Abu Dhabi: Yas Island showcased its leisure, and business offerings to nearly 90 travel industry professionals from China on Sunday as part of a summit to build on the growth in tourists and business travellers from China to the UAE.
Now in its third year, the Chinese Visitor Summit runs until 28 August.
“The showcase has been a great opportunity to build relationships with influential travel industry representatives from China. We’ve gained valuable insights into the needs of travellers from China — whether they’re here for leisure or business. In turn, we have demonstrated how Yas Island can meet those needs,” said Karim al Guanaini, vice-president of destination management at Yas Island.
He added that he expected increase working relationships, which would develop more travel packages to the UAE.
According to Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (TCA), the emirate has already made significant progress in the number of Chinese visitors but there is still room for growth.
Productive market
“At the launch of this summit three years ago, China had just entered our top 20 markets for hotel guests. Today, it is our eighth most productive overseas market,” said Mubarak Al Shamsi, director at the Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau, a TCA entity.
Despite the growth, he said that Abu Dhabi still faces a challenge with the average length of stay of the visitors. At 1.78 nights on average, TCA hoped to increase the length of stay.
Al Shamsi added that Chinese guests in the emirate can now expect hotels with Chinese speakers, Chinese television stations, acceptance of China Union Pay, and Chinese dishes on menus.
According to figures released by the TCA, around 59,518 Chinese visitors checked into Abu Dhabi’s hotels and resorts during the first half of this year — a 189 per cent increase on the first half of 2013. The guests delivered 105.915 nights — up 171 per cent year-on-year.
