The 31st edition of Arabian Travel Market (ATM) is set to take place at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) in the UAE from May 6 to May 9, 2024. Participants from around the world will delve into travel and tourism prospects spanning leisure, business, luxury, and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions).
Research conducted by Statista projects that the global travel and tourism market’s revenue will reach $854.7 billion this year. With a forecasted compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.42% from 2023 to 2027, this sector is expected to surpass the trillion-dollar milestone within the next four years.
Allied Market Research valued the global business travel market at $689.7 billion in 2021, predicting that the segment would grow to $2.1 trillion by 2031. The global luxury travel market, meanwhile, is on course to pass $440 billion by the end of this decade, according to research from Coherent Market Insights. The MICE segment also continues to make valuable contributions in GCC countries such as the UAE, where DWTC’s most recent Economic Impact Assessment (EIA) Annual Report estimated that the venue’s total economic output – across 63 large-scale events – exceeded $3.5 billion in 2022.
In line with ATM 2024’s theme of ‘Transforming Travel Through Entrepreneurship’, attendees will consider how the segments of leisure, business, luxury and MICE are driving economic growth and sustainable development across destinations, hospitality and aviation, creating fresh opportunities for entrepreneurs and investors from across the Middle East and beyond.
Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director, Arabian Travel Market, said: “Holidaymakers represent a crucial focus for the Middle East’s travel community, but leisure is only one component of a much bigger picture. Business, luxury and MICE travel are also making significant contributions to economic growth and sustainable development, with Statista predicting a global market volume of more than $1 trillion by 2027.
“It is therefore no surprise that the travel and tourism sector is creating unprecedented opportunities for entrepreneurs and investors, thousands of whom will showcase their innovations, exchange ideas and forge new partnerships at ATM 2024,” she added.
The travel and tourism sector is on course to contribute $49.18 billion to the UAE economy alone in 2023, according to figures released by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC). This figure is predicted to reach $64.12 billion by 2033, accounting for an impressive 10.2 per cent of the nation’s GDP.
