Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT) has unveiled a $10 billion (€9.3 billion) tourism strategy aimed at ensuring emirate’s sustainable growth by 2030.
The plan is meant to boost visitor numbers from nearly 24 million in 2023 to 39.3 million by 2030 (overnight and same-day), with a 7% year-on-year growth. The emirate intends to almost double international overnight visitors from 3.8 million in 2023 approximately to 7.2 million in 2030, expand hotel room availability from 34,000 in 2023 to 52,000 by 2030, and further enhance the holiday home segment to diversify accommodation options.
Moreover, the DCT plans to significantly raise the tourism and travel sector’s contribution to the country’s GDP, almost doubling it from approximately AED 49 billion (€12.5 billion) in 2023 to AED 90 billion (€23 billion) annually by 2030.
The Tourism Strategy 2030 marks a pivotal moment in Abu Dhabi’s transformative journey, representing a vital lever in our ongoing evolution.
Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman of DCT Abu Dhabi
To achieve the strategy’s goals, the DCT identified 26 initiatives across four pillars. The first pillar, Offering and City Activation, looks to further enhance the overall guest experience by unveiling additional cultural sites, theme parks, retails offerings and new hotel chains. New projects in the pipeline are the Guggenheim Museum, an expansion of Universal Studios World, including Harry Potter World, the Saadiyat Cultural District, the Hudayriyat Island for sports and adventure and an updated Yas Waterworld.
Also under the first pillar is boosting the emirate’s events calendar of year-round concerts, festivals and family events. The dining landscape will also diversify, offering expanded options including the introduction of culinary schools and training programmes.
Under the second pillar, Promotion and Marketing, the DCT aims to expand its international reach from 11 to 26 markets. It also plans to establish global partnerships with media outlets and well-known brands for high-profile collaborations, creating compelling, market-specific content across various touchpoints.
The Infrastructure and Mobility pillar will increase hotel room availability across various categories, including accessible and luxury options, glamping and farm stays. New hotel projects will focus on 4- and 5-star beach destination properties and welcome new hospitality chains such as Mondrian and Nammos. The emirate is also set to enhance roads, public transport and infrastructure, simplifying travel within and boosting visitor inflow through increased flight seat capacity with both local and international airlines.
Lastly, both visitor experience and tourism business operations will be enhanced with streamlined under the fourth pillar – Visa, Licensing and Regulation. Enhanced platforms and processes will be introduced to reduce time frames for all applications and permits, improve the ease of doing business and attract investment.
