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Abu Dhabi to meet 4.1m guest mark

Abu Dhabi - Referring to the drop in tourist numbers from Russia, Al Dhaheri said it is not "significant."

Despite the currency crisis in Russia and the economic slowdown in Europe, Abu Dhabi is well on its way to meet its stretched target of attracting 4.1 million hotel guests into the emirate during 2015, a senior official said.
The currency crisis in Russia, however, did affect tourism arrivals. "We managed to push other key markets," said Sultan Al Dhaheri, the acting executive director of tourism at the Tourism and Culture Authority - Abu Dhabi, on the sidelines of the official opening of the cruise terminal in Abu Dhabi.
"The economic crisis has a negative impact on tourism. Our strategy is to have a visitor mix from different markets," he said.
Referring to the drop in tourist numbers from Russia, Al Dhaheri said it is not "significant."
Overall, Abu Dhabi is expecting a "good growth" in the coming quarters. The TCA is focusing on India, China and other emerging markets to attract more tourists.
A promotion office was opened in the Indian capital city of Delhi this year to drive cruise passengers to Cruise Arabia, a pan Gulf cruise voyage that takes visitors to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain and Muscat.
"We are also tapping new markets. Last year, we opened an office in South Africa to focus on the African market," he said.
In 2014, the hotel guests target was fixed at 3.5 million. This was achieved last year. The target was revised to 3.9 million with a stretch target of 4.1 million for the year 2015, which the emirate is now expected to achieve by the year end, he said. This growth is impressive when compared with four per cent global growth, the TCA official said.
The year-on-year visitor growth is 20 to 25 per cent while year-to-date growth is 20 per cent from the key 11 markets Abu Dhabi is targeting, the official said.
Abu Dhabi expects higher demand in the future as more projects and enablers come online, for instance the cruise terminal, the multi billion dollar Abu Dhabi Airport Terminal, Louvre Museum, Guggenheim Museum and Shaikh Zayed Museum.
"In the next five years, the picture will be complete as all enablers will be in place," Al Dhaheri said.
Giving an update on the Louvre Museum, he said the project would be completed this year. It would be handed over for fitout work in the middle of 2016, with opening expected towards the end of next year.
- haseeb@khaleejtimes.com