35% of regional travelers look for
‘reasonable cost’ accommodation;expanding low cost airlineswill spur growth;
Dubai offers tax break for mid-scale investment; less than 30% of Dubai hotel
stock is three-star and below
Reed
Travel Exhibition’s (RTE’s) annual Arabian Travel Market(ATM) 2016 roadshow
series has arrived in Dubai, continuingthe drive for key industry players to leveragemarketing
opportunitiesand explore leading industry trendsahead of the region’s largest
travel, tourism and hospitality showcase taking place in April.
Over 140 industry partners
and exhibitors representing major industry verticalsare attending the half-day
event at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC). They willtake part in
interactive open forum sessions, with this year’s spotlight theme – mid-market
travel – a key topic for discussion.The roadshow has already visited Ajman and Fujairah,and
is moving on to Ras Al Khaimah, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain.
“Traditionally
the upscale hotel segment has been driving regional hospitality sector growth
for the last decade. However, as economies continue with long-term
diversification plans led by massive infrastructure development and a future
calendar of world-leading events, tourism markets are now recognising the
potential demand for mid-market options,” said Nadege Noblet-Segers, Exhibition Manager, ATM.
Dubai's
hotel market saw the addition of 2,700 hotel keys in 2015, increasing the total
supply to 67,100 keys, according to the Jones
Lang LaSalle (JLL) UAE Real Estate
Market Overview for 2015. Dubai
Tourism estimates thatin the run-up to the emirate’s hosting of Expo 2020,
between 140,000 and 160,000 extra rooms will be required, up from the current
tally of 90,000 rooms, with an additional 10,000 rooms requiring refurbishment.
This
could add much-needed midscale room stock to the emirate’s hotel landscape,
where three-star or below room supply only accounted for 29% of total
availability in the first quarter of 2015, as per JLL data.
"Dubai continues to shed light on the importance and need for
having quality, value driven midscale lodging projects. A number of highly
attractive initiatives are set to encourage midmarket sector investment, including
the release of government land plots for development, the increasing speed of construction
permit approvals and the waiver of the 10% municipality room tax for four
years,” said Amine E. Moukarzel, President of Louvre Hotels Group MENA.
Looking
at those travelling within the region, studies support the notion that mid-market
options are top of mind. Just over a third (36%) of leisure travellers now
choose budget hotels when travelling for pleasure, with Asian expats the most
likely to opt for low cost accommodation (52%) and 35% of all respondents
stating that reasonable cost is one of the most important elements when considering
a leisure destination, according to the RTE commissioned Q3 2015 YouGov Travel Oracle insight report.Furthermore,41% of
travellers interviewed had a per person trip budget of US$1,000 or less, thus
putting cost high on the priority list.
“This
clearly demonstrates the growing appetite of travellers for a wide array of
accommodation options and offering mid-market optionsfrees up additional visitor
spend for other activities –something the UAE, and Dubai in particular, has led
the way in when developing its tourism offering,” said Noblet-Segers.
The
YouGov report also looked at business travel, with 15% of total respondents
reporting a decrease in corporate travel budget over the last 12 months, which
is highlighting an opportunity for mid-level brands to target a growing number
of budget-conscious corporate travelers.
The
visibility of special deals/promotions when selecting a hotel for business
travel was also raised in the research, with 18% of those surveyed naming
special offers as the top decision influencer.
The
number of confirmed UAE exhibitors at ATM 2016, which includes individual
emirate pavilions, currently tallies 136companies with 10 new Dubai exhibitors including DUKES Dubai,
Palazzo Versace Hotel, Nirvana Travel, Dubai Link Travel & Tours, Kite
Tourism and Lavender Group of Hotels & Hotel Apartments.
“The successful annual roadshow series provides
direct face-to-face support for exhibitors in key markets. This ensures they
are up-to-date with the latest ATM developments, initiatives and marketing
opportunities allowing them to maximize their ROI by being part of the region's
largest tourism, travel and hospitality event.
“This
interactive exhibitor partnership is a core element of our strategy, and also
works in tandem with the Dubai Government 2020 vision, and the emirate's goal
of welcoming 20 million visitors,” added Noblet-Segers.
ATM
2016 will build on the success of the previous edition with the announcement of
an additional hall as RTE looks to add to its record-breaking achievements. ATM
2015 witnessed a year-on-year visitor attendance increase of 15% to over
26,000, with the number of exhibiting companies rising by 5% to 2,873. Business
deals worth more than US$2.5 billion were signed over the four days.
For more information on
Arabian Travel Market 2016, please visit:www.arabiantravelmarket.com
