2022 Arabian Travel Market could witness a resurgence in brand-conscious travellers

 

RX Global, the organiser of Arabian Travel Market (ATM), has revealed that 2022 could witness a resurgence in brand-conscious travellers, following commentary it received from delegates attending its 2021 in-person and virtual seminars about responsible tourism.

Island resorts leading recovery in global leisure travel

 

    Emirates increases weekly schedule to Maldives & Seychelles over Easter holidays as Middle East demand soars

·       Sri Lanka, Cyprus and Greek islands also preparing for summer influx of international arrivals       

·       Tourists attracted by easy access, reasonable restrictions, low COVID cases, good vaccination rates and a natural environment with quiet beaches

ATM Virtual draws almost 12,000 online attendees

• Debut Arabian Travel Market Virtual event registers 11,977 attendees
• Participants represented 140 countries

 

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 22 June 2020: Travel trade professionals from across the world gathered in their thousands to attend the three-day Arabian Travel Market (ATM) Virtual, which debuted on 1-3 June 2020.

The online event which attracted almost 12,000 attendees from 140 countries around the world, focused on the ME region’s tourism sector, addressed emerging trends, as well as the opportunities and the challenges which are directly impacting the travel and tourism industry amid the COVID-19 global health pandemic and beyond.

In total, the event facilitated 11,301 prescheduled one-to-one meetings, of which over 92% were rated four or five, out of five stars. A series of one-to-one pre-scheduled 30-minute meetings between editors, exhibitors, and buyers also took place, and 23 live video sessions included Q&As and polls which ran alongside the presentations to enable audience interaction. Overall, the webinars had more than 24,000 views over the course of three days.

 

Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market (ATM), said: “Considering that this was a debut event, the outcome clearly validated our strategy to virtually support and guide the region’s travel and tourism industry. The resilience and determination to get through these challenging times was clearly evident.

“It also underscored our commitment to organise an event with positive and constructive business insight and opinion, as well as offering networking opportunities across the entire community.

“There were so many highlights during the event, that it would be extremely difficult to single out any particular session. The event was seamless, each session complemented the next and it is also fair to say that the whole was greater than the sum of its parts.” 

 

The highlight of the opening day was an interview with Sir Tim Clark, President of Emirates Airline. During a discussion with aviation expert John Strickland, Sir Tim predicted a degree of tourism recovery during the course of 2021, and expectations for Emirates to be operating its network prior to COVID-19 by 22/23, 23/24.

 

Another key event that took place on the first day was the Arival-run OTAs & Distribution for Tours & Attractions Post-COVID session, which explored the changes amid the rise of online travel agencies (OTAs), the re-opening of operations and what this means for tour and attraction operators across the Middle East.

 

The much anticipated The Virtual ATM China Forum took an in-depth look at the potential of the Chinese outbound leisure market post COVID-19’s closed borders and what overseas destinations and attractions can do to reassure and convince Chinese tourists, of whom 45% are willing to travel overseas, that their destination is safe to visit. 

 

Other issues discussed included, technology, the role of international industry associations and the need for destinations to change their propositions, with a focus on safety, trust, and consumer confidence.

 

Another highlight of the second day was the live webinar ‘Bouncing Back: Tourism Strategies for the Future’ where Keith Tan, CEO, Singapore Tourism Board, underscored the importance of governments implementing ‘green lanes’ to aid tourism recovery and promote bilateral travel agreements. He cited the common standards Singapore and China have implemented to allow travel between the two countries.

 

The third and final day included the interview with Wizz Air CEO, Joszef Varadi where he confirmed his ambitions for the low-cost carrier’s impending move to operate out of Abu Dhabi, and their plans to have 100 aircrafts serving the GCC markets by 2035.

 

Other highlights on the final day included the International Travel Investment Conference summit, the responsible tourism session, ‘The Implications of COVID-19 for Responsible Hospitality’, and the Influencers’ session, ‘Make Your Connection: Influencers as a Key Part of the Marketing Mix – COVID-19 The Road to Recovery.

 

“As an organiser we have learnt a lot from this virtual experience and to give our seminar programme broader reach and greater inclusivity, we will certainly be looking to integrate more virtual elements into our physical show next year,” said Curtis.

