12% rise in Indian arrivals

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) claims they are developing new products specifically for the India market.

Throwing light on their new initiatives, Hamad Mohammed Bin Mejren, Senior Vice President, Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism), said that India is a traditional market for them. “Some of the leading additions are the theme parks, as we mainly focus on family, which is one of the main pillars for us and makes for 70 per cent of the visitors to Dubai,” he informed. Mejren revealed they recorded a total of 1.8 million Indian arrivals in 2016. “It was a 12 per cent increase from previous year. We are confident of seeing growth with our efforts,” he added. Talking of the MICE prospects in the region, he said that they have a special division of Dubai Business Events, which is the official convention bureau of Dubai. “Business visitors compared to leisure visitors are 20 per cent to 80 per cent, but it is very important as the spend is more with them. There are several business events taking place in Dubai and many of them are Indian meetings and incentive groups. We even host event organisers free of charge for site inspections,” he said.