The annual tourist conference "Dubai - an all-weather destination" in early June has already become a good tradition. This year, from June 6 to 8, representatives of Russian tour operator companies and travel agencies, as well as the leaders of the emirate hotel complex, again gathered in the banquet hall of the Dubai five-star Habtoor Grand Resort & Spa hotel to discuss prospects for further promotion of Dubai as a year-round destination, exchange views and talk about the main problems. The main topic of the 4th annual conference was event tourism. Among the conference delegates were people and companies already familiar to us from the three previous events - a network of travel agencies “Last Minute Travel Package”, a law firm “Persona Grata” and other players in the Russian tourism market.
As always, the conference was organized by the Moscow tour operator Intrevel-Stoleshniki together with its Emirate partner, Royal Park Tourism Services.
The conference was sponsored and sponsored by the Department of Tourism and Commercial Marketing of the Government of Dubai, Emirates Airlines and the Department of Event Management and Promotion (DEPE, the former Office for the Organization of Dubai Festivals). The venue for the conference and its participants was traditionally provided by the Habtoor Grand Resort & Spa.
Opening the conference, Ali Abdul Wahab, DTCM foreign campaign manager, spoke at the meeting, noting the constant increase in cooperation between Russia and the UAE in the field of tourism. Then all the delegates were warmly greeted by M. Chaco Mani, CEO of Royal Park Tourism Services, and Sergey Perov, representative of Emirates Airlines, who wished all participants of the conference fruitful work. The presentation of the host beach resort Habtoor Grand Resort & Spa, which was prepared and conducted by Sevinch Chasonova, was presented to the delegates. And after a short break, a discussion began on the main topic of this conference.
Briefly noting that the general trends in the development of international tourism have so far demonstrated the dynamics of a decrease in tourist flows in all directions, Evgeny Yuriev from the Intravel-Stoleshniki company drew the attention of those gathered to what events held annually in Dubai can really become an attractive element for Russian tourists, and which are mostly designed for tourists from countries in the Middle East region.
Eugene’s opponent was Sergey Kanaev, general director of the office of the Department of Tourism and Commercial Marketing of the Government of Dubai in Russia, the CIS and the Baltic States. Since Dubai is considered to be a recognized resort among Russian tourists, he gave some figures showing the development of the situation in the Dubai direction. So, in 2009, the decrease in tourist flow to Dubai amounted to only 6%, and the total number of tourists from Russia exceeded 230 thousand people. Sergey Georgievich emphasized the positive dynamics in the Dubai hospitality sector, where over the past year many new hotels have appeared that are ready to welcome their guests.
A separate point was considered all the most attractive, from the point of view of the formation of "event" tour packages, sports and cultural events held in Dubai, such as the Dubai World Cup on horse racing (Dubai World Cup), the international golf tournament Dubai Desert Classic, championship championship Rugby Dubai Rugby 7, annual tennis tournaments, winter and summer shopping festivals. In addition, the most famous annual international exhibitions were attracted, attracting exhibitors and visitors from around the world and, according to DTCM representatives, able to become a solid tool in the development of the MICE sector (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions) or, more simply, business tourism between Russia and the Emirates.
In general, despite a visible decrease in tourist activity in all directions, the number of Russians arriving for a vacation in Dubai still allows Russia to hold its rightful place after the UK, Germany and France in terms of the number of arrivals at Dubai International Airport. Moreover, the 2009 trend clearly indicates that today, Russian tourists prefer to stay in 4 and 5 star hotels and are willing to pay for quality service and luxurious amenities.
In order to once again convince representatives of Russian travel agencies that there is something to do in Dubai in the summer and do things for children, the managers of the festival "Dubai Summer Surprises" addressed the delegates. The presentation of the festival talked about all the advantages of a good summer vacation in Dubai, including great shopping with amazing prizes, interactive games and educational programs for children, a lot of fun for the whole family under the roofs of air-conditioned shopping centers and other venues.
Further, the leading Dubai hoteliers conducted their interactive seminar, presenting to the Russians the most noticeable advantages of their hotels. Open discussions were held, reports of representatives of law and insurance companies were heard, various presentations were viewed. Then, all the guests of Dubai - the heads of Russian travel agencies and the media - had the opportunity to go on an evening safari to the desert to experience for themselves what it is like in Dubai in the summer.
Tour operators and those tourists who, not afraid of the heat, will come to Dubai and plunge into the world of good relaxation, delicious international cuisine, dizzying adventures and fantastic shopping will summarize the 4th annual conference. Summer in Dubai is in full swing! We are waiting for you to visit!