The sessions and other content are now available on demand via the WTM Global Hub. To view, please go to: https://hub.wtm.com/atm-virtual/

Tags: Arabian Travel Market Virtual event

 

Aviation industry could return “to some kind of normality during the course of 2021” says Sir Tim Clark

·      President of Emirates Airline has outlined the company’s response to COVID-19 and its impact on their future strategy during the opening session of ATM Virtual

·       ATM Virtual to take place until Wednesday 3 June

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 1 June 2020: During the opening session of Arabian Travel Market’s inaugural virtual event, ATM Virtual, aviation industry veteran Sir Tim Clark, President of Emirates Airline, has outlined the impact of COVID-19 on the aviation industry, as well as the measures implemented by the company in response to the pandemic.

 

John-Strickland-director-of-jls-consulting

Speaking during an interview with respected aviation expert John Strickland, Director of JLS Consulting, on the opening day of the virtual event, Sir Tim, said: “I don't think in my career I have seen anything like this, it is a huge structural change to our industry. In general terms, we have seen a US$15 trillion torpedo hit the global economy and its crippled many, many sectors, with transportation and leisure just a few of the casualties.”

 

“My own belief is there is sufficient resilience in the global economy to take this trauma as long as it doesn’t go on for too long. If we can accept there is a finite point where we will see the back of this, with adjustments to the way we go about our lives, the way we go about our business, and our travel aspirations, we will see things moving back to some kind of normality during the course of 2021,” he added.

With many fleets around the world grounded and potentially some not coming back, Sir Tim, who has dedicated 35 years to growing Emirates Airline to become the largest long-haul airline in the world and helping transform Dubai into a major global travel hub, also discussed the future of the airline.

 

“Planning for resumption is quite complicated, needless to say, we have a 24/7 watch on it as countries start to relax their access requirements but I see some difficulties as I don’t believe they will open at the pace we would like. I think there will be a degree of what they started to call the bubble effect, i.e. countries selecting other countries that are relatively COVID free and therefore allowing services between those countries.

“We’ve seen the beginning of this and until we get much more clarity on quarantine, flight protocols and how airports are going to handle these passengers when they eventually get moving, it’s still early days in terms of understanding what is going to happen.”

Speaking more generally about the aviation industry, Sir Tim concluded by outlining the important role that governments play around the world, understanding what the airline industry requires, he said:

“The aviation business is in a critical and very fragile state at the moment and needs all the help it can get. Access, getting passengers and freight moving again, not necessarily to the levels pre-COVID, but at least getting things going to give the cash lifelines they need, otherwise I’m not optimistic that some of the carriers here today, having already been significantly bailed out, will get through the next few months.”

The aviation industry will be a recurring theme throughout the three-day virtual event and will include an interview with aviation heavyweight, CEO of Wizz Air, Joszef Varadi on Wednesday 3 June.

Varadi is set to discuss the measures implemented by the budget airline which has enabled it to continue operating during the pandemic. He will also be discussing the forthcoming opening of Wizz Air’s subsidiary in Abu Dhabi, in partnership with Abu Dhabi Developmental Holding Company.

In addition, a webinar by Cirium, the data intelligence experts, will showcase the power of analytics in supporting business performance.

The webinar, which takes place on the final day of ATM Virtual, will be led by Cirium’s Paul Trewin and Seera Group’s Data Vice President, Louise Blake. The webinar, which will be focused on the aviation industry, and will utilise Cirium’s years of analytical experience, will highlight the power of analytics and outline new ideas for incorporating analytics into team performance.

ATM Virtual features a range of comprehensive webinars, live conference sessions, roundtables, speed networking events, and one-to-one meetings.

 

Highlights on day two will include The Virtual ATM China Forum, which will focus on the recovery of outbound travel from China, taking place from 11am – 12pm GST (8am – 9am BST) and the debut Travel Forward Virtual event, featuring the ‘Catapulting Resilience Through Technology and Analytics’ session. A live webinar titled ‘Bouncing Back: Tourism Strategies for the Future’ will see a range of industry experts discussing how the long-term tourism development strategies implemented by the region’s governments will become a catalyst for recovery when travel patterns adjust to the new norm. 

 

Travel Forward will include Facebook-led session, ‘Conversational Commerce for Travel brands’, which will look into the potential of conversational commerce and how it can help businesses keep their customers connected and engaged. The day will conclude with the ‘Technology and the New Normal’ session, hosted by Uber, which will discuss how technology can support businesses post-Covid-19. 

