Dubai's Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) put up a good show at the second edition of the Riyadh Travel Fair which concluded yesterday.

The participation in Riyadh Travel Fair (RTF) comes two weeks after a similar participation in the 3rd Jeddah Travel Fair and demonstrates the importance DTCM places in the Saudi Arabian market, which is the emirate’s number one source of visitors, said a statement for the department.

The DTCM used the travel fair as a platform to grow its inbound tourism from Saudi Arabia. In 2012, the number of visitors to Dubai from Saudi Arabia grew by over 29 per cent, rising from 873,152 in 2011 to 1,128,757 (hotel guests and cruise passengers).

Saleh Mohamed Al Geziry, the director of DTCM’s Overseas Promotions and Inward Mission, said, “Participating in such events is a key element of our strategy to continue to grow visitor numbers from Saudi Arabia by directly increasing our public presence in Saudi and GCC markets and promoting the ever evolving tourism offer of Dubai."

"Dubai is the number one holiday destination for the Saudi market and it is important to ensure that we retain this position," he added.
 
Convened in the Saudi Capital, after two successful years RTF has developed a reputation as a significant event in the GCC travel trade calendar. More than 30,000 visitors attended the event, joining the leading travel and tourism companies of Saudi and other Gulf countries who use the event to promote their business at both a regional and international level.

"In addition to a host of new attractions and hotels, the Saudi market is very interested in the summer season offering we are launching shortly and we will be giving a preview of this offering during RTF," Al Geziry added.-TradeArabia News Service