Dubai: Investment in inner waterways and marina projects is expected to boost ownership of small to medium sized boats in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, organiser of the Dubai International Boat Show, said in a statement on Thursday.
“We could easily see Dubai’s popularity with small to medium boat owners rival that of other nations where the leisure boating community takes advantage of lakes and rivers,” stated Toby Haws, Marina Manager of Emirates Palace Marina and organizer of the Gulf Boating Conference.
The Gulf Boating Conference is set to take place during the 22nd Dubai International Boat Show, which will be held between March 4 and 8 at Dubai International Marine Club in Mina Seyahi.
Projects in Dubai include The Lagoons, a waterfront development within Mohammad Bin Rashid City; Dubai Canal; The World Islands and Deira Island. A
ccording to Bruno Meier, Chief Operating Officer of Art Marine, Dubai is seeing demand for superyachts and small to medium-sized boats.
“Dubai is like no other place in the world in terms of the market for boating. You have extremely high net worth individuals keen to spend millions on superyachts,” Meier said in a statement, adding that other individuals enjoy smaller vessels, including sea kayaks and stand up paddle boats.
