New 'Hello Dubai 2013' campaign launched

A new campaign dubbed "Hello Dubai 2013" has been launched in an attempt to raise awareness of the city as a leading global tourism destination.Run jointly by Dubai's Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) and Emirates Airline, the project will hopefully increase the number of visitors to the UAE in the coming years.The organisations have invited 650 key tour operators and travel agents to a workshop at the start and end of February as part of the awareness-raising scheme.DTCM officials confirmed the campaign itself will take place between April 15th and August 5th 2013 and Emirates will offer special rates on flights during this period.The body confirmed that 68 hotels will also participate in the initiative.Eyad Abdulrahman - executive director of media relations and business development at the DTCM - has high hopes for the project."This great campaign came through the continuous collaboration between DTCM and Emirates Airline to promote Dubai as a year round destination that offers great combination of beaches, shopping malls, excellent service quality and experience for all target groups," he remarked.Last month, the DTCM also revealed that it was working with the Dubai Health Authority to promote health tourism in the UAE at a series of overseas exhibitions, workshops and seminars.Clearly, tourism chiefs are not resting on their laurels despite the fact Dubai's visitor numbers are already incredibly impressive.Dubai Airports revealed last week that a record number of passengers passed through Dubai International Airport in 2012 and even more travellers are expected to head to the Gulf in 2013.More than 57.6 million people used the airport at some point last year, which was around one million more than the company was anticipating.This was a 13.2 per cent improvement on 2011 and the firm predicts that 65.4 million passengers will arrive at the facility in the next 12 months.It is safe to say that Dubai has quickly become one of the most popular holiday and business destinations on the planet.