Offices, DCT Abu Dhabi
abu dhabi — The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi, DCT Abu Dhabi, is embarking on a three-city roadshow to India, along with partners and stakeholders, to help promote the emirate and encourage even more Indian visitors to explore Abu Dhabi.
The delegation, which includes the UAE’s national carrier Etihad Airways, Jet Airways, Yas Experiences, Dusit Thani, Royal Arabian, Air Travel Enterprise, Sofitel and Rotana, will be in India from September 17 – September 21, 2018. The roadshow will commence in New Delhi in northern India before moving on to Chennai and ending in Bengaluru in the southern part of the country.
Commenting on the announcement, Mubarak Al Nuaimi, director Promotions and Overseas Offices at DCT Abu Dhabi, said, “India is a vital tier one source market for us, which is providing more and more hotel guests for us each year. In 2017 we recorded spectacular double-digit growth from India and we are already recording further progress from the Indian market since the turn of the year.
In turn, Bejan Dinshaw, Country Manager for India at DCT Abu Dhabi, said, “Our persistent efforts have managed to reinforce India as one of the leading overseas source markets for Abu Dhabi. Our year-on-year performance has witnessed stupendous growth and this has been possible because of the impressive work done by our trade partners. These roadshows have helped our stakeholders to connect with the regional trade partners, further boosting tourism to the Emirate.” India is currently the second-largest overseas market for Abu Dhabi after China. Last year saw more than 360,000 Indians staying in Abu Dhabi’s 162 hotels and hotel apartments, an increase of more than 11 per cent compared to 2016.
Up until July 2018, more than 227,000 Indian travellers have already visited the emirate. With the opening of Warner Bros World Abu Dhabi, it is expected that there will be a dramatic surge in the growth of Indian visitors travelling to the UAE capital.