The German National Tourist Board are hoping for an increase in the number of Middle Eastern tourists in the country this year following a strong showing at the 2011 edition of the Arabian Travel Market earlier this month.
The Gulf is one of the most important markets for German tourism these days, with tourist numbers steadily increasing each year, and it’s hoped that by promoting two key aspects of German tourism – wellness and health – the trend will continue to grow.
The Arabian event, held in Dubai under the auspices of Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is one of the biggest such events in the world and regularly draws travel industry delegates from around the world to showcase their respective destinations to the Middle Eastern audience.
With the theme of health tourism being particularly appealing for Arabian Gulf tourists, it’s hoped that the exhibition will prove to be successful, says the Antje Roeding-Boudier of the GNTB.
“Germany already enjoys a good reputation in the Middle East for its medical sector, and we are hoping to extend this to our wellness and health attractions as well,” she said.
German medical tourism is already hugely popular with Middle Eastern travelers, which means that the country is already well prepared to receive visitors from the region. Arab travelers already have access to numerous tailored package deals, says Ms. Roeding-Boudier, and these have proved to be very popular with them.
More than 20 partners helped the GNTB to stage the exhibition at this year’s Arabian Travel Market show, including prestigious operators such as Air Berlin, Alpha Travel Consultants, Baden-Baden Health Resort & Tourism, Dusseldorf Marketing & Tourism, Hamburg Tourism, Lufthansa, Semperoper Dresden, Tourism Congress Frankfurt and the Tourist Office Munich.