According to Victor Lewis, the chief operating officer of the department, the guide provides detailed information on the performance of hotels, including the volume of tourist flow and development forecasts until 2020, including in comparison with other competing trends. The indicators are based on data from the international consulting company Ernst & Young. Moreover, the directory details 35 properties available for investment on the islands of Al Marjan Island and the Real Madrid Resort, the construction of which was announced recently. In one of the sections, the feasibility studies of projects for 10 years ahead are presented.
The growing emirate, which is also a tax-free zone, is one of the few that recorded an increase in gross profit of hotels by 50-55% and reached a volume of domestic and international investment of US $ 25 billion since 2000. The authorities of Ras Al Khaimah expect that by 2013 the volume of tourist flow will increase to 1.2 million people, and the number of rooms - up to 10 thousand rooms by 2016. As noted in the publication, last year the average occupancy of the beach resorts of the emirate reached 70%, city hotels - 65% and increased by almost 10% and 7%, respectively, compared to the previous year. The total revenue of the hotels reached 400 million dirhams (US $ 108 million).
In the first quarter of this year, the emirate was visited by 306.7 thousand tourists, which is 47% more than in the same period last year. The total revenue of the hotel amounted to 139 million dirhams (US $ 37.8 million), or 40% more than a year earlier. “We have created a favorable environment for attracting investment by the emirate and will continue to increase our efforts in this direction in order to achieve the development of the emirate as a tourist destination and to prove the high return on investment for our partners,” said Victor Lewis.
