Articles tagged “qatar”

With ambitious tourism targets, destinations in the Middle East would do good to pay heed to actor Idris Elba's suggestions to tap the creative sector.

As countries in the Middle East set ambitious tourism targets for the future, Saudi Arabia is investing in infrastructure to drive numbers, while Dubai is investing in technology to adopt "Smart Gates" at Dubai airport and looking to make air taxis a reality.

It's interesting to note how each of Dubai's ambitious economic predictions rests on its tourism prowess and its ability to attract international visitors.

The World Cup gave Qatar the opportunity to show the world its possibilities as a tourist destination. Once the World Cup is over, global public attention will scatter and memories will fade. Officials say they'll be happy as a vibrant stopover destination.

Even as global hotel development may have slowed down due to serious risks looming over the economy, the hospitality sector's development of Gulf nations remains robust. The nations realize offering choice is essential for people to visit a destination.

With an ambitious strategy to increase visitors to more than 100 million annually by 2030, Saudi Arabia clearly doesn't want to be caught off guard with inadequate infrastructure.

The economic spinoffs of Qatar's World Cup will be felt all over the region that has been looking to diversify beyond the oil sector.

Destinations in the Middle East are not just turning to tourism in an effort to diversify their national economies but positioning themselves to compete on a larger scale globally.

The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 starts in five days, and Qatar is struggling to have enough lodging to house an expected 1.2 million football fans.

The Middle Eastern nations realize that for tourism to flourish restrictions would need to be eased.