The "Arabian Travel Market 2021" kicked off yesterday at the Dubai World Trade Centre, marking a unique edition of the largest event in the travel and tourism sector in the Middle East, in terms of participant numbers attending in person—the largest gathering of its kind in about 18 months. His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister, and Ruler of Dubai, welcomed participants to this global event. He tweeted: "62 countries are participating in person in Dubai at the Arabic Travel Market... the largest global tourism event since the pandemic began... We welcome everyone to Dubai, where the world's tourism recovery begins... and where we can see the light at the end of the tunnel humanity has gone through over the year and a half."
**New Confidence**
His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation and Chairman of Emirates Group, opened the 28th edition of the Arabian Travel Market (ATM 2021) yesterday. He affirmed that the high turnout for this year's edition from the tourism, travel, and hospitality sectors worldwide is a new testimony of confidence in Dubai's success in providing a safe environment that ensures the health and safety of all participants in this major global event, which has seen direct attendance in nearly a year and a half. He emphasized that organizing this grand event aligns with the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, to enhance Dubai's position as a principal destination for tourism and travel activities in the region and to accelerate the recovery of this vital sector, not only regionally but globally, reaffirming Dubai's contribution to shaping the future of travel and tourism in the post-pandemic phase.
**Exhibition Tour**
Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum toured several exhibition booths that are running for four days, until May 19, at the Dubai World Trade Centre, accompanied by Helal Saeed Al Marri, Director General of Dubai Tourism and Commerce Marketing, Claude Blanc, Director of the International Travel Market portfolio, and Danielle Curtis, Middle East Exhibition Director at ATM. During the tour, he explored key tourism products and safe travel solutions presented through the exhibition booths, which this year features participation from 1,300 exhibitors from 62 countries, including some of the most important tourist destinations worldwide, such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Italy, Germany, Cyprus, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea, Maldives, Philippines, Thailand, Mexico, and the United States, alongside a prominent Emirati presence in this edition, highlighting the exhibition's importance in connecting destinations with their source markets.
**Expo 2020 Dubai**
During the tour, Sheikh Ahmed stopped at the Expo 2020 Dubai pavilion, which provides insights about the largest event of its kind in the world, set to launch in October, anticipated to be a landmark in the exhibition's rich history, as Dubai provides all guarantees for the complete safety of all exhibitors and visitors, further enhancing the confidence of participants from around the globe.
**Emirates Airlines**
He also visited the Emirates Airlines pavilion, showcasing the latest solutions it offers to travelers on board its flights, ensuring the highest levels of comfort and safety, applying best global practices in safe travel. Furthermore, he stopped at the Saudi pavilion, learning from representatives of the Saudi Tourism Authority about what the Kingdom presents at this year's Arabian Travel Market, showcasing unique tourism components within the efforts aimed at contributing to the development journey in the Kingdom, highlighting the sector's significance as a key pillar of "Vision 2030." His tour included several booths from foreign participating countries, where he listened to the views and ideas of their officials regarding the future of global cooperation in accelerating the recovery of tourism and travel activities worldwide, recognizing the sector's importance on both economic and social fronts, as it directly impacts people's lives and aligns with current and future requirements.
**11,000 People**
The Arabian Travel Market 2021 is held under the theme "A New Dawn for Travel and Tourism," occupying nine halls while adhering to precautionary measures and following all necessary protocols to ensure the safety of all exhibitors, participants, and visitors, particularly regarding social distancing and other advisories in place in Dubai. The exhibition is expected to attract about 11,000 people, with all necessary assurances provided to ensure their safety.
**Hybrid Edition**
The current edition of the Arabian Travel Market will, for the first time, be hybrid, with a virtual event launched one week after the main event concludes. The virtual edition will take place from May 24-26, 2021, aiming to reach a wider audience of those interested and working in the industry. The virtual market, held for the first time earlier last year, proved to have significant success, attracting 12,000 visitors from 140 countries.
**Arab Travel Week Events**
The Arabian Travel Market 2021 is a key component of the "Arab Travel Week," which will run for 10 days, encompassing exhibitions, conferences, discussion sessions, awards, product launches, and networking events. In addition to the live edition of the Arabian Travel Market, the week will include the "Arrival Dubai Forum," gathering top specialists in the travel, tourism, and hospitality sectors from around the world to explore the next generation of innovations and trends in tourism activities, the "Travel Forward" travel technology exhibition, a half-day virtual travel conference by the Global Business Travel Association, the Middle East Tourism Investment Summit organized by the Institute of Information and Communication Technology, rapid networking events for digital influencers, and forums dedicated to key markets in the region, including China, alongside the virtual edition of the Arabian Travel Market.
*The exhibition attracts 1,300 exhibitors from 62 countries, including the most important tourist destinations in the world.*
