Dubai tourism arrivals are already outpacing official targets as passenger traffic through the airport topped 5 million for a fifth consecutive month.
Tourism chiefs now expect visitors could peak at more than 25 million by the end of the decade if the emirate succeeds in its Expo 2020 bid.
Dubai's Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) announced this month that it was seeking to double the number of tourists to 20 million by 2020. To achieve this, tourism must grow at a rate of 9 to 10 per cent a year.
Growth in the first three months of 2013 was 10.5 per cent compared with the same period a year ago, according to Helal Almarri, the director general of the DTCM.
"The indicators are very positive," Mr Almarri said. "All indications for Q2 and Q3 are very positive. What Dubai has to offer in the vicinity of its city in terms of variety and in terms of quality of offering is second-to-none globally."
Mr Almarri said he was confident that tourist numbers would remain buoyant during the hot summer period and the holy month of Ramadan, which starts in July.
"Our summer campaign this year is building on the variety of things there are to do," he said. "There's lots of events on for the kids to enjoy. And during Ramadan, for people travelling from outside the region, it's a period where they can really see the culture and the heritage and the religion. We've had a lot of very positive feedback from European travellers who've enjoyed their time here."
When surveyed, 65 per cent of visitors say they are coming to the UAE to understand Emirati culture and religion, according to the tourism chief.
Mr Almarri said that he was confident of reaching the figure of 20 million tourists a year by 2020 regardless of whether the emirate wins the competition to hold Expo 2020. The tourism chief said that winning the world exhibition would draw an extra 5 million tourists who come solely for that event.
Separately, passenger traffic through Dubai International Airport rose 18.7 per cent in April from a year earlier and is expected to maintain that rate of growth in coming months, airport authorities said yesterday. Passenger traffic climbed to 5.42 million people in April, topping 5 million for a fifth consecutive month.
"It is very clear that our growth rate has picked up and that should continue at a similar pace into the next quarter and beyond," said Paul Griffiths, the chief executive of Dubai Airports.
Luring travellers out of the airport into Dubai is a key strategy for boosting visitor numbers, Mr Almarri said.
"One of our segments of traveller is the transit visitor," he said. "Many of the people travelling through Dubai airport [for] a significant portion of them it's the first time they are going through Dubai. So it's their first visit to Dubai and getting them out of the airport even if it's for a short trip - that generally leads to them coming back with their families for a one-week or a two-week holiday."
Mr Almarri was appointed to the post of head of DTCM at the start of this year. He said one of the biggest challenges in his new job is managing growth.
"Growth is always a challenge and you have to manage it," he said. "You don't want a situation where you push too fast on marketing campaigns and more people want to come here than we have capacity for."
lgutcher@thenational.ae
Russia's Muslim Heartlands
Dominic Rubin, Oxford
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8
Power: 503hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 685Nm at 2,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Price: from Dh850,000
On sale: now
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Virtual banks explained
What is a virtual bank?
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority defines it as a bank that delivers services through the internet or other electronic channels instead of physical branches. That means not only facilitating payments but accepting deposits and making loans, just like traditional ones. Other terms used interchangeably include digital or digital-only banks or neobanks. By contrast, so-called digital wallets or e-wallets such as Apple Pay, PayPal or Google Pay usually serve as intermediaries between a consumer’s traditional account or credit card and a merchant, usually via a smartphone or computer.
What’s the draw in Asia?
Hundreds of millions of people under-served by traditional institutions, for one thing. In China, India and elsewhere, digital wallets such as Alipay, WeChat Pay and Paytm have already become ubiquitous, offering millions of people an easy way to store and spend their money via mobile phone. Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines are also among the world’s biggest under-banked countries; together they have almost half a billion people.
Is Hong Kong short of banks?
No, but the city is among the most cash-reliant major economies, leaving room for newcomers to disrupt the entrenched industry. Ant Financial, an Alibaba Group Holding affiliate that runs Alipay and MYBank, and Tencent Holdings, the company behind WeBank and WeChat Pay, are among the owners of the eight ventures licensed to create virtual banks in Hong Kong, with operations expected to start as early as the end of the year.
Getting there
The flights
Flydubai operates up to seven flights a week to Helsinki. Return fares to Helsinki from Dubai start from Dh1,545 in Economy and Dh7,560 in Business Class.
The stay
Golden Crown Igloos in Levi offer stays from Dh1,215 per person per night for a superior igloo; www.leviniglut.net
Panorama Hotel in Levi is conveniently located at the top of Levi fell, a short walk from the gondola. Stays start from Dh292 per night based on two people sharing; www. golevi.fi/en/accommodation/hotel-levi-panorama
Arctic Treehouse Hotel in Rovaniemi offers stays from Dh1,379 per night based on two people sharing; www.arctictreehousehotel.com
About Seez
Company name/date started: Seez, set up in September 2015 and the app was released in August 2017
Founder/CEO name(s): Tarek Kabrit, co-founder and chief executive, and Andrew Kabrit, co-founder and chief operating officer
Based in: Dubai, with operations also in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon
Sector: Search engine for car buying, selling and leasing
Size: (employees/revenue): 11; undisclosed
Stage of funding: $1.8 million in seed funding; followed by another $1.5m bridge round - in the process of closing Series A
Investors: Wamda Capital, B&Y and Phoenician Funds
