Wednesday, November 1, 2023
Countries in the Middle East are working to strengthen their partnership with China in the tourism sector.
It includes Saudi Arabia and Qatar and holds significant potential for growth between the two regions.
China is a critical and important market for Saudi Arabia, especially to achieve its 2030 Vision.
Alhasan Aldabbagh said that it is going to be (one of) the top two source markets.
He is serving as the President of the Asia-Pacific markets of the Saudi Tourism Authority.
Saudi Arabia unveiled its ambitious economic diversification plan, Vision 2030, in 2016 with a focus on tourism.
The target is to attract 150 million visitors by 2030 and have tourism contribute to 10 percent of its GDP.
Among the total number of visitors, the kingdom aims to attract 3 million visitors from China by 2030.
Noting the high potential for growth, the official said, by 2030, India will be the first market of inbound tourism for Saudi Arabia, followed by China.
According to the tourism authority, more than 4.1 million travellers from the Asia-Pacific region visited Saudi Arabia in the first eight months of this year. It is a 15 percent jump from the same period in 2019.
The country is aiming to welcome at least 7.9 million visitors from the region this year.
Philip Dickinson, vice-president of international markets at Qatar Tourism, said Qatar is investing heavily into promoting itself in China.
They are hoping to take advantage of the tourism boom brought by its hosting of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. It is to increase Chinese tourists’ awareness of the country.
Dickinson said tourism authorities of the Middle Eastern country are adopting a “360-degree approach” to attract more foreign travellers from the “tier one” group markets, which cover some 24 countries.
The comprehensive strategy aims to reach out to international tourists, both by working with industry players and by increasing the country’s exposure directly to individuals.
These campaigns, he added, cover consumer marketing and public relations across different digital and social channels.
Chinese tourists have shown much enthusiasm for travelling to Qatar. It happened particularly after the country became the first in the Middle East to host the soccer World Cup last year.
According to statistics from Qatar Tourism, 67,000 tourists from China visited Qatar in 2019. It happened before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The number of Chinese travellers to Qatar reached 40,000 over the first eight months of this year.
China announced an expansion to the list of outbound destinations for tour groups in August.
It covers 78 destinations worldwide including Qatar. It has laid the groundwork for growth of Chinese tourists to the Gulf nation.
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