As part of its continuing efforts to promote Dubai’s ever-expanding tourism industry in specialised travel exhibitions and tap new markets for its strengthening MICE segment, the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) participated in the IMEX America held in Las Vegas from October 11 to 13.
This was the first time participation in this exhibition by DTCM whose 1,539 square feet stand was shared by 16 co-participants drawn from various segments of Dubai tourism industry.
IMEX America is the new worldwide exhibition for incentive travel, meetings and events, backed by the experience and resources of the IMEX Group of exhibitions, which included the award-winning IMEX exhibition in Frankfurt. The show ran the largest hosted-buyer programme ever-held in North America with over 2,000 qualified buyers on board.
IMEX America hosted exhibitors from across the world including convention and visitor bureaus, national and regional tourist offices, major hotel groups, airlines, destination management companies, service providers and trade associations.
Mr. Saleh Al Geziry, DTCM’s Director of Overseas Promotions and Inward Missions, said the show, held at Venue Sands Expo and Convention Center, The Venetian and The Palazzo, was participated by more than 1,500 exhibitors from across the world including national and regional tourist offices, convention and visitor bureaus, hotels, conference centers, cruise lines, technology providers, car rental, golf destinations, airlines, luxury trains, ground agents, exhibition centers, spa resorts, trade associations, destination management companies, event management specialists, transportation companies and trade publications.
He along with Mr. Nayef Ibrahim, Head of Region, USA and Canada, Overseas Promotions and Inward Missions Department, and representatives from DTCM’s Overseas Office in the US attended the show.
Dubai Stand co-participants were 1001 Events, Alpha Tours, Arabian Adventures, Arabian Connection Tourism, Congress Solutions International, Dubai Convention Bureau (DTCM’s MICE business division), Emirates Airlines, Four Corners Events Tourism, Gulf Circle Tours, Gulf Dunes, Jumeirah Dubai, Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Jumeirah Emirates Towers, Jumeirah Madinat Jumeirah, Jumeirah Zabeel Saray, Jumeirah Creek side Hotel and General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA).
The USA is an important market for Dubai’s tourism industry. In 2010, Dubai hotels and hotel apartments hosted 437,723 American guests, up by 11 per cent over the previous year. The number of American passengers passing through the Dubai Airport last year increased by 154 per cent to 1.39 million compared with the 2009 figures.
Dubai-based Emirates Airline plans a big push into the US market over the next five years. The airline plans to add flights from its Dubai hub to three destinations including Dallas and Seattle early next year, taking its US total to seven in 2012. It already flies to New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, while one of its existing twice-daily Houston services will be switched to Dallas. Emirates will start a daily flight to Dallas-Fort Worth on February 2, 2012; with the Seattle service launched on March 1, 2012, both using Boeing 777 aircraft.
