Monika Grzesik's World Travel Market diary - Day 1

Day 1. 

9am – Arrive at the Excel Centre in North London to find it already packed with visitors streaming in from every possible direction and a palpable buzz in the air.

Despite the grey skies and the inevitable London drizzle, home does not feel that far away at all. A huge sign above the door reminds me that the new and improved Excel Centre is now owned by ADNEC, and the ‘platinum partner’ for WTM itself is Abu Dhabi which means stunning glossy banners of the desert, the islands and various Abu Dhabi projects can be seen everywhere. It looks like the destination will definitely be making an impact at the show.

10am – The WTM 2010 Industry Report is unveiled, revealing the latest trends in travel and tourism straight from the industry floor. The report surveyed all the exhibitors at the show and senior buyers.

Here are some of the highlights:
- One of the biggest fears among industry executives is the threat of increasing taxation on the travel and tourism industry. The UK government has some of the highest passenger taxes in the world, and is looking to double taxes on airline passengers. Four out of ten UK holidaymakers say this will lead to them reducing their overseas trips – with the UK being by far the biggest source market to Dubai I wonder what impact this heavy taxation could have on Dubai’s tourism industry.
- The emerging BRIC markets (as in Brazil, Russia, India and China) are the ones to focus on in the coming years as key source markets.
- The global economic downturn is still a major concern for the industry those surveyed felt the industry will not recover until 2016. Euromonitor also predicts that hotels which slashed rates will not be able to increase prices to pre-downturn levels until 2014.

11am - Wandering around the Middle East hall, in amongst giant stands from Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Jordan - I spot a small stand from Iraq. Hmoud Alkyakobi, chairman of the Iraq Tourism Board tells me he is there for the first time to promote Iraq as a cultural and religious tourism destination, and shows me a newly published travel guide to Iraq. He admits there are challenges as the security situation is “about 70%” but the government has set a target for one million tourists into Iraq. Six five- star hotels are currently being rehabilitated in Baghdad to open next year and many new hotels are being developed in Karbala and Najaaf, which are cultural and religious centres.

12pm - I meet with HE Mr Fady Abboud, Minister of Tourism, Lebanon who tells me that his biggest challenge is changing people’s perceptions of Lebanon. “If you give an example of chaos, you mention Beirut,” he said. But According to Abboud there have been no incidents involving tourists for over 20 years now in Lebanon and the destination is “one of the safest in the world”. He is calling on governments such as the UK to change their travel advice regarding travel to Lebanon to reflect the safety of the destination.

1pm – The WTM Global Travel Trends Report, by Euromonitor - is unveiled to a packed crowd.
The report highlighted the ‘Invasion of Middle East investors” into the UK as a major tourism trend, pointing out the recent sale of Harrods to the Qatari Royals.
With Middle East investors snapping up hotel properties in London it means that the UK will become even an even more appealing destination for Middle East visitors.
- Iraq was also highlighted as a destination to watch. With recovery, major hotels brands are now eying up the destination. Rotana is currently developing in Erbil and Baghdad for example.
- The Middle East in general was identified by Euromonitor as a major player for the future of the tourism sector, both from an inbound and outbound perspective.

2pm – TDIC execs speak to a packed room about how they are turning Abu Dhabi into a “hospitality hotspot”. It’s very exciting to hear about what’s coming up in Abu Dhabi next year. 2011 will see the opening of the St.Regis, Saadiyat Island, Park Hyatt, Saadiyat Island plus the Saadiyat Island Beach Club.

Simon Venison, director of operations, TDIC told me that an TDIC is in the final stages of singing the management contract with the beach club operator this week “a very well known hotel operator” but he was tight lipped about who it would be. He added that it was still under debate as to whether residents would be charged to use the club and how exclusive the membership would be. Venison used to run the Jumeirah Beach Club in Dubai no doubt Abu Dhabi residents have a lot to look forward once the club is up and running next year.

Also opening next year are the Sir Bani Yas Island Water Lodges and three major Abu Dhabi resorts, the Westin Golf and Spa, the Rocco Forte Hotel and the Angsana.

4pm - I meet Melissa Tilling, product manager for Funway Holidays, a UK Tour Operator who has just started selling Dubai packages from just £580 per person. She tells me that thanks to the crisis Dubai has now become an affordable destination. She is offering hotels such as the Ibis and Arabian Park Hotel. Has Dubai finally lost its “overpriced and unaffordable” tag?

5pm - Have a chat with Ian Scott, director of Dubai's UK & Ireland office. He says the fact that Dubai has become more affordable since the crisis means the appeal is broadening to other sectors of the market. He says the destination will always be luxury at heart, but with one million Brits visiting every year it’s not really a niche product. Back to the taxation issue - will this affect tourists to Dubai? Scott says luckily not too much because of the distance of Dubai to London, the tax increase isn't too high.

That's day one. Until tomorrow.