Tourism revenue in Ajman reached Dh80.05 million ($21.7 million) during the third quarter of the year, jumping 47 per cent from Dh54.6 million ($14.8 million) in the same period in 2014, showed recent data.

According to the latest tourism statistics released by the Ajman Tourism Development Department (ATDD), the big jump in the months of July, August and September can be attributed to the increase in occupancy rate, average room rate and additional inventory of rooms and units in Ajman.

There was a slight decrease in the number of visitors to Ajman but the number of guest nights grew by 49 per cent, from 201,596 in 2014 to 300,948 in 2015. Local residents and other visitors from GCC and other Arab countries still make up the bulk of the guests to the emirate followed by Asians and Africans, Europeans, Russians and Americans. However, Asians and Africans have the highest room nights during their stay followed by local, GCC and other Arab guests.

Faisal Al Nuaimi, general manager of Ajman Tourism Development Department, said: “The figures are extremely encouraging knowing that the third quarter of the year is the lean period for the hotel industry because of the summer season and Ramadan. We anticipate continued growth in our source markets with the new marketing strategies and brand identity that we will unveil soon. This will position the emirate of Ajman as a leading destination for business and leisure.”

The department also shared the status of the 2016 marketing plan to representatives of hotels, tour operators and travel agencies who attended the fourth quarter meeting. The detailed plan highlighted the new brand positioning statement of the emirate, the target markets and the different programs that will be carried out across the emirate starting next year to reach the target of five million visitors annually by 2021. – TradeArabia News Service