UAE- Ras Al Khaimah expects one million visitors in 2012 

(MENAFN - Khaleej Times) Ras Al Khaimah is confident to welcome one million visitors this year as the government accords top priority to promote the emirate as leisure destination, a top official of Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority (Ras Al Khaimah TDA), said.

The authority yesterday launched a major initiative to the rising emirate as a key hotel and resort investment hot spot ripe for investor development at Arabian Hotel and Investment Conference, or Ahic.

"Ras Al Khaimah investors guide initiative will directly appeal to and inform potential investors of the benefits of investing in Ras Al Khaimah's developing hospitality industry," Victor Louis, chief investment officer, Ras Al Khaimah TDA, told Khaleej Times during an interview on the sidelines of Ahic.

Elaborating, he said the investors guide will facilitate all investment opportunities in the emirate. "We introduce to the investors the available investment opportunities including 35 plots within the Al Marjan Island, where UAE's first Waldorf Astoria, Rixos Bab Al Bar, DoubleTree by Hilton and Real Madrid Resort will take place as scheduled.

"The highlight of the guide is a section where we provide the investors with complete 10 years plans feasibility studies of the different hotel capacities in Ras Al Khaimah," Loiuis said.

He said clear strategic goals and aggressive targets have been set by Ras Al Khaimah TDA including increasing the total number of annual visitors to 1.2 million by 2013 and increasing the emirate's total hotel and resort room inventory to 10,000 keys by 2016. "By participating at Ahic, Ras Al Khaimah TDA is looking to generate direct tourism investment and encourage investment opportunities into the emirate," he said.

At Ahic, Ras Al Khaimah TDA is looking to highlight the robust performance of the emirate's tourism industry and its attractiveness as an investment destination since the establishment of the authority in May 2011.

"Hotel occupancy in Ras Al Khaimah remained extremely solid in 2011 for the beach resorts during 2011 were a healthy 70 per cent and 65 per cent in the city hotels indicating an increase of 9.35 per cent in beach resorts and seven per cent in the city hotels," Louis said.

He said the eevenue per room (RevPAR) figures for 2011 also show an increase on 2010 with Ras Al Khaimah beach resorts enjoying a healthy increase of 24.5 per cent while the city hotels rose by a solid 10.24 per cent. "These figures were translated into Dh400 million hotels revenue stating an increase of 37.61 per cent compared to the year 2010," he said.

He said the emirate received 306,750 visitors in first quarter compared to a total of approximately 208,000 visitors for the same period in 2011, reflecting an increase of 47 per cent.

"Over the first quarter of 2012 occupancies have risen by a total of three per cent at beach hotels and resorts, and 11.5 per cent at city hotels. Additionally, RevPAR also improved by 31.5 per cent for beach hotels and resorts and 50.46 per cent for city hotels," he said adding that the total hotels revenue surged 40 per cent to Dh139 million in first quarter of 2012.

On Ras Al Khaimah's attractiveness as an investment destination: "We have created an environment that provides encouraging returns on investment and through our continuing promotion and development of Ras Al Khaimah as a tourism destination we will continue to ensure that this environment continues and is strengthened for the benefit of investors and the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah alike."

He said Ras Al Khaimah TDA is keen to attract leisure travellers as well as expat community in UAE and GCC to promote the tourism in the emirate. "The government is spending 250 million in tourism infrastructure projects this year," he said.

"The authority is focusing to promote Al Marjan Island, the first man-made island project to be developed with in Ras Al Khaima and consists of a cluster of five coral-shaped island extending over 2.7 million square metres," he said.

He said the emirate is open to welcome all hospitality brands and major international hotels are scheduled to make foray during next couple of months.