96 co-participants to share Dubai stand at ITB 2009 in Berlin

Dubai stand (Number 104) is located in Hall 22a.

The Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) is utilising Dubai's participation in the world's largest travel trade fair for the 20th successive year to strongly promote the emirate to the global travel trade, especially among the Germans who has been showing unfaltering interest in Dubai as a year-round business and leisure destination.

The 43rd edition of ITB is taking place at the Berlin Exhibition Grounds-International Congress Centre with over 10,000 exhibitors from 180 countries and territories and is expected to draw more than 180,000 visitors, nearly three-fourths being trade visitors.

The DTCM Director Overseas Promotions, Mr. Saleh Mohammed Al Geziry, Mr. Abdullah bin Suwaidan, DTCM Deputy Director of Overseas Promotions, and Mr. Ali Abdul Wahab, Head of East and West Europe at DTCM Overseas Promotions, briefed the co-participants about the arrangements at ITB-2009 at a meeting held at Al Hamra Ballroom at the Metropolitan Palace Dubai.

Mr. Al Geziry said:

"The ITB remains a priority show for us to aggressively promote and market Dubai in overseas markets. It will again provide us an ideal platform to showcase our best in order to keep up the strong global interest in Dubai. We are confident that all our co-partners will benefit immensely from the ITB in one of the most economically-challenging times facing the global tourism industry."

The Dubai stand co-participants includes hotel establishments, tour operators in addition to the Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF), Dubai Summer Surprises, Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department (DNRD), Arabian Travel Market (ATM), and hospitality divisions of Emaar and Nakheel.

Extensive media coverage for Dubai is anticipated with the presence of over 8,000 journalists from across the world attending the ITB-2009 and expressing strong interest in the emirate.

German guests at Dubai hotels totaled 255,657 in 2007, while the first half of 2008 recorded 138,125 German visitors at Dubai hotel establishments.

During 2007-2008, as many as 276 German tour operators featured Dubai in their holiday packages, an increase of 34% over 2006-2007 period. There has been a 16% increase in German passengers passing through the Dubai airport in 2007, which stood at 1.33 million.