DUBAI - City gets even livelier

TTGasia, Nov 17 - 23, 2006 / No.1502

DUBAI is keeping itself in the news by announcing more mega projects, while those just completed or are nearing completion create additional buzz for the city.

Take the opening of Ski Dubai last year – no media could resist reporting on the uncanny idea of skiing in the desert. Or last May’s announcement of Bawadi by Dubai ruler, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Amktoum, just before the opening of Arabian Travel Market where hundreds of travel buyers were present.

If you have not read about Bawadi, it is the world’s largest hospitality and tourism development. Located in Dubailand, it will have 31 hotels offering 29,200 rooms – the longest strip of hotels in the world spread over 10km. If your clients fancy staying in a 6,500-room hotel, Bawadi will have it in the Asia-Asia, which Dubai bills as the world’s largest hotel.

When completed in 10 years, Bawadi will double the number of available rooms in Dubai, which last year stood at 28,610, and is expected to absorb a forecast 15 million visitors by then, compared with just above six million last year. It will be developed and managed by Tatweer, a member of Dubai Holding.

All the publicity Dubai gets – orchestrated or otherwise – has one effect: people perceive Dubai as exciting. But is it as exciting as it is perceived to be?

Do buy

To the oft-asked question “What does one do in Dubai?”, shopping is the answer, according to a recent survey of 850 tourists and residents conducted by Dr Heiko Schmid, University of Heidelberg. But as Dubai evolves and new projects open, the breadth and depth of the tourism product is set to improve. This is followed by beach recreation, nightlife, organised desert safaris and visits to historical sights.

More than 50 per cent of all visitors are repeats.

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