"India is my first baby!"

Bader Ali Habib, Regional Head of Proximity Markets, Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism, gets candid.

More than 46,000 industry professionals from over 160 countries - including 33,500 visitors - attended the 31st edition of Arabian Travel Market (ATM), which took place in Dubai recently. This represents a 15% year-on-year increase in attendees compared to ATM's landmark 30th edition, setting a new record for the show and demonstrating the strength, resilience and momentum of the global travel and tourism sector.

In a free-wheeling conversation with Hotelier India, Bader Ali Habib, Regional Head of Proximity Markets, Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism, tells us all about his love for India, tourism plans for the country, and more...

INDIA IS MY FIRST BABY

"We had 200 travel agents from more than 35 cities from India attending the ATM Mega Fam Trip. This is the largest participation (555 in all) we had from any one country since 2017. And when we did it, it had to be India for us. I can promise you it wouldn't have been any other country. I always keep telling people that India is my first baby and the other markets are my stepchildren. And I'm so happy to report that in Q1 this year, we hosted about 6,87,000 visitors from India, which is almost about 12% more than last year."

EVERY YEAR, 13-15 MILLION INDIANS ARE GETTING PASSPORTS