Manama, Bahrain: The Chief Executive Officer of Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority, H.E. Shaikh Khaled bin Humood Al Khalifa, confirmed that its representative offices attracted a total of 45,714 to the Kingdom of Bahrain, contributing a total of BD20 million to the national economy during the first quarter of 2019, an increase of 84% compared to the same period last year. This comes in line with the BTEA’s long-term strategy to develop the local tourism sector and contribute to diversifying the non-oil sectors of the national economy, in line with the 2030 Economic Vision.
The most notable results of BTEA’s representative offices over the last year are summarized as follows: the total number of inbound tourists from Russia’s office was 5,839 visitors spent BD 3,109,153 million, and the Russian office coordinated with a leading travel agency in Europe, Coral Travel, to operate charter flights carrying over 5,000 visitors to Bahrain. Additionally, the number of Russian travel agencies that organize regular trips to Bahrain has risen to reach 65 agencies compared to only 15 prior to the opening of the representative office.
Tourists coming into the Kingdom of Bahrain through the UK representative office were 3,498 and spent BD 1,785,695. The representative office succeeded in establishing partnerships with 10 of the most prominent agencies in the UK market including: Expedia, Sothall Travel, Travelbag, Lastminute.com among others who have managed to increase the number of travelers to Bahrain in 2019.
Also, the total number of tourists from India reached 2,346 and their spending amounted to BD 1,007,288. BTEA continues to steer its efforts towards making Bahrain a prime destination for weddings, as the Kingdom witnessed a notable increase in Indian Weddings held in Bahrain following the inauguration of the representative office. BTEA strives to attract more tourists who want to host their wedding ceremonies in Bahrain.
The Saudi Representative Office attracted 31,500 tourists whose combined spending total reached BD 14,106,524. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is considered one of the largest tourism markets. BTEA managed to collaborate with 150 Saudi travel agencies, as visitors from KSA comprise a huge portion of tourists in Bahrain and they include business and project owners whose businesses support the local GDP.
“We strive to develop the local tourism sector which comes in line with the BTEA’s long-term strategy to increase the number of tourist delegations to the Kingdom of Bahrain by cooperating with our representative offices around the world who work closely with travel agents to provide affordable tourist packages for families and individuals of all age groups throughout the year. We look forward to continuing this level of successes and even increase these numbers throughout the year,” said the CEO of BTEA, H.E. Shaikh Khaled bin Humood Al Khalifa.
BTEA has recently inaugurated its representative office in Kuwait with an aim to establish partnerships with tour and travel operators to increase the number of visitors from Kuwait. BTEA will continue to work towards implementing its strategy under the slogan of 'Ours. Yours.’ to expand its reach and open more representative offices around the world to achieve its plans to promote Bahrain’s tourism sector and achieve a qualitative shift and make a sustainable growth in the national economy.
The representative offices in Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, Germany, India, Russia and Kuwait strive to develop the tourism sector and strengthen its position on a regional and international level under the slogan of ‘Ours. Yours.’, which contributes towards the Kingdom’s economy and the 2030 Economic Vision.
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