Nakheel launches 'Developing Tourism in Dubai' research report at ATM 2007
Nakheel, the most prominent player in realising the vision of Dubai as a world class destination for tourism, is today revealing the results of the «Developing Tourism in Dubai' research report. The research, conducted in both Great Britain and the UAE finds that development and tourism go hand in hand in Dubai, that new landmarks like The Palm are already becoming recognised internationally as 21st century tourist icons and Dubai is considered to be the world city for architectural innovation.
Nakheel conducted the research in Great Britain, from where the largest number of visitors to Dubai are from, and in the UAE during April 2007*. The aim was to find out views about the importance of tourism in Dubai and how new landmarks are contributing to Dubai's economy and success.
The research finds that, as symbols of Dubai's progress and ambition, projects like Nakheel developments The Palm and The World are already becoming recognised internationally as 21st century icons to compare with some of the world's best know and loved landmarks. Two thirds of people in Great Britain say these developments would entice them to visit Dubai. Six per cent said they would come just for that reason.
In Great Britain, awareness of Nakheel developments is high with 43% having heard of The Palm and a third having heard of The World. In the UAE over half of people name The Palm islands as their favourite recent international landmark (when compared to other new world landmarks such as The Louvre in Paris, The Gherkin in London, The Rockerfeller Building in New York and the HSBC Building in Hong Kong). The Palm islands come second only to The Louvre in Paris as favourite modern international landmark in Great Britain with one in five saying it is their favourite.
Almost half of people surveyed in Great Britain (46%) believe that Dubai's construction projects are vital to Dubai's tourist industry. In the UAE, this figure is even higher with three quarters of people believing that Dubai's construction projects are absolutely key to attracting tourists.
British consumers say that Dubai is the world city at the forefront of architectural innovation with 28% agreeing. Dubai beat all other cities in the survey including New York, London, Shanghai, Moscow and Berlin. People in the UAE agree. Thirty five per cent of people as a whole in the UAE say the city is at the forefront of architectural innovation again beating all other world cities. This figure rises to 45% for Arab nationals who are naturally most proud of Dubai's innovation. In Great Britain 'landmarks and architecture' comes second only to 'people' in defining a nation's culture - with 28% saying it is most important. In the UAE 'landmarks and architecture' (20%) comes only after 'people' (29%) and 'religion' (24%).
When asked about Dubai's recent developments, people in Great Britain are most impressed with the speed of development (19%) and the quality of architecture and design (17%). In the UAE, speed of development is also top with a staggering 50% saying it is most impressive probably as the people of the UAE can see the city change week by week in front of their eyes!
There are quite different views about the importance of types of industry to the future of Dubai perhaps suggesting a lack of understanding in Great Britain about the diversification of Dubai's economy. British people still perceive oil to be most important, while people in the UAE rank real estate and tourism higher than oil. Tourism is consistently seen as key with a third of people in both Great Britain and the UAE saying it is the most important industry for the future of Dubai.
Quite large numbers of people see architectural tourism as important. British visitors enjoy the sea, sand and sun while the locals don't find these as attractive! Shopping is a consistently high reason to visit Dubai.
When asked about which countries compete with Dubai as a Middle East tourism destination, there are very different views in the GB and the UAE. Only Egypt really figures with GB consumers (42% believe it competes with Dubai; Bahrain comes next with 9%). People in the UAE believe there is a wider choice (Egypt 24%, Abu Dhabi 23%, Bahrain 12%, Lebanon 11%, Qatar 10%).
The roots of Nakheel are founded in tourism. In the mid 1990s the Dubai government was looking to diversify its economy and saw Dubai's strengths as a tourist destination with its year round sun, clear seas, and sandy beaches. Unfortunately with under 70km of coastline, beaches were in short supply. This was the inspiration behind Nakheel's waterfront developments an ingenious solution to Dubai's limited beachfront. Nakheel has five waterfront developments, which when complete will add more than 1,000km to Dubai's coastline. The Palm Jumeirah alone is more than doubling the number of beachfront hotels in Dubai, with more than 30 hotels and 14,000 rooms.