 

There will also be a series of independently moderated, roundtables designed to discuss emerging hot topics such as domestic travel, luxury travel trends, corporate travel, food travel and tourism recovery plans. Day two will kick-off with the ‘Effects that Covid-19 could have on food-driven travel’ live webinar from 10am – 10.45am GST (7am – 7.45am BST), moderated by Caterer Middle East editor Simon Ritchie.

 

Other round tables are available on demand and include ‘The Future of Corporate Travel’ led by Breaking Travel News; The Changing Face of Luxury Family Travel hosted by Destinations of the World News; ‘The New Normal: What the Future Looks Like for the Hotel and Tourism Industry’ and ‘Middle East: The New Asian Source Market’ both by Trav Talk Middle East, as well as TTN Middle East’s ‘Challenges Faced Today by the Travel Providers’ and ‘Latest travel updates, projections and upcoming trends and focus on near-, mid- and long-term travel prospects’.

Also, key travel editors and leading travel and tourism experts have written blogs on topical subjects spanning not just regional but international industry verticals. 

 

The Ministry of Tourism Saudi Arabia and the Italian Tourist Board are both Gold sponsors of ATM Virtual.

ATM Virtual takes place from today, Monday 1st to Wednesday 3rd June 2020. To register for the event, please visit: atmvirtual.eventnetworking.com/register/

Tags: ATM Virtual, aviation

Organisers of Arabian Travel Market announce the launch of ATM Virtual

·       ATM Virtual to feature a host of webinars, conference sessions, roundtables, speed networking, and one-to-one meetings

·       Topics include tourism strategies for the future, the hotel landscape post-COVID-19, tourism resilience, aviation industry insights, technology and sustainability amongst others

·       The event will take place on 1-3 June 2020

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 6 May 2020: Arabian Travel Market (ATM) has officially announced the launch of ATM Virtual, a three-day event that will take place from 1-3 June 2020.

The event, which underscores ATM’s commitment to delivering positive business and networking opportunities to the region’s vast travel and tourism community, will focus on emerging trends, opportunities, and the challenges which are directly impacting the tourism industry amid the COVID-19 global health pandemic.

Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market, said: “Our debut virtual event provides us with the opportunity to work closely with the ATM community and ensure we can support the travel and tourism industry in rebounding as quickly and efficiently as possible.

“We will address the impact the global health pandemic has had on the travel and tourism industry and discuss a road map to recovery, identifying the trends shaping the future of the industry and the ‘new normal’ that lies ahead.”

ATM Virtual, which will take place over three days, will feature comprehensive webinars, live conference sessions, roundtables, speed networking events, one-to-one meetings, as well as facilitating new connections and offering a wide range of online business opportunities.

With up to four live high-level sessions each day, industry experts will address a range of topics including tourism strategies for the future, the hotel landscape in a post-COVID-19 world, and the resilience of the travel industry, as well as exploring emerging travel technology and sustainability trends, amongst other key topics.

Sessions on the first day of the virtual event include, amongst others, Communicating and Building Confidence Now and The Hotel landscape in a post-COVID-19 world.

Day two will include the Virtual ATM China Forum and Networking sessions as well as Bouncing Back: Tourism Strategies for the Future, and Catapulting Resilience Through Technology and Analytics. On day three, the event will conclude with the International Travel Investment Conference.

The packed agenda will also feature interviews with high-calibre aviation keynote speakers providing a detailed update on the aviation industry. It will also feature a session run by Arival, focused on the rise of online travel agencies (OTAs), the re-opening of operations, and what this means for tour and attraction operators across the Middle East.

One-to-one pre-scheduled 30-minute meetings between editors, exhibitors, and buyers will also take place, while live video sessions will include Q&As and polls which will be run alongside the presentations to enable audience interaction.

A series of independently moderated, pre-recorded on-demand roundtables have been designed to discuss emerging hot topics such as domestic travel, luxury travel trends, corporate travel, and tourism recovery plans. Also, key travel editors and leading travel and tourism experts will be writing blogs on topical subjects spanning not just regional but international industry verticals.

While a host of hour-long speed networking sessions, between key buyers and exhibitors, will culminate in over 1,400 5-minute meetings that can then be extended into more in-depth meetings where a business need is identified.

