Dubai has welcomed almost 1,000 travel industry professionals and conference organisers from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, during the final quarter of 2016 to showcase the emirate’s impressive range of tourism offerings through a series of familiarisation trips organised by Dubai Tourism.

The familiarisation trips highlight the organisation's commitment to promoting new leisure experiences such as Dubai Opera, IMG Worlds of Adventure and Dubai Parks and Resorts in key international markets. Delegates visited from a range of markets, including Brazil, China, Commonwealth of Independent States, Czech Republic, Egypt, France, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, and Turkey.

Issam Kazim, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing, said, "It’s been an exceptional year for Dubai regarding the colourful spectrum of new tourism offerings available for visitors. We are excited by the prospect of finishing on a high note and engaging with the international travel industry on a truly global scale. The familiarisation trips represent a fantastic opportunity for delegates to experience our new leisure and family attractions for the first time, while witnessing how they’re contributing to the wider business environment.

"These trips are vital as we work towards our goals of achieving 20 million visitors a year by 2020, and fostering strong relationships between the Dubai tourism industry and travel agents, tour operators and conference organisers around the world. Our success is based on strong involvement from local stakeholders, such as Emirates, the hotel community and Destination Management Companies who continue to show unwavering support in pursuit of our shared vision."

As part of the schedule of familiarisation trips, Dubai hosted several specific groups from the emerging economies of Brazil and China, with Sino-UAE relations benefiting from visas on arrival between both countries as part of initiatives to strengthen bilateral ties. The city also hosted high-level conference planners and association executives as part of the 2016 BestCities Global Forum which was organised in partnership with the BestCities Alliance, an international network of convention bureaus connecting 11 meeting destinations, unified by a commitment to deliver exceptional standards.