Abu Dhabi: The second season of the United Arab Emirates (UAE’s) ‘World’s Coolest Winter’ tourism campaign has been launched by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, the Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported on Wednesday.
This year’s edition, launched at the Expo 2020 Dubai site, will expand on last year’s campaign and will cover both domestic and foreign tourism as the UAE seeks to continue its recovery from the impact of the continued global COVID-19 pandemic.
In a series of tweets through his official account, Sheikh Mohammed said, “Today, we launched the second season of the World’s Coolest Winter campaign, in collaboration with federal entities and local tourism departments, reinforcing the UAE as one destination, as we outlined in the Principles of the 50.”
“The primary target audience of the campaign is domestic and family-oriented, with the aim of gathering our families in our beautiful nation. We want families from Dubai and Abu Dhabi to enjoy Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah, and families from other emirates to experience Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Everyone should enjoy the emirates.”
“The UAE’s tourism recovered the quickest globally. The seven emirates have a rich history, geography, nature, urban architecture, and community. The UAE’s archaeological sites, culture centres, historical landmarks, and nature reserves, offer visitors a holistic experience,” he added.
The second season of the World’s Coolest Winter campaign will run until the end of January to familiarise residents and international tourists with the activities that the UAE winter offers.
Between January and October 2021, the UAE saw occupancy rates in hotels of 64 per cent and the country fared better than the top 10 tourist destinations in the world.
In the first half of 2021, hotel and tourist establishments in UAE attracted about 8.3 million guests, a growth of 15 per cent compared to the first half of last year. This was accompanied by a 31 per cent growth in hotel establishment revenues to reach AED11.3 billion.
According to the data website Statista, the UAE is expected to attract more than 31 million tourists annually by 2025, and the travel and tourism sector is set to contribute to the UAE’s GDP by Dirham 280.6 billion by 2028.