“For exhibitors from this region, the dedicated networking event will also have one Middle East-focused session per day, as well as sessions for buyers, focused on purchasing European and Asian products, plus a session specifically targeting Chinese buyers,” added Curtis.

In addition to ATM Virtual, the WTM Portfolio has launched a new online portal, the WTM Global Hub, which went live on 23 April 2020.

The portal, which was set up to connect and support travel industry professionals around the world will offer the latest news and advisory to help exhibitors, buyers and others in the travel industry face up to the challenges of the global coronavirus pandemic.

The platform, which will provide content in English, Arabic, Spanish and Portuguese, will provide a wide range of webinars, podcasts, videos, news and blogs from key industry figures, providing travel professionals with a wealth of information, advice, and support to cope with the current crisis and plan for the future.

ATM Virtual takes place from Monday 1st to Wednesday 3rd June 2020. To register for the event please visit: atmvirtual.eventnetworking.com/register/

Tags: Arabian Travel Market, ATM Virtual 

ARABIAN TRAVEL MARKET MOVED TO 2021

In light of the changing global situation relating to the COVID-19 virus, we have continued to monitor the impact it is having not just on our industry, but on society in general. Many meetings took place with the Dubai World Trade Centre and we reviewed other options to organise an event in the last quarter. However, after consultation with our key stakeholders and after listening to our industry, ultimately it became apparent that the best course of action, and with everyone’s best interests in mind, is to postpone the event to 2021.

Therefore, Arabian Travel Market will now be held at the Dubai World Trade Centre on 16-19 May 2021, following the holy month of Ramadan and the Eid Al Fitr celebrations.

Decisions like this are never taken lightly. Discussions took place at the highest level both internally and externally with local and federal government, partners, sponsors, exhibitors, and attendees who all endorsed our evaluation of the current situation and our decision to act once again, without delay. 

We appreciate that this is disappointing news, however, everyone’s health and safety is our top priority.  We are fully aware of the important role that ATM plays for industry professionals right across the Middle East region and beyond, and we believe it is our responsibility to deliver a safe and successful event when we are able to do so.

The live show will be rescheduled to 2021, but until then we’ll keep you connected. We are firmly focused on delivering positive business and networking opportunities to the Middle East’s vast travel and tourism community and as such are excited to announce that we will be running an ATM Virtual Event from 1-3 June 2020.  Join webinars, live conference sessions, speed networking events, one-on-one meetings, plus so much more keeping the conversations going and delivering new connections and business opportunities online.  We will be in touch with you separately on details on how to take part.

In the meantime, we will try to do our utmost to support you all in preparation for the show in 2021.

Once again, we would like to thank each and every one of you for your continued patience and ongoing support and we look forward to welcoming you to Arabian Travel Market in 2021, which we believe will coincide with our industry, well on its way towards full recovery.

A STATEMENT FROM REED EXHIBITIONS – ORGANISERS OF ARABIAN TRAVEL MARKET

Reed Travel Exhibitions has announced that it has postponed Arabian Travel Market (ATM) to 28th June – 1st July 2020, at the Dubai World Trade Centre in Dubai, U.A.E.

We at Arabian Travel Market want to express our concern for everyone impacted by coronavirus. Like all of you, we have carefully monitored the global health crisis related to COVID-19 coronavirus.  Our top priority is the health and safety of everyone involved in Arabian Travel Market; employees, partners, customers and exhibitors.

Due to the escalation of the COVID-19 epidemic around the world, after consultation with all our stakeholders, the venue management, supporting associations, and in alignment with the advice from the UAE public health authorities regarding travel to and from impacted countries, we have taken the decision to postpone our event which was due to take place on 19 – 22 April 2020 in Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC).

Whilst the UAE is following the strictest medical and hygiene protocols in line with international standards, we have made this decision in the best interest of the industry to enable us to organise an event which provides effective participation and experience for all. The announcement has been made at the earliest opportunity to give as much notice as possible to all stakeholders enabling them to make the necessary arrangements to reschedule their plans, and ensure even stronger attendance in June.

We are fully aware of the important role that ATM 2020 plays for industry professionals across the Middle East region and beyond, we are grateful for the full endorsement that we have received from our customers and partners.

Moving forward, we are continuing to liaise directly with all relevant United Arab Emirates and Dubai authorities on a regular basis, whilst monitoring and complying with the World Health Organisation guidance, and rest assured we will keep you informed of any new developments as we receive them

Our thoughts are with all those affected in these difficult times.


