Middle East focus on ITB Berlin

Leading travel trade show ITB Berlin takes place from March 8-12, 2017, at Messe Berlin. As many as 120,000 trade visitors from 187 countries will convene at the venue expecting to reap up to €7 billion in turnover. Leading players from the Middle East share their views for this year’s edition of the event.

SHEHARA RIZLY

Following our success in last year’s edition of ITB Berlin — where the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority was named second best exhibitor from the Middle East — we are back in the German capital in 2017 to announce even greater successes for Sharjah’s tourism sector, buoyed by substantial investments in infrastructure and human resources. We are also throwing significant weight behind the development of attractions that appeal to nature lovers and environmental enthusiasts: Sharjah boasts a rich and diverse ecosystem where protected areas form 4.6 per cent of the emirate’s total surface area and are divided into eight conservation centres.
Europe remains one of the top source regions for Sharjah-bound tourists. Germany, meanwhile, is one of the top 10 source countries — and the top source market in the European Union. Europe sent 348,570 visitors to Sharjah in 2016, accounting for around a fifth of tourists to the emirate. Germany alone sent 27,985 visitors — that’s 8 per cent of all Europeans visiting Sharjah. We will further promote the aspects of Sharjah that are most appealing to Europeans: warm weather and sunny beaches during the winter months, and authentic Arabian culture and heritage offerings.
H.E. Khalid Jasim Al Midfa, Chairman, Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority

Western Europe continues to be the second-largest inbound market for tourism to Dubai, with more than 3.1 million visitors in 2016. This accounts for 21 per cent of total tourism to the city — up four per cent from 2015. Germany remained one of the top 10 source markets in 2016, maintaining a stable performance with 460,000 visitors. We aim to help increase visitation from the country and the wider region by further highlighting Dubai’s overall destination offering, with an emphasis on newly-opened theme parks, hotels and attractions in the city.
Issam Abdul Rahim Kazim, CEO, Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing-Dubai

We, at Meeting Point Emirates, pride ourselves on being the leading DMC in the UAE for the German market by handling 55 per cent of the market share. Based on the tourism performance report by Visit Dubai, Western Europe accounted for 21 per cent of total visitors to Dubai in 2016 with Germany being the second western source country after the UK. Increase in flight capacities as well as having more four star, all-inclusive hotels that creates diversification and caters to the German market, can contribute to the increase in German tourists.
Roula Jouny, CEO, Meeting Point International

The German market now falls within our top 5 source markets and we will continue to work with key DMCs locally in the UAE and key tour operators in Germany to ensure we have sustainable growth for years to come. ITB is a very important trade show for us, and this year we will announce some very exciting developments and new hotel openings in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. We will be located at the Dubai Tourism stand in the Middle East section and we look forward to meeting as many trade partners as possible.
Freddy Farid, Area General Manager, Gloria Hotels and Resorts

Following 10.9 per cent year-on-year growth in visitors in 2016, we’re reenergising our efforts in Europe this year. Germany, where we signed strategic partnerships with five new tour operators at the end of 2016, remains our largest international source market with visitors up 24.6 per cent last year. German nationals now constitute one in 10 of all our visitors. With British and Russian visitor increases of 35 per cent and 19.5 per cent, respectively. Czech Republic, Poland, Finland, Switzerland, France and Denmark are also on our radar.
Haitham Mattar, CEO, Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority

There are multiple complexities in the world of travel booking, processing and payments, including the risk of fraud. That’s why Travelport offers a travel commerce platform that facilitates and simplifies ticketing, payment and fulfilment. We are excited to attend ITB Berlin and are looking forward to meeting partners and customers to exchange thoughts and ideas, and showcase how fully integrating pioneering B2B payments technology address the multiple challenges travel agencies face.
Simon Ferguson, Managing Director Northern Europe, Travelport

I am delighted to officially announce that this year’s ITB exhibition will be the location at which we will premier our much-anticipated new Business Class product. As an airline we strive to offer our passengers the very best, not only in terms of our world class on-board experience, but also our expanding global network. At this year’s ITB, I look forward to sharing the revolutionary new patented Business Class seat with the travel industry and worldwide media, alongside many other new and exciting developments to our network.
His Excellency Akbar Al Baker, Group Chief Executive, Qatar Airways