Abu Dhabi’s cruise tourism sector, led by the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi , is continuing its series of international promotions and conventions ahead of the start of the 2017/18 cruise season with a four-city regional travel trade roadshow in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait from 8 – 12 October 2017.  

Showcasing the Emirate’s distinct cruise offering, the roadshow is being staged to drive growth in GCC bookings for Arabian Gulf cruises and will see the Department of Culture and Tourism attend the annual GCC travel industry roadshow which run from 8 – 12 October, calling at Jeddah, Riyadh and the eastern province of Saudi Arabia, together with a visit to Kuwait.

The roadshow, alongside Abu Dhabi’s recent delegation in the Cruise Arabia pavilion at the Seatrade Europe exhibition in Germany, are part of Abu Dhabi’s strategy to promote cruise tourism in the Arabian Gulf region through direct contact with cruise lines and companies, and operators of cruise tours and programmes.

“By embarking upon this regional roadshow, we aim to highlight the diverse cruise tourism options available to our neighbours in the Arabian Gulf. The three cruise lines originating from Abu Dhabi provide world class tourism facilities and access to the vast array of leisure opportunities and immersive experiences at every stop,” said Sultan Al Mutawa Al Dhaheri, Acting Executive Director, Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi.

The regional trade mission is one of a number of international promotions planned for the coming months with roadshows in Russia and India also on the calendar before the end of the year to help drive the sector’s growth.

“The 2016/2017 cruise season was record breaking for the industry in Abu Dhabi and by engaging directly with our trade contacts throughout the region and internationally, we expect that the season ahead will see increased numbers of passengers embarking upon cruises from Abu Dhabi’s state of the art cruise terminal,” added Al Dhaheri.

With the cruise sector identified as an emerging niche, a cruise development committee established by Abu Dhabi’s General Secretariat of the Executive Council under the chairmanship of HE Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman of Department of Culture & Tourism – Abu Dhabi, has implemented a cruise charter to steer the future course of the cruise tourism industry. Abu Dhabi’s growth ambitions have been accelerated by the partnership between the Department of Culture and Tourism, Etihad Airways and Abu Dhabi Ports.

Hareb Al Muhairy, Etihad Airways Senior Vice President Sales, UAE & GCC, said: “We are delighted to promote Abu Dhabi’s cruise tourism sector, alongside our partners in the Department of Culture and Tourism, at the regional travel trade roadshows in Jeddah, Riyadh and Kuwait. Abu Dhabi’s reputation as a world class tourism destination continues to grow, and we are proud to carry greater numbers of air travellers into Abu Dhabi, who then connect onto cruise liners bound for the warm waters of the Arabian Gulf.”

For the coming cruise season, Abu Dhabi Cruise Terminal is forecast to welcome 129 ship calls from 18 different cruise lines, making the emirate a firm fixture on the world cruise map and continuing to base their regional Arabian Gulf operations at the terminal.