Today started off at Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce where were given a presentation about the city’s dedication to create a tolerant and inclusive society which embraces the civic values of Dubai. To reach success, Dubai, must generate revenue through its tourism. Its mission is revolved around the 2021 and 2025 strategic plans put in place by the department. Dubai’s 2021 Vision encompasses a city with the best education, healthcare, and housing services which will cater to everyone’s needs. With its population doubling in size having conversations about the future are crucial in ensuring Dubai reaches its full potential. Vision 2025’s focus is structured around its tourism strategy which includes strategic planning and prioritization of initiatives. This includes having Dubai be the world’s most recommended travel destination tripling the economic impact of tourism on GDP. To promote growth and tourism Dubai has come up with a way, using technology, to receive a Visa upon arrival in the country. This encourages more visits which will hopefully position Dubai as an international events and entertainment hub while increasing competitiveness as a retail destination. Dubai has already seen extensive growth in the last three years and are moving closer to their goal of 23-25 million visitors in 2025. Dubai hopes to set a new global standard in international travel while also breaking down the barriers and preconceptions of the Middle East.
Our second visit took place at Dubai University where Dr. Marina gave a presentation on doing business in the UAE. We were given the quick background of Dubai where we learned important things to keep in mind when doing business in the UAE. One of the most important being that most Middle Eastern business owners and people prefer to deal with someone they know and trust by building personal relationship. It is crucial to foster a trustworthy relationship with people when doing business in the UAE. We also learned about the eight features that drive the UAE’s solid economy, which include; strategic location, strong financial reserves, large sovereign wealth fund, promising investor home economies, efficient government spending, progressive policy of economic diversification, multi-specialty free zones, and increased foreign direct investment.
We ended the night exploring the Dubai Mall, which is four floors and includes over 1,300 retail outlets. It offers unparalleled retail variety and even one of the world’s largest aquariums. Dinner was at a traditional Arabic restaurant that included foods such as hummus, eggplant, bread, and lamb. But my favorite part of the evening was the Dubai Fountain which is the world’s largest choreographed fountain system.
The dept of Tourism was definitely my favorite business visit! I found it so remarkable how they view tourism and how deeply they research the markets of their Target audiences. Definitely made me think about tourism Ina different light.
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