Abu Dhabi: The UAE’s first video guide mobile application, Travall, is targeting one million downloads in its first year of operations, according to Adam Ridgway, the company’s chief executive officer who described the target as “highly achievable”.
In an interview with Gulf News ahead of the app’s launch in Abu Dhabi, Ridgway said that Travall is expected to help boost tourism to the UAE.
During the app’s development phase, the company looked into Dubai’s target to bring 20 million visitors by 2020, as well as plans to promote medical tourism, and included landmarks that can help promote the city.
“In terms of tourism coming here, we are able to give the app to travel agents globally for them to use it as their own — they can re-skin it, they can rebrand it, and they can use it to sell the real Dubai,” he said.
The company has already seen interest from the US, the UK, South America, China, And South Africa, among others.
Travall allows users to upload and share their 30- or 60-second videos showing landmarks in the city or reviewing hotels and dining outlets. Users can also view videos uploaded by others. Additionally, users can use the app to make reservations in hotels and restaurants, and they can earn points through uploading content. Points can then be used to pay for meals and hotel rooms, among others.
Similarly, businesses such as restaurants and hotels can offer last-minute promotions. In Dubai, Travall has already partnered with various leading clients such as Burj Al Arab, Atlantis the Palm, Shangri-La, Anantara Resort and Spa, and Sofital Hotel, among others.
In Abu Dhabi, clients include Saadiyat Beach Club, St Regis the Residences, Etihad Towers Residences, Royal Suite Hotel Apartments, and Royal Pavillio Villas.
The app was launched in Dubai on December 2, and was launched in Abu Dhabi on February 12.
“When we launched, the app was in a mid-beta phase, so version 1.5 will come out on Saturday (February 7), and will be available in app stores then. It’s just going to be a slightly replaced, better operational version.
We’ve had around 12,000 downloads since we launched, and that’s huge … We’ve got several hundred video reviews that were uploaded by various nationalities,” Ridgway said.
Video
The majority of downloads are from UAE residents, with some downloads from the GCC region.
“The main difference [between Travall and other apps offering city guides] is no one else offers video, and that’s quite key. The videos tell quite good stories in a short period of time.
In terms of user experience, what we’ve done is we’ve aggregated all the features of seven or more apps that a tourist or resident would use in their everyday life into one,” the CEO said.
Unlike other apps, Travall does not charge commission for restaurant or hotel bookings from businesses.
The app is free to download, and is available for all iOS and Android users.
“We keep an eye on which technology, especially mobile devices, become more and more popular, and if Windows phones take off or continue to grow, then of course, we’ll develop [Travall] across every platform the customer require,” Ridgway said.
The CEO said he expected a positive outlook for the app, with the company already in talks to launch Travall in New York, southern California, and five cities across India, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain.
