Dubai Business Events recently organised an India Study Mission for greater understanding of the emirate’s present and future positioning as a leading global MICE destination
Dubai is the leading events destination in the Middle East. Dubai Business Events which is the official convention bureau of Dubai recently hosted India Study Mission, which saw participation from leading tour operators, travel agents, corporates and select media. Welcoming the delegates, Steen Jakobsen, director, Dubai Business Events, said, “The Study Missions are key components of Dubai, which as a destination has evolved from being a small trading post to a leading business and events city. We look at welcoming 20 million visitors to Dubai by 2020.” This year the emirate attracted several large incentive groups. It is also the top destination in the region for association meetings. Expo 2020 will be the largest event hosted in Dubai and will attract 25 million visitors in six months. “It will leave a legacy that will make our business events offerings more extensive,” mentioned Jakobsen.
Dubai is part of 12 world class convention cities, and a member of Best Cities global alliance. “It is a top meetings destination in the Middle East, our aim is to establish knowledge base economy in coming years,” stated Jakobsen, adding that there are several hotels with large meetings space and rooms inventory. In Dubai, as far as accommodation options are concerned there has been a strong focus on four star and five star categories, now there is focus on three star category also. There are more than 104,000 rooms. The emirate also boasts of excellent gastronomy options, with more than 5400 restaurants. There is thriving nightlife, gold and spice souks, museum of pearls, and diversified attractions to entertain and engage visitors. While Dubai Parks and Resorts is the Middle East’s largest entertainment centre, there are more than 95 shopping malls, including the Dubai Mall.
Leadership Forum
At the Dubai Business Events Leadership Forum, industry experts discussed the various factors related to organising MICE in Dubai. A panel discussion on ‘Decoding the Indian corporate mindset’, highlighted many interesting aspects. The panel members were Capt Rajesh Sharma, VP, office services, Re:Sources; Oum Pradutt, founder & MD, Phase 1 Events, Amit Kaul, head – corporate real estate & administration, Canara HSBS Bank of Commerce Life Insurance; Navneeth Mohan, CEO & business head, Laqshya LIVE Experiences; Naveen Rizvi, regional director – India and Indian Ocean, Pacific World. Pointing out that corporates try to pamper their stakeholders and employees, Pradutt shared, “We curate experiences for them. It is not easy as there is a certain budget. We try to create experiences and not just a transactional event.” Mohan mentioned that his company has gone to the corporates with a different approach, “We go with the idea – once we crack the idea we look at destinations that fit the idea. We are a creative and ideas company and it has given us good results,” he said. Rizvi averred that it is less challenging for his company as many of the clients are global and work with them in different parts of the world, however it is important to incorporate global policies and processes. “80 per cent of the industry looks at competitive rates,” pointed out Capt Sharma. They also discussed about destinations being partners, which has scaled up the events.
‘How to plan ‘AWESOME’, in Destination Dubai’ was another insightful panel discussion which included Steen Jakobsen; Sushil Shamlal Wadhwa, founder & CMD, Platinum World Group; Naveen Kundu, founder & MD, Leisure Corp; Daryl Sheldon, director, 7ty7 Experiential, 9ty9 Travel & Var Vadhu; Jestine Alfred, assistant GM, Travco. “The key strength about Dubai is that the city keeps evolving with new attractions and venues,” stated Jakobsen. Wadhwa shared, “We have been doing events in Dubai since last 15 years, it is the closest international destination. Visa is not a challenge , but now there are a lot of licenses for events. In terms of experiences, there is no dearth. Dubai has no dearth of local talent, it also attracts international talent.” Kundu pointed out that from hospitality to culinary to transportation, there is a lot of operational excellence, enabled by Indians present in Dubai. “It is an extension of India,” said Kundu. The panel discussion also focused on the unique advantages an Indian planner has while planning an offsite event in Dubai, ensuring fresh itinerary with consecutive visits, ideas on how to integrate out of the box as part of the itinerary, etc.
Future vision
The media roundtable saw Jakobsen highlight the tourism vision of Dubai, which includes the destination being the number one in the world for families, the most visited for business travel and events, and many other ambitious targets. “Dubai’s destination offerings are continuously being enhanced and the city’s connectivity is continuously improving,” remarked Jakobsen. The strategic goals include increasing marketshare across existing source markets, encourage investors to stay longer, etc. India is a key source market, followed by Saudi Arabia, UK and Oman. Along with being the leading business events destination in the Middle East, 50 per cent of all trade exhibitions and 42 per cent of all association conferences are organised here.
Omar Abdulaziz Khan, director – International Offices, Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry revealed that his organisation which has eight offices worldwide is opening the very first office in India (Mumbai) soon. Expo 2020 in Dubai is one of the big drivers, expected to attract 25 million visitors. Tala Al Ansari, senior manager – International Participants at Expo 2020 gave an informative presentation on the extensive plans for Expo 2020, which will see 60-80 events happening every day for six months. The themes are – Opportunity, Sustainability, Mobility and the UAE Pavilion. “Ïndia is a key and priority market for us,” asserted Ansari. The Smart Dubai project is enabling and unifying Dubai’s city-wide smart transformation. Alia Al Mur, head – Marketing & PR, Smart Dubai gave a presentation on the various processes that will make Dubai the ‘smartest’ city in the world. Dubai Airports connects with 20 cities across India, and over 1232 flights/ week. Lorne Riley, director of corporate communications at Dubai Airports disclosed that Dubai Airports Masterplan is in place for 140 million travellers by 2025.
MICE highlights
The Polynesian themed Lapita Hotel at Dubai Parks and Resorts is the newest addition to Dubai’s exclusive luxury accommodation options. In fact, Dubai Parks & Resorts that has created a lot of interest in the Indian market, has many unique venues for MICE. In terms of F&B, at a short distance from the park is Qasr Al Sultan, the newest Arabian themed dining venue (with live entertainment), which is perfect for large and small groups. From three star stay at Rove Downtown to the choice of five star hotels (The St Regis Dubai, W Dubai and Westin Dubai) at Al Habtoor City Complex, there are wide ranging options for groups, ranging from quirky meeting spaces (at Rove) to elegant boardrooms (at St Regis).
Offering unparalleled views of Burj Khalifa from its rooms is the Taj Dubai with its many celebrated restaurants. Then there is the tallest hotel in the world, JW Marriott Marquis, which is already a favourite with MICE groups from India. Dubai offers many unique experiences for MICE groups, from helicopter and sea plane aerial tour of Dubai city to dining at Jumeirah Al Qasr with Abra ride to the ever popular visit to At The Top Burj Khalifa. The Le Perle show at Al Habtoor City Complex will be another grand addition by the end of this year.