TCA Abu Dhabi eyes record inbound tourists at ATM

Abu Dhabi / WAM

Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) is leading the largest delegation it has ever taken to the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) later this month in a bid to capitalise and increase on record numbers of guest arrivals into the emirate.
The authority will be joined by 67 interested parties representing 115 products at the
region’s biggest travel and tourism fair, which is being held in Dubai between April, 24-27.
The emirate’s leading hotels, destination management companies, tour operators and attractions will be represented at Dubai World Trade Centre where more than 30,000 delegates will be using the event to network, negotiate and discover the latest industry opinions and trends. More than 4.4 million guest arrivals were recorded in Abu Dhabi during 2016, which set a new annual record, with an increase of 8% over the previous year. This year the authority has set a target to welcome 4.9 million guests into the emirate, which is a year-on-year rise of 10%, and has already welcomed impressive guest arrival figures during the first two months of this year.
During January and February, there was an increase of 5.5% in guest arrivals over the corresponding period in 2016, with 749,650 guest arrivals registered, an increase of 40,000 over the same two months in 2016.
Saif Saeed Ghobash, Director-General of TCA Abu Dhabi, said, “Abu Dhabi’s popularity as a place to visit and experience is increasing each year and our impressive guest arrivals numbers demonstrate the emirate’s growing international appeal as a value-for-money destination. We are targeting a 10 percent increase in the number of guest arrivals this year with our strategic focus on six specific markets which we believe offer the best growth potential, the UK, Germany, India, China, United States and the GCC region.
“Already we have registered strong figures this year which is encouraging and we expect to further reap the benefits of our global destination campaign aimed at encouraging travellers to experience Abu Dhabi’s extraordinary stories throughout the rest of the year. ATM, along with other prestigious international travel shows such as ITB Berlin and WTM in London, enables us to position Abu Dhabi as a distinctive global destination built on unique experiences and rich cultural heritage.”
Joining the delegation at the Abu Dhabi pavilion for the first time this year will be Abu Dhabi Airports Company, Abu Dhabi Health Authority, TDIC, Cleveland Clinic, Department for Economic Development, Tourism Police and the General Directorate of Residence and Foreign Affairs. The pavilion will be split across Abu Dhabi’s three distinct regions – Al Dhafra, Al Ain and Abu Dhabi city, with stakeholders allocated space according to the
region they are representing.