Cultural revolution

zoom

GRAND DESIGN: Emirates Palace is one of the most iconic landmarks in the capital.

zoom

Artists’ impressions of the Performing Arts Centre.

Abu Dhabi may have arrived late to the Gulf's tourism boom but it is making up for lost time with plans to attract culture vultures from around the world. Sean Cronin reports on the emergence of the emirate as a travel destination.

It is clear that Mubarak Al Muhairi does not like Abu Dhabi's tourism ambitions being compared with its headline-grabbing neighbour.

"This is not about coming to Abu Dhabi instead of Dubai. The tour operators that work in Abu Dhabi, work in Dubai as well so now they have a bigger offering," says Muhairi, reclining in a chair in one of the gilded rooms of the ultra-luxurious Emirates Palace - Abu Dhabi's answer to Dubai's so-called seven-star Burj Al Arab, where even a ‘cheap' room can cost you more than US$2000-a-night.

The CEO of the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority is focused on carving out a very different niche, which seems less about building the world's largest theme parks and hotels, and more about playing to Abu Dhabi's cultural strengths.

"Cultural visitors spend more, as much as three times what mid-class beach holidaymakers spend. And they stay longer," he says.

Just 100 kilometres and an hour-long car journey separate the two largest city-sheikhdoms of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, but they are very far apart in their tourism strategies.

Dubai has generated headlines around the world for such projects as the world's tallest tower, its palm tree-shaped artificial islands, an indoor ski slope and the vast Disneyland-style Dubailand project taking shape on the outskirts of the city.

Passenger traffic in its existing airport is expected to rise to 40 million this year, while it is also investing around US$33bn in what is expected to be the world's largest airport, Dubai World Central.

The airport will be able to handle 120 million passengers a year on completion, helping the emirate to meet its ambitious tourism targets.

Abu Dhabi has no such plans to enter the mass tourism business. Instead it is investing as much as US$27bn in the construction of five new museums, including its very own Louvre and Guggenheim.

The Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage has also chosen 100 books to be translated into Arabic, including Alan Greenspan's memoir, The Age of Turbulence and Milton Friedman's Capitalism and Freedom.

It is all a very long way from the rollercoaster and replica Eiffel tower approach of its neighbour, although Muhairi insists that Abu Dhabi will also need its theme park-style attractions to make its offering complete.

"There is no intention of having a mass tourism industry here. That is not what Abu Dhabi wants to achieve," he says. "We don't want to oversell Abu Dhabi because many hotels are still in construction, so the government is using milestones - for example the Formula One event next year is a milestone."

The approach has been welcomed by tour operators and hotels eyeing Abu Dhabi as a potential investment destination. "I think Abu Dhabi is a destination that is trying to differentiate itself from Dubai rather than copying it, which is good," says Edouard Ettedgui, CEO of Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group.

An indication of how young Abu Dhabi's tourism industry really is comes from the authority itself, which was only set up in 2004. Until then, the largest of the seven emirates within the UAE and home to the country's capital city, did not need to worry about tourists.

With almost 8% of the world's proven oil reserves, the need to generate revenue from tourism was hardly urgent.

Four years later, economic diversification has become a priority of the government and the emirate of Abu Dhabi is emerging as a new tourism hub within the region.

The Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority has raised its hotel guest projections over the next five years. The new forecast contained in its latest five-year plan predicts 2.7 million hotel guests by the end of 2012 - 12.5% more than expected in 2004 when the authority was established.

The new target will mean that the emirate's total hotel room count will stand at 25,000 by the end of 2012, about 4000 more than originally thought.

Abu Dhabi's grand tourism plan is focused on six main areas aimed at improving the tourism experience and tapping the emirate's ‘distinctive' culture and values.

"Abu Dhabi is different [to other emirates]. We have the longest coast, we have hundreds of natural islands and we have a very active environment agency. It is not led by one or two big developers," he says.

Print | Email | Discuss this article |

USER COMMENTS (0 COMMENTS)

POST A COMMENT

CLICK HERE TO POST A COMMENT

Add your Comment All posts are sent to the administrator for review and are published only after approval. ArabianBusiness.com reserves the right to remove any comment at any time for any reason. Please keep your responses appropriate and on topic.
Name *
Remember me on this computer
Email *	(Your email address will not be published)
City
Country
Subject *
Comment *
Notify me of further comments
Security Code *
Please click post only once - your comment will not be published immediately.