Abu Dhabi: The Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority, or TCA Abu Dhabi, and six of its key stakeholders are heading for Shanghai this November to attract more travellers from China to the emirate.
The Abu Dhabi delegation will take part in the China International Travel Mart (CITM), which runs from November 15-18 and includes tour operators, hotels and resorts, Etihad Airways – the national airline of the UAE – and Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, the world’s largest indoor theme park and which is scheduled to soon launch a theatrical spectacle ‘RED.’
“This is a performance representing speed and passion — a compelling new live show that celebrates the spirit of racing and the glamour of 1960s Italy through a 25-minute spectacle that brings the artistry of live theatre together with breath-taking projections, illusions, choreographed performances, acrobatics and on-stage stunts,” explained Bruno Wiley, Sales Director, Ferrari World Abu Dhabi. “We anticipate it will have significant appeal within the Chinese segment and expect to launch it in the next few weeks.”
“We are enjoying a steadily growing footfall from Chinese tour groups, which is particularly noticeable around key Chinese holiday periods, such as Chinese New Year and national holidays. We are working closely with our travel trade partners locally and in China to offer a full range of creative promotional tools and collaterals in different languages, including Mandarin, to help Chinese tour groups better understand what to expect during their visit.”
Abu Dhabi’s CITM promotion comes as more Chinese are staying in Abu Dhabi’s 131 hotels and hotel apartments. According to figures from TCA Abu Dhabi, in the first nine months of this year 21,530 Chinese stayed in the emirate’s accommodation — a 78 per cent rise over the same period last year and ranking 16th in Abu Dhabi’s key international source markets. The Chinese hotel guest nights accounted for 39,047 from Q1-Q3 this year, which was up 52 per cent on 2011.
“Apart from making the necessary contacts to build the number of Chinese guest arrivals our task ahead is to convince the market that there is now much more to see and do in Abu Dhabi,” explained Mubarak Al Nuaimi, International Promotions Manager, TCA Abu Dhabi. “Chinese guests currently represent an average-length-of-stay of just 1.81 days — and we want to significantly expand that.”
