THE Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Investment and Development Authority (Ras Al Khaimah TIDA) announced that the total number of visitors to the emirate in 2011 was recorded at 835,200 visitors, exceeding the 2011 target of 800,000 and generating a revenue boost at almost Dh400 million ($108 million).
The 2011 visitors to Ras Al Khaimah came from various source markets including Russia, the UK, Italy, Austria and Switzerland, with Germany, as its strongest source market experiencing 200 per cent growth compared to 2010 figures with more than 300,000 visitors followed by the UAE generating more than 200,000 visitors with a growth of 100 per cent compared to last year.
With regards to hotel occupancy, overall, Ras Al Khaimah hotels, including the Beach Resorts and City Hotels performed very well in 2011, showing impressive growth in all key areas with 8.62 per cent for the Beach Resorts and 1.92 per cent for City Hotels. Revenue per Available Room (RevPar) improved by 24.5 per cent for the Beach Resorts and 10.2 per cent for the City Hotels, resulting in total hotel revenue increasing to almost Dh400 million ($108 million), which translates as an increase of 37.6 per cent compared to 2010 figures.
Commenting on the impressive figures, Victor Louis, chief operating officer, Ras Al Khaimah TIDA, said: “Ras Al Khaimah TIDA was established in May 2011 and by the end of 2011 we have exceeded our target of welcoming 800,000 visitors to the rising emirate of Ras Al Khaimah. This has been achieved due to the joint cooperation of our travel partners both within Ras Al Khaimah and beyond, and is testimony to Ras Al Khaimah’s viability and attractiveness as a tourist and tourism investment destination.”
He further adds: “With new attractions, hotels and resorts including the 349-room Waldorf Astoria Ras Al Khaimah luxury brand property, and the 640-room resort Bab Al Bahr both scheduled to open in Q4 2012, as well as continuing the charter flights from European destinations, our goal of welcoming 1.2 million visitors by 2013 and reaching the hotel room inventory of 10,000 rooms by 2016 is on track and will be achieved in the rising emirate of Ras Al Khaimah.”