Looking to drive further growth in the number of visitors travelling to the emirate, the Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority (RAKTDA) today announced the opening of its first international representation office in the Nordics.

RAKTDA already has offices in Saudi Arabia, UK, Russia and Germany. The new office, which opened in April, is located in Copenhagen, Denmark, one of the most important economic, transportation and communication centres in the region.

Announcing the opening of the new office, RAKTDA CEO Haitham Mattar said: “The Nordic market is one of the fastest growing sectors and last year it ranked in our top ten source markets for visitors.  Already in 2018, we have seen growth in year-on-year figures up 26.2 per cent in the first quarter. The opening of the Copenhagen office provides an important resource to grow visitors from the Nordic countries and for our partners in the emirate to access this market.”

The chosen partner for the representation office is United Spirit Nordic, leading Copenhagen based PR and marketing agency. The agency is renowned for established relationships with Nordic travel trade and offer reliable, efficient, pro-active hands-on team to maximise the overall goal of increasing visitor figures, length of stay and spend per person.

Marking its seventh international representation office, the Copenhagen office will support the tourism body’s promotional activities and trade partnerships to penetrate the regions high potential outbound market. A team of dedicated trade promotion, Mice and business development staff will manage various in-market promotions and initiatives to drive further awareness of Ras Al Khaimah as a multi-faceted business and leisure destination to Nordic travellers.

In 2017 approximately 18,000 Nordic visitors stayed in the emirate, either on holiday or on business visits. In the first quarter of 2018, RAK attracted almost 10,000 visitors – an increase of 26.2 per cent when compared to the same period of 2017.

Numerous trade activities have been organised for the coming year in the region, including webinars, networking events, Antor workshops, FAM trips for the trade, and a UAE roadshow with the Ministry of Economy in Scandinavia in September 2018.

RAKTDA is targeting 1 million visitors by the end of 2018 as part of its Vision 2019 tourism strategy and international markets like the Nordics are high on the agenda. The strategy focuses on the emirate’s inimitable assets which include some of the finest beaches and nature in the region, the highest mountain in the UAE, a unique terracotta desert, 7000 years of history and heritage, as well as authentic Arabian cultural experiences. RAKTDA is planning to reach 20,000 hotel rooms by 2025, along with new tourist attractions, products and events to be developed across Ras Al Khaimah. - TradeArabia News Service