Arabian Travel Market (ATM), is the leading global event for the Middle East travel and hotel industry. The event, now a quarter century old, generates more than $2.5 billion of industry deals. The annual business-to-business (B2B) exhibition showcases over 3,000 products and destinations from around the world to over 50,000 exhibitors/buyers and travel trade visitors across four days at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre (DICEC). But why was Dubai chosen to host this event at all?
Arabian Travel Market (ATM), is the leading global event for the Middle East travel and hotel industry. The event, now a quarter century old, generates more than $2.5 billion of industry deals. The annual business-to-business (B2B) exhibition showcases over 3,000 products and destinations from around the world to over 50,000 exhibitors/buyers and travel trade visitors across four days at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre (DICEC). But why was Dubai chosen to host this event at all?Dubai has one of the most stable economies and is one of the safest cities in the world. It also hosts the world’s largest and busiest airport with 84 million travelers in 2016 (London, UK #2 is 75 million). It is interesting to note that, Dubai, with a population of 2.75 million, had arrivals of 14 million peopleÊin 2016. It will have, by 2020 for Dubai’s World Fair, 150,000 hotel rooms.Ê
Consider this in comparison to New York City, which had a population in 2014 of 8.5 million. New York had 50 million travelers in 2015 and will have this year, 215,000 hotel rooms. Putting this in perspective, Dubai has a lot of hotel rooms forÊa quarterÊof the population and less thanÊa quarterÊof the tourist arrivals than New York.ÊTo even enhance the comment further, Dubai in 1980, 37 years ago, had about 10 hotels and 2,900 hotel rooms.Ê
Oh yes, to throw Canada into the equation, we have in the entire country, only 400,000 hotel rooms and 14 and a halfÊmillion arrivals last year.Ê
I must here digress to share a little bit about Dubai’s history. The area was sustained byÊfishingÊandÊpearl divingÊfor a thousand years with the first records of Dubai being made in 1799, when theÊBani YasÊclan established it as a dependency ofÊAbu Dhabi.Ê DubaiÊbecame a separate Sheikhdom in 1833. The invention of artificial pearls in 1926 and theÊGreat DepressionÊin 1929 caused a collapse in the pearl market, which resulted inÊSheikh Saeed looking for an alternative source of income and Dubai becoming one of the leading re-export ports in the world.
In 1966,ÊoilÊwas discovered in Dubai, which changed the country beyond recognition and led to Dubai becoming a vibrant, modern, business-centered city.
My first trip to Dubai was in 1980.ÊI was invited to visit the Hyatt Regency Dubai which had just opened with the only ice skating rink in the Middle East, then and now. I think I was invited because the general manager knew I was a Canadian and assumed I could ice skate and would show some of the locals how it is done.ÊUnfortunately, he did not know that I had played goalie and could only skate side to side.
Initially, the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai started as a result of the growth of the real estate market in Dubai, which has more condominium construction then does Toronto.ÊDubai has grown to be one of the foremost modern hotel cities of the world.ÊEvery major hotel brand and most independents have at leastÊone hotel there and most more. All of Marriott’s 31 hotel brands are represented, all of Hilton’s and InterContinental’s brands as well.
The ATM in 2017
What happens at an ATM? Firstly, the ATM does not open until the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, arrives and cuts the opening ribbon which could be anytime that he feels it’s time to open the show! In 2017 it was at 1pm on the first day, April 24. An important fact is that the ATM is the only major trade fair in the world that is free to enter for everyone, and there is no entrance fee at all! There are crowds of business people mulling around talking to each other in a party atmosphere as all booths offered free refreshments and food.
The show opened with free seminars held on revenue management andÊetiquette for the region. The organizers also provided promotional activities on how to attract more visitors from two of the world’s biggest inbound source markets, China and India. During the event, they held educational seminars including one by Jan Albreck, the CEO of Saudi Arabian Airlines. He gave an insightful one-on-one interview that explored Saudi’s considerable investments in a new airline fleet; there was a showcase on sustainability. The threeÊpillars of sustainability being economic, social and environmental.
Other panels discussed how technologies old and new from blogs to podcasts to virtual reality are used to virtually transport the customers to destinations and sell them the products.ÊThere were also, at the Global Halal Tourism Summit, some of the world’s leading halal-friendly destinations on hand to discuss their success in developing Muslim-focused tourist offerings and revealing exactly how they are tapping into the top Muslim tourist market.
A large contingence of cruise people attended as Dubai was originally settled by pearl divers and the cruise business is vital to the economy. They expect one million cruise tourists for the World Fair in 2020.ÊThere were blurred lines in online and offline travel with more and more of today’s connected travelers not limiting themselves from either, but seeking out benefits from both worlds. This session took an in-depth look at the opportunity for forward thinking travel business to offer and capitalize on a wide range of touch points.
On the final day, April 27, the ATM Travel Agents Academy was in action. This very popular initiative saw travel agents receiving invaluable destination briefings and honing their sales and presentations skills in the half day free workshop.
The ATM, due to its location, needs to offer added value to attract exhibitors, attendees and buyers, especially since the adage that Dubai is a ÒcheapÓ place to visit and shop in is long gone.ÊIt is now easily as expensive for shopping and eating out as New York or London. The hotel accommodation rates exceed Toronto’s easily, andÊAirbnb has yet to get a foothold in the region.
By Stephen J.ÊRenard
Stephen J. RenardÊfounded the globally recognized Renard International Hospitality Search Consultants in 1970. He is an internationally renowned professional whose organization is the benchmark for hospitality search companies worldwide. Stephen was born in Toronto and is a graduate of the University of Toronto. Stephen is probably the most well-known search executive in the hospitality world. He continues to travel extensively, averaging visits to over 30 countries every year. He enjoys personal and business relations with most managing directors, chief executive officers, general managers and other senior hospitality executives worldwide.
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