Ras Al Khaimah breaks one million guest nights barrier in quarter

Ras Al Khaimah: Ras Al Khaimah saw over 1,470,000 guest nights in the third quarter. A guest night spent is each night a tourist stays in an accommodation. Last year the 1 million barrier was not broken until November.

“Our percentage growth in guest nights for the third quarter of 2014 compared to the same period last year was 72 per cent, so extremely impressive,” said Steven Rice, Chief Executive Officer of RAK TDA. “We are also seeing significant increases in the number of people searching for Ras Al Khaimah in Google, in visits to our website, and in the levels of engagement via our social media presence. In addition, hotel room revenue increased in the third quarter of 2014 by 47 per cent compared to last year.”

According to the Smith Travel Research report for July, Ras Al Khaimah’s average daily room rate was 19 per cent higher than Abu Dhabi, supported by new openings on Al Marjan Island and Ras Al Khaimah Waldorf Astoria, which was the Hilton luxury brand’s first property in the UAE, opening last August.

To highlight the results of last Eid Al Adha, Ras Al Khaimah attracted over 63,870 guest nights over the 5 days. Domestic UAE tourism, the strongest source market, accounted for 32 per cent, UK 12 per cent, Russia 11 per cent and Germany 10 per cent.

“Forward bookings are looking strong, interest in the emirate across multiple business sectors is on the rise and overall we expect the positive growth patterns experienced in Ras Al Khaimah to continue,” Rice said,