The Abu Dhabi tourist Strategy 2030 predicts that during the next six years, about 178,000 new jobs will be created, including direct, indirect, and induced employment opportunities. This will result in an increase in the contributions that Abu Dhabi's tourist sector makes to the economy.
Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, made the announcement that the tourist plan for the emirate has been launched.
Abu Dhabi is to expand the number of yearly visitors to 39.3 million, generate 178,000 new employment, and strengthen the sector's contribution to non-oil GDP to Dh90 billion by the year 2030. These goals would position the emirate as one of the worldwide destinations that is seeing the quickest growth for foreign tourists.
In the year 2023, 24 million tourists
For the year 2023, Abu Dhabi welcomed more than 24 million tourists, which represents a more than thirty percent rise from the previous year, 2022. For the year 2023, the tourist industry made a substantial contribution to Abu Dhabi's economy, providing Dh49 billion to GDP. This represents a more than 22 percent rise from the previous year, 2022.
As a result of the opening of the ultra-modern terminal at the airport, there has been a significant increase in the capacity of the airport to handle passengers. This is in accordance with the sustainable development that has been taking place in the sector.
The recently completed terminal at Zayed International Airport has the capacity to accommodate 79 planes at any given moment and can facilitate the arrival of 45 million passengers yearly. As a result of the increase in capacity, airlines are now able to strengthen their presence in Abu Dhabi in order to meet the ever-increasing demand. The Airports Council International presented the airport with the title of "Best Airport at Arrivals Globally" at the 2023 Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Awards. This honor was bestowed upon the airport somewhat recently.
Etihad Airport is home to 1.4 million visitors
Etihad Airways, which has its headquarters in Abu Dhabi, welcomed more than 1.4 million passengers on board during the month of February, and the airline's load factor in February averaged out to be 89% throughout the month.
According to Antonoaldo Neves, the Chief Executive Officer of Etihad Airways, "We saw a 46 percent year-on-year growth in customer numbers in February 2024 as we continue our growth strategy." Our passenger numbers for the year to date (YTD) are 2.9 million, which is forty percent greater than they were for the year to date (YTD) in February 2023.
In the month of February, Etihad brought on board three brand-new 787-9 aircraft and announced the establishment of new routes to Antalya, Turkey, and Jaipur, India.
During the summer and winter years
In an effort to attract tourists from both within the country and from other countries, Abu Dhabi has started launching campaigns that last for a whole year and are packed with activities of the highest possible quality. In May of the previous year, the Department of Culture and Tourism in Abu Dhabi (DCT – Abu Dhabi) presented the "One Summer Isn't Enough" campaign. In October of that same year, the "Can't Wait to Winter" campaign was presented, which was a global promotion that was packed with events that occurred consecutively over the course of the next six months.
An individual who is interested in culture, sports, food, adrenaline, or music can find something to their liking in the emirate. This is true regardless of whether they are a fan of music, sports, food, or culture.
At the Louvre, there were 1.2 million tourists
Further evidence of Abu Dhabi's rising reputation as a tourism hub with a wide range of attractions is the fact that the Louvre Abu Dhabi welcomed more than 1.2 million visitors in the previous year, with more than 70 percent of those visitors coming from outside the country. The flow of visitors was primarily driven by a variety of reasons, the most important of which were significant shows that enhanced the permanent collection of the museum, increasing visits to the Children's Museum, and unprecedented involvement with the educational programs offered by the Louvre Abu Dhabi.
72 percent of the total footfall was comprised of visitors from other countries, with the majority of these visitors coming from key growing markets such as Russia, India, France, the United States of America, China, Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, and the United Kingdom. The inhabitants of the United Arab Emirates made up the remaining 28 percent of tourists.
