About 60 percent of international tourists in Abu Dhabi are making their first trip to the emirate, according to an Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) survey, and 87 percent would consider returning.
The interim ADTA report, based on interviews during the final quarter of 2009, is part of a year-long visitor profiling exercise.
Almost a third of respondents, (31 percent) travel with their spouses and friends, 28 percent were visiting on their own while families made up 16 percent of the sample surveyed.
"The survey is delivering crucial insights into key inbound tourism drivers," said Lawrence Franklin, strategy & policy director, ADTA.
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"One of the most important results was that 86 percent enjoyed their stay rating their overall experience as very good or excellent, a massive 92 percent said they would definitely, or probably, recommend Abu Dhabi to others," he added.
The study also showed that the average visitor stay was seven days, extending to eight days for those visiting friends and relatives.
Business visitors stayed, on average, nine days, and those involved with MICE activities visited for five days.
Some 30 percent came to the emirate after hearing about it from a friend, 23 percent had been to the UAE before and returned to explore it more, while 15 percent had visited the region before and wanted to discover another of its destinations.
More than three quarters of those interviewed (77 percent) took in Abu Dhabi's stunning Corniche during their stay, with 72 percent visiting the Emirates Palace hotel and and the iconic Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque attracting 46 percent.
ADTA expects to survey 5,000 visitors in the exercise, which will run until September.
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