RIYADH, 4 July 2007 — Discounts ranging from 30 to 70 percent are on offer at the Riyadh Summer Tourism Festival that opened at the Royal Mall on Monday night.
Providing an overview of the tourism festival at the national level, Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Moajel, president of the Tourism Committee at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said ten million people visit the Kingdom annually for religious and recreational tourism. Last year, the festival had generated SR60 billion in revenues for the national tourism industry.
Al-Moajel said Royal Mall is one of the 16 malls that are participating in the festival. The idea is to showcase the tourism-related facilities under one roof for the benefit of domestic tourists. The mall has also attracted entries from India, Iran, Bangladesh, Nepal, Indonesia and the Philippines.
Speaking on behalf of the Royal Mall, Mohsin Shaikh Al-Hassan, consultant to the group, told Arab News that four malls (two in Riyadh, one each in the Eastern Province and Jeddah) belonging to them will be participating in the rotating festival, with each one hosting the event for ten days. Besides the shops and departmental stores, other operators of tourism-oriented facilities like car rentals, jewelers, perfumeries, hoteliers and furnished apartments will also be showcasing their facilities. He said one of the highlights of the festival is that the visitors to the malls would be required to fill in a questionnaire giving their assessment of the event in terms of the various attractions. Based on their evaluation, winners will be picked out in various categories and honored as the best flower shop, best place to buy jewels and perfumes, best hotel, best furnished apartment, etc. They will be given a trophy and a certificate of appreciation. “The whole idea is to improve the quality of the tourism product,” Al-Hassan observed.
Speaking on behalf of India Tourism Dubai, Kamal Lochan Das, regional director, said 20,000 Saudis visited India last year, registering an 18 percent increase over the previous year. Besides sightseeing, they also visited health resorts and medical facilities. The Indian pavilion featured a group of Indians from different parts of the country highlighting its rich cultural tapestry.
Philippines Ambassador Antonio Villamor said there was an increase in the tourist traffic from the GCC to his country, though he could not readily provide statistics. He pointed out that Arabic brochures would be brought out soon for tourists from the Gulf, adding that one of the frequent queries from Saudi tourists related to furnished apartments in the Philippines. The ambassador confirmed that such facilities were available in his country.