The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) recently released a report suggesting the worst is over for global tourism and the industry, as a whole, is on the road to recovery in 2010.
Last year was undoubtedly one of the toughest in recent times. To cope, companies and tourism bodies were forced to employ many tactics to combat the recession and to compound matters, the H1N1 virus hit, forcing countries to close their borders and reducing global air travel.
The industry experienced a slump in the second half of 2008 – a trend which carried on throughout 2009 with hotels the world over reporting sharp declines in revenue per available room and international tourist arrivals reduced by seven per cent worldwide.
However, here in the Middle East, regional tourism figures grew by around six per cent, a clear sign that this region is one of the most dynamic and buoyant anywhere.
One sector that has continued to flourish throughout 2009 and into 2010 is the cruise industry. At Arabian Travel Market 2009 Royal Caribbean International announced plans to enter the region for the first time – its first ship, Brilliance of the Seas, arrived in Dubai for its inaugural cruise on January 18.
Costa Cruises also recently announced that it will have a new ship arriving in Dubai this month.
Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain and Oman have all invested in new cruise terminals to welcome the growing number of cruise passengers to their cities.
Dubai’s new cruise terminal, opening this month, will accommodate 120 vessels and more than 325,000 passengers - 65,000 more than in 2009.
Despite reports that the number of hotel projects planned in the Middle East showed a decline of 17 per cent in the third quarter of 2009, some companies bucked worldwide industry trends. Rezidor Hotel Group had a record year in the GCC, opening eight hotels with a further 15 planned in 2010.
And in aviation Dubai International Airport announced it received 40.9 million travellers last year, maintaining its position as the world’s fastest-growing airport. In addition, both Etihad Airways and Emirates Airline announced new routes for 2010.
We can see from these examples there are many companies in the region which are cautiously upbeat with their expansion plans; these companies will be the lynch pins for Middle East recovery efforts.
The UNWTO also reported that the exhibitions industry showed resilience in the first half of last year. This is something I am happy to verify. Arabian Travel Market had a very successful year in 2009 with 2,100 exhibitors and stand-sharers, from 69 countries. The sign-up for 2010 is already extremely healthy with 90 per cent of overall space contracted – which is significantly up on this time last year, itself one of the best-attended shows in our 17 year history.
By Mark Walsh, group exhibitions director, Reed Travel Exhibitions – organiser of Arabian Travel Market.