Dubai steps up marketing efforts to invite European visitors

Dubai is ready to welcome 300 travel agents from Europe in a bid to promote emirate as an all-year travelers' destination, said a tourism official on Saturday.

According to Issam Kazim, chief executive of Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism), these travel agents are from Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, and France.

By 2020, Dubai aims to welcome up to 25 million visitors to the World Expo 2020. Last year, the emirate hosted 13.1 million tourists.

"As we continue to welcome more and more travel industry leaders from around the world, we aim to encourage the world to visit us and explore the many exciting wonders that Dubai has to offer," said Kazim.

Dubai has been trying to highlight incredible luxury experiences and fun family attractions as key features of its tourist industry, he said, adding that Dubai Tourism is also working to promote the diversity of Dubai's touristic offerings.

However, the weak euro weighs on European travelers' budgets to the sheikdom.

As the greenback gained significantly against major currencies amid a recovering U. S. economy, visitors get at moment 3.89 dirham for one euro. That is significantly less than in June 2014, when people from the eurozone received 5.14 dirham for one euro.

The Emirati currency dirham is fixed to the U. S. dollar in an exchange rate of 3.67 to one. Therefore trips to Dubai become more expensive for eurozone travelers. Endit