Research reveals latest trends in ME holiday market

Revealed for the first time at today's exclusive conference at Dubai's icon of hospitality, the Burj Al Arab, the symposium included 18 presentations and panel discussions covering every aspect of the leisure real estate market.

Commissioned by RCI Middle East, part of the world's largest holiday exchange and rental travel group, RCI Global Vacation Network, the research findings formed the basis of a programme that attracted an audience of high profile executives from around the world.

Stephen Holmes, Vice Chairman of Cendant Corporation, parent company of RCI, provided the keynote address, along with Awadh Al Ketbhi, Director of Conventions at Dubai's Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing.

The research focused on the burgeoning Arab tourist market and the holiday preferences of Arab travellers. More and more of them are expressing a preference to holiday within the region and this survey is essential reading for all those involved in the local hospitality and leisure sectors.

Fieldwork was undertaken during March across a sample of nearly 1,000 high-earning nationals from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iran, Egypt and the UAE. Undertaken by the Pan Arab Research Centre, (PARC), the face-to-face interviews were analysed and edited by NorthCourse Advisory Services, a member of the Cendant group that provides comprehensive consultancy and turnkey solutions for prospective developers around the globe.

The research revealed that the concept of shared ownership products is ideally suited to the higher income Middle Eastern national. Also, that many Saudi and UAE nationals are more inclined to consider buying a timeshare property over and above other options. Longer stay purchases, known as Fractional Ownership, typically involving a share of a larger number of weeks rather than just one or two, were also a major preference, especially amongst Kuwaitis and Egyptians.

The study demonstrated that the entire sample travels regularly and that holiday choices are largely based upon destinations that offer good family solutions and shopping rather than activity and adventure tourism. Food and fine dining is definitely high on the agenda for all respondents in the survey.

Topics of particular focus during the research were 4 leisure travel options - family holidays, religious travel, big trips and festive travels; the clear leader is family holidays. Many travel in larger groups, with extended family, friends and household staff; the larger, luxurious type of accommodation found within shared ownership developments, can fulfil these requirements perfectly. Notably, 40% of Saudi Nationals take household staff away with them, and 46% of UAE Nationals take their parents.

Dubai and the UAE as a whole are the most popular destinations for all nationalities, especially when considering a timeshare purchase. The potential is significant - the Middle East market alone could support USD$540 million in annual timeshare sales. With regard to fractional ownership, the most attractive locations were Dubai, Sharm El Sheikh and Makkah. Although this is a smaller market in terms of volume, gross annual sales are estimated at USD $642 million, greater than for timeshare due to higher-value properties. Another exciting new shared ownership product is religious timeshare, which has received an extremely positive response amongst Muslim communities across the globe, who all have a common interest in travelling to Makkah.

These findings clearly demonstrate the major potential for shared ownership developments within the Middle East, where to date construction within the Gulf region exceeds USD$1 trillion, according to MEED reports. Within Saudi Arabia the value of new projects has doubled to more than USD$200 billion in the last 12 months.

Vivienne Noyes-Thomas, Managing Director of RCI Middle East, commented "today's symposium is a unique forum packed with ground-breaking information for all those with an interest in property development, hospitality and sales. With close on 150 delegates from 15 different countries, it has drawn substantial interest from developers, government organisations and the entire leisure real estate industry."

Other topics covered by speakers from the US, Europe and Asia at today's symposium included The New Generation of Luxury Timeshare, Condo Hotels and Buy to Use and Let property models. Spanish tourism marketing expert Euologio Bordas set the background with a review of Global Tourism Trends and Shared Ownership within the "Dream Society". Key business leaders from the local community - including Elaine Jones, CEO of Asteco, James Wilson, CEO of Nakheel Hotels and Resorts, Patrick Smith, VP Asset Management for IFA Hotels and Resorts - examined the opportunities for these new business models in the regional property and leisure development marketplace.