Tags:  ARABIAN TRAVEL MARKET

ATM 2020 Visitor and Media Registrations Open

Visitor and media registrations are open for the Arabian Travel Market – ATM 2020 which will take place at Dubai World Trade Centre, from Sunday 19 to Wednesday 22 April 2020.

Bigger than ever, here are just some of the reasons why ATM 2020 is a must-attend event this April:

• Over 40,000 travel industry professionals to attend
• Over 2,500 exhibiting companies, representing 150 countries and 65 national pavilions showcased
• Over 100 new exhibitors confirmed
• A spotlight on the official show theme ‘Events for Tourism Growth’
• An array of high-profile speakers and world-class experts confirmed for more than 40 seminars/sessions
• Launch of Travel Forward, featuring a ‘StartUp Showcase’
• Debut of the India, Russia and Saudi summits and buyer forums
• Arival Dubai @ ATM launch
• Brand new Influencers Day
• Return of the Hotel Industry Summit and the Halal Tourism Showcase as well as the Best Stand Awards and the Travel Agents Academy

Plus so much more!!!

To apply for your media badge for ATM 2020 please click here. To register as a visitor please click here.

Tags: ATM 2020

Short leisure breaks to drive 38% increase in visitors to KSA by 2024, says new ATM research

·       GCC residents to push demand for short leisure breaks in Riyadh & Jeddah

·       21.3 million visitors expected by 2024 - ME&A top source market 

·       ATM witnesses 45% growth in Saudi exhibitors between 2018 and 2019

Visitors to Saudi Arabia are predicted to increase 38% from 15.5 million in 2019 to 21.3 million by 2024, according to new research by Colliers International, commissioned by Arabian Travel Market (2020), which takes place at Dubai World Trade Centre from 19—22 April 2020.

This increased demand will be driven by an increasing number of GCC residents wishing to visit the kingdom on short city or mini breaks. It will also be bolstered by business travellers extending work trips to explore the Kingdom's expanding tourism offerings or attend one of the many sporting or cultural events.

Underpinning this trend, the data from Colliers revealed that over 21.3 million visitors were estimated to visit the country by 2024. 

Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market, said: “As Saudi Arabia continues to reduce its reliance on oil, increasing tourism arrivals is becoming instrumental in the country’s economic diversification, and at ATM, we are witnessing this growth firsthand, with the total number of exhibitors from the Kingdom increasing 45% year-on-year between 2018 and 2019.

“With an ambition to increase inbound tourism to 100 million by 2030, Saudi Arabia no longer wants to be viewed as solely a religious destination for the world’s Muslim community, or a corporate destination as one of the richest countries in the world. It has an incredible landscape, with diverse regions and an array of tourism offerings for leisure travellers.”

In line with growing tourism numbers, the global hotel industry has gained a renewed interest in Saudi Arabia with a number of international and regional brands looking to expand their presence across the Kingdom.

According to the latest data from STR, 79,864 hotel rooms are expected to be added to the Kingdom's existing inventory by 2025, with the majority of rooms (34,270) in Makkah, followed by Jeddah and Riyadh with 14,525 and 11,632 new rooms, respectively.

Hotels in Riyadh witnessed a strong year in 2019, with RevPAR growing 5.2% following a 9.2% increase in occupancy and -3.6% decline in ADR. In Q4, Riyadh's RevPAR reached 529.33 SAR - the highest it has been since 2014.

“While, this new supply may place additional competitive pressure on hotels’ performance across the country, the projected growth in visitor numbers over the next four years is expected to continue to boost occupancy levels throughout 2020 and well beyond,” said Curtis.

Following the introduction of the new tourist visa, which allows visitors from 49 countries to apply for an e-visa or receive a visa on arrival – the Kingdom has developed a two-phase tourism strategy in line with Vision 2030.

Phase one – 2019-2022 – will focus on attracting first-time visitors to discover Saudi Arabia, in particular, its pristine beaches, deserts, mountains and heritage sites such as Dir’iyah as well as its packed calendar of sporting and cultural events. While, phase two – 2022-onwards – will focus on the full development of giga projects such as NEOM and the Red Sea Project.

