Dubai Tourism links up with Alibaba subsidiary

Dubai: In the latest of a series of deals struck with Chinese companies, Dubai’s tourism authority has signed an agreement with Fliggy, the online travel service platform owned by technology giant Alibaba Group, it said on Wednesday.

On its trip to China this week, which has already seen it tie-up with Tencent and Huawei, Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Fliggy.

Gulf News reported exclusively on Sunday that a senior government delegation from Dubai was heading to China to sign agreements with a number of leading companies, including Fliggy, in a bid to lure more Chinese tourists to the emirate.

Confirming this report, Dubai Tourism says that the deal comes as part of a broader long-term alliance discussion at the Alibaba headquarters in Hangzhou, China.

Fliggy, a virtual mall, will add a Dubai section to its website, listing travel partners such as Emirates airline and Dubai Parks and Resorts, the amusement park operator.

The newly-signed MoU entails, among other aspects, collaboration between the partners to deliver an enhanced travel experience for Chinese visitors to the emirate by providing easy access to Dubai’s travel products and information, and initiating a payment scheme.