Tourism expected to weather global crisis

ABU DHABI // Tourism in the UAE is expected to weather the global financial crisis provided it reaches out to growing countries such as China and Brazil, according to a new analysis. Caroline Bremner, the global travel and tourism manager with Euromonitor International, which published the report, said the Emirates, particularly Dubai, had been marketed as luxury destinations in a spendthrift era, attracting mainly wealthier tourists from Western Europe.

New markets, such as budget travellers from other countries,would have to be targeted, she said. Both the Abu Dhabi and Dubai tourism authorities have opened offices in China and Brazil following recent market changes. In the first and second quarters of 2008, arrivals from Europe, Russia and the Americas fell by between 17 and 26 per cent compared with the last quarter of 2007. Fourth-quarter results from 2008, when the financial crisis struck, have not yet been released.

The full Euromonitor report is expected to be available at the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai in May. [e-mail]