Turning to outbound tourism, Saudi Arabia’s outbound tourism market is expected to reach over US$ 43 billion by 2025, according to the latest data from Renub Research. While family holidays currently dominate the market, a rising generation Z population, who are heavily influenced by the image of a destination – whether it be gastronomy, adventure, culture or overall unique experiences, are expected to change this trend. 

Looking ahead to ATM 2020, Saudi exhibitors who will highlight what the Kingdom has to offer and the exciting developments in the pipeline, include Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage, SAUDIA and flynas, among others, with NEOM making its debut. The Saudi pavilion will occupy almost 2,300sqm of stand space this year, an increase of 20% compared to last year.

Curtis added: “As GCC travel and tourism companies and destinations look to attract a larger share of the KSA market, ATM 2020 will introduce the Saudi Arabia Tourism Summit as part of the show’s new forum & networking series. The session will outline what destinations are doing to attract visitors from this key market while also providing an informal networking event for buyers from Saudi Arabia and exhibitors.”

ATM, considered by industry professionals as a barometer for the Middle East and North Africa tourism sector, welcomed almost 40,000 people to its 2019 event with representation from 150 countries. With over 100 exhibitors making their debut, ATM 2019 showcased the largest ever exhibition from Asia.

Adopting Events for Tourism Growth as the official show theme, ATM 2020 will build on the success of this year’s edition with a host of seminar sessions discussing the impact events have on tourism growth in the region while inspiring the travel and hospitality industry about the next generation of events.

For more news about ATM, please visit: https://arabiantravelmarket.wtm.com/media-centre/Press-Releases/



Tags:  Arabian Travel Market

GCC tourism spend in Egypt will increase 11% in 2020 generating $2.36 billion, says new ATM report

Egypt-stand-2-atm-2019

·       Saudi Arabian visitor spend to grow 11% to $1.13 billion by 2024

·       Total tourism spend in Egypt reached $16.4 billion in 2019 and is expected to jump to $29.7 billion in 5 years

GCC tourists to Egypt will spend $2.36 billion in 2020, an increase of 11% over 2019, with visitors from Saudi Arabia driving this growth, according to new data published ahead of Arabian Travel Market 2020, which takes place at Dubai World Trade Centre from 19-22 April 2020.

Visitors from Saudi Arabia to Egypt made 1,410 trips in 2019 with a forecast of 1.8 million tourists by 2024, a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 5%. In terms of tourism expenditure, Saudi Arabian visitors spent $633 million in 2019 which is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 11% through to 2024, reaching $1.13 billion, according to Colliers International research commissioned by the organiser of ATM, Reed Travel Exhibitions.

Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market, said: “Total tourism receipts in Egypt which stood at $16.4 billion in 2019, will achieve an average 13% CAGR over the next five years to reach $29.7 billion.”

“And Egypt also has a significant outbound market for the GCC. 1.84 million visitors arrived in 2019 and this is estimated to increase to 2.64 million by 2024,” added Curtis.    

Egypt’s top source market is Germany with 2.48 million arrivals a 46% increase over 2018 and a total spend of $1.22 billion in 2019. German arrivals are forecast to reach 2.9 million by 2024 with a total projected spend of $2.18 billion.   

While arrivals from Europe are expected to be the largest contributor on a regional basis, increasing from 6.2 million in 2018 to 9.1 million tourists in 2022, arrivals from the GCC at 11% will represent one of the highest growth rates.  

 “Over the last 12 months, Egypt’s tourism industry has witnessed remarkable growth, with arrivals up 57.5% from 11.3 million in 2018 to 17.8 million in 2019. Growth has been fuelled by the cheaper Egyptian Pound and government incentives for charter airlines operating international flights,” said Curtis.

Data and analytics specialist STR commented that Sharm El Sheikh led the recovery with RevPAR rebounding 315% for the November rolling 12 month period between 2016 and 2019. Hurghada followed closely with a 311% increase, whereas Cairo & Giza recorded a 138% growth.

“Underscoring those impressive numbers, we witnessed a 23% increase in the number of visitors interested in doing business with Egypt, up to almost 4,000,” added Curtis.

Taking advantage of this resurgence in tourists, Egypt will be back at ATM 2020 with some of the country’s most prominent tourism companies including the Egyptian Tourism Promotion Board, Dana Tours and Orascom Development Egypt, representing a 29% increase in participation since 2018. 

