MICE and luxury tourism valued at US $19.06bn
A September 2014 Alpen Capital report estimated the MICE sector in the GCC to be valued at US $1.28bn (AED 4.7bn), while outbound tourism including MICE and luxury tourism is estimated at $19.06bn (AED 70bn) for an approximate 37 million tourists according to WTO estimates.
"Taking these market statistics into consideration, the fourth annual MICE Arabia Congress has put into place a conference agenda that will discuss the trends and challenges in these sectors, while retaining a dominant focus on the one-to-one prescheduled business meetings between the buyers and the suppliers,’’ said organiser QnA International director Sidh N C.
The congress provides a platform for regional and international hotel chains, team building companies, DMCs, tourism boards, cruise companies and other travel and hospitality suppliers to meet more than 100 GCC corporations that plan business and MICE travel for their organisations.
The fourth edition will focus on the potential for outbound MICE and luxury travel from the Middle East.
MICE Arabia Congress will be conducted in a prescheduled one-to-one meetings structure, which the delegates and sponsors have asked for.
The MICE Arabia Congress 2016 will be held from March 1-2, in Dubai at a location to be confirmed. The 2015 edition saw 1,800 meetings take place during the two-day period.
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Top five trends in ME tourism, MICE and the luxury travel industry
1. Nature based experiences
2. Exclusivity
3. More individualised free time
4. Social media influences
5. High quality standards
A major trend seen in outbound tourists from the Middle East is the shift towards different experiences be it cultural, historical or natural.
"Travellers from the GCC region, especially from the luxury market are more conscious about getting back to nature and exploring unique experiences in unique destinations instead of going to mediocre destinations,’’ said Six Senses Zighy Bay DOSM Jad Frem. Anne Wiers-Jenssen of Fred. Olsen Travel AS Norway, agreed and said there is a definite “shift from big cities and shopping to nature-based experiences".
Another trend is the exclusivity of MICE and luxury travel. "They tend to be a more private, protected and secure experience," said Ibis El Greco general manager Yves Maebe.
The shift in luxury tourism is also apparent in the MICE sector where incentive programmes tend to include more individualised free time for "relaxation, shopping or optional excursions recognising that participants have different tastes", according to Rovos Rail marketing manager - MICE Carole O’Connor.
She highlighted the changing structure of meetings, stating that they are becoming more interactive. "Incentives now regularly incorporate a meeting, team building, product or strategy element,” she said.
Social media has become a widespread trend. "Social media plays a significant role in many aspects of tourism, especially for would-be travellers searching for information on destinations, therefore affecting their decision-making behavior,” said Alexandera Mallosi from Grecotel.
Giving an example, AC Tours director Rob Russell said: "We recently ran a large scale event for a client from Sweden – from the first site inspection through to the exit of the hotel the whole story was covered in tweets and when we looked back on the post of the event, it was amazing to see how great it all looked!”