Last month I attended the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai which is the pre-eminent travel show for the Middle East. The exhibitors here come from all over the world, but the main stands and exhibition space are devoted to those from the Middle-East and in particular the United Arab Emirates.
General sentiment amongst exhibitors this year was a lot better than last, with hotels reporting much better results in the first quarter of the year after a really difficult 2010. The overall picture was though very localised as obviously some markets such as Egypt, Libya and Bahrain had seen almost complete drop-off in visitors due to internal political situations since the beginning of the year.
In regards to the distribution scenario, hotels in the region have really woken up to the need to intensify marketing and sales. The re-initiation of the construction of stalled hotel projects and renovations has restored faith among hoteliers about the future growth potential. Hence hoteliers were keen to find ways to effectively manage distributions and remain competitive.
All in all, a really great way to meet industry peers in the region over a few days at a professionally organised event. Looking forward to the 2012 edition.
Giles Gurney is Sales Manager – Mid-East at eRevMax and is responsible for sales of RateTiger products in the region. He can be reached at
gilesg@ratetiger.com