 Following Germany, the second largest source market in 2019 was the Ukraine, with 1.49 million visitors, almost 50% growth over the previous year. This remarkable rise has been mainly driven by the availability of direct flights, which resumed, after a two-year suspension, in April 2018.

Egypt tourism capital investment, which was estimated to have reached $4.2billion in 2019, up 25% on 2018, was fully justified after a major announcement by the UK’s Department of Transport (DoT), was made on 22^nd October 2019. The DoE ended a ban on direct flights between the UK and the Red Sea resort of Sharm El Sheikh.

“This should lift UK visitor numbers significantly in 2020 and beyond,” she added, “Just days after the ban on UK flights to Sharm al-Sheikh was lifted, British Ambassador to Egypt Geoffrey Adams claimed that nearly half a million British citizens would visit Egypt before the end of 2020, a major boost for Egyptian tourism.

After the flight ban was imposed, according to STR figures, hotel occupancy for the following year was a mere 33.6% - last year it had already climbed to 59.7%.

“Looking further than its current top source markets, the 2020 influx of UK visitors, the bulk of Russian visitors still to come back, as well as the Chinese market, the future looks promising for Egyptian tourism,” said Curtis

ATM, considered by industry professionals as a barometer for the Middle East and North Africa tourism sector, welcomed almost 40,000 people to its 2019 event with representation from 150 countries. With over 100 exhibitors making their debut, ATM 2019 showcased the largest ever exhibition from Asia.

Adopting Events for Tourism Growth as the official show theme, ATM 2020 will build on the success of this year’s edition with a host of seminar sessions discussing the impact events have on tourism growth in the region while inspiring the travel and hospitality industry about the next generation of events.

Tags:  ATM 2020

Nordic tourism to GCC to be worth US$810 million by 2024

Nordic tourists traveling to the GCC from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland, are expected to generate an estimated US$810 million in travel and tourism revenue by 2024, according to data published ahead of Arabian Travel Market 2020, which takes place at Dubai World Trade Centre from 19-22 April 2020.

The latest Colliers International research, commissioned by Reed Travel Exhibitions, the organizer of Arabian Travel Market, predicts the UAE will witness the highest growth, with total tourism spend by Nordic visitors projected to reach US$718 million by 2024, an increase of 36% when compared with figures from 2018 and tourism spend per trip to reach US$2,088.

Building on this, Saudi Arabia is expected to witness the second-largest increase followed by Bahrain, with total Nordic tourism spend estimated to reach US$86,670,000 and US$53,000,000 respectively, by 2024.

Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market, said: “The Nordic countries’ outbound tourism market has experienced incremental growth over the last five years, with 50.5 million overseas visits made by residents during 2018 alone.

“And, with Nordic citizens enjoying one of the highest average incomes in the world and being amongst the world’s highest spenders while traveling abroad, the GCC is looking to capitalize on their spending power over the next five years.

“Adding to this, ATM is witnessing this growth first-hand with the number of delegates, exhibitors and attendees interested in doing business with these countries increased by 35% between 2018 and 2019.”

Looking at Nordic outbound tourism figures, arrivals from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland to the GCC will increase 23% over the period 2018 to 2024, driven by an increasing number of new and direct flight routes, relaxed visa requirements and the vast number of unique travel experiences that the region has to offer.

Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia have been popular destinations for Norwegian business tourists for many years due to their joint interests in the oil industry, while for Swedish, Icelandic, Danish and Finnish tourists, the UAE and wider GCC region offer year-round sunshine allowing them to escape the constant mid-winter temperatures of below freezing.

According to the Colliers data, approximately 383,800 Nordic citizens will travel to the GCC in 2024, with Swedish tourists leading the number of arrivals, totaling 191,900. Visitors from Denmark will follow with 76,700 arrivals, closely followed by Norway, Finland, and Iceland with 62,800, 47,200 and 5,200 arrivals, respectively.

Curtis said: “The UAE will continue to be the preferred GCC destination for Nordic tourists, welcoming a projected 342,200 tourists by 2024. Saudi Arabia and Oman will follow with 17,300 and 16,500 respectively, while Bahrain well welcomes 7,000 and Kuwait 800.

“Driving this demand in the UAE, Emirates currently operates direct flights to Norway, Denmark and Sweden and last year introduced a direct flight to Iceland, following the closure of low-cost Icelandic carrier WOW air. Meanwhile, Norwegian Air operates direct flights between Oslo and Dubai five times a week and flydubai has direct flights between Dubai and Helsinki in Finland.”

ATM, considered by industry professionals as a barometer for the Middle East and North Africa tourism sector, welcomed almost 40,000 people to its 2019 event with representation from 150 countries. With over 100 exhibitors making their debut, ATM 2019 showcased the largest ever exhibition from Asia.

Adopting Events for Tourism Growth as the official show theme, ATM 2020 will build on the success of this year’s edition with a host of seminar sessions discussing the impact events have on tourism growth in the region while inspiring the travel and hospitality industry about the next generation of events.

About Arabian Travel Market (ATM)

Arabian Travel Market is the leading, international travel and tourism event in the Middle East – introducing both inbound and outbound tourism professionals to over 2,500 of the most breathtaking destinations, attractions and brands as well as the very latest cutting-edge technologies. Attracting almost 40,000 industry professionals, with representation from 150 countries, ATM prides itself on being the hub of all travel and tourism ideas – providing a platform to discuss insights on the ever-changing industry, share innovations and unlock endless business opportunities over the four days.  New to ATM 2020 will be Travel Forward, a high-end travel and hospitality innovation event, dedicated conference summits and ATM buyer forums for key source markets India, Saudi Arabia, Russia, and China as well as the inaugural Responsible Tourism Awards.

To find out more, please visit www.arabiantravelmarket.wtm.com.

ATM 2020 will take place from Sunday 19^th April – Wednesday 22^nd April 2020 #IdeasArriveHere

europe pavilion atm 2019

About Arabian Travel Week

Arabian Travel Week is a festival of events taking place within and alongside Arabian Travel Market 2020 including ILTM Arabia, the inaugural Responsible Tourism Awards and Travel Forward – a new travel tech and hospitality innovation event launching this year – as well as ATM Buyer Forums and ATM Speed Networking Events for key source markets India, Saudi Arabia, Russia and China. Providing a renewed focus for the Middle East’s travel and tourism sector – under one roof over the course of one week – Arabian Travel Week will be returning to Dubai World Trade Centre from Sunday 19^th April – Thursday 23^rd April 2020.

For more information, visit: arabiantravelweek.com

About Reed Exhibitions

Reed Exhibitions is the world’s leading events business, enhancing the power of face to face through data and digital tools at over 500 events a year, in more than 30 countries, attracting more than seven million participants.

About Reed Travel Exhibitions

Reed Travel Exhibitions is the world’s leading travel and tourism event’s organiser with a growing portfolio of more than 22 international travel and tourism trade events in Europe, the Americas, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Our events are market leaders in their sectors, whether it is global and regional leisure travel trade events, or specialist events for meetings, incentives, conference, events (MICE) industry, business travel, luxury travel, travel technology as well as golf, spa and ski travel. We have over 35 years’ experience in organising world-leading travel exhibitions.

About World Travel Market

World Travel Market (WTM) portfolio comprises four leading B2B events across four continents, generating more than $7 billion of industry deals. In addition to ATM, the events are:

WTM London, the leading global event for the travel industry, is the must-attend three-day exhibition for the worldwide travel and tourism industry. About 50,000 senior travel industry professionals, government ministers and international media visit ExCeL London every November, generating about £3.4 billion in travel industry contracts. http://london.wtm.com/.

Event was held Monday 4 – Wednesday 6 November 2019 in London #IdeasArriveHere

WTM Latin America attracts about 9,000 senior executives and generates about US$374 million of new business. Taking place in Sao Paulo, Brazil, this show attracts a global audience to meet and shape the direction of the travel industry. More than 8,000 unique visitors attend the event to network, negotiate and discover the latest industry news. http://latinamerica.wtm.com/.

Next event: Tuesday 31 March to Thursday 2 April 2020 – Sao Paulo.

WTM Africa launched in 2014 in Cape Town, South Africa. Nearly 5,000 travel industry professionals attend Africa’s leading inbound and outbound travel and tourism market. WTM Africa delivers a proven mix of hosted buyers, media, pre-scheduled appointments, on-site networking, evening functions and invited travel trade visitors. http://africa.wtm.com/.

Next event: Monday 6 to Wednesday 8 April 2020 – Cape Town.

Tags: Arabian Travel Market