Dubai further strengthened its position as one of the leading tourist and leisure destination, with the first quarter (January-March 2006) hotel occupancy rates announced by the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) showing an upward trend in the number of guests and revenues.

The DTCM Director General, Mr. Khalid A bin Sulayem, said that   Dubai's record-breaking success in the tourism sector can be attributed to its spectacular new projects, record infrastructure expansion and sustained international marketing strategies.

The 'Dubai Destination' Report indicated an upward increase of seven per cent in the number of guests to Dubai 's hotels in the first quarter of 2006 when compared to 2005 figures.  

In 2005, Dubai played host to 1.6 million tourists between January to March, and the number increased to 1.7 million in the corresponding period in 2006.

Commenting on the positive outcome of the first quarter results, Mr. bin Sulayem appreciated the visionary leadership of the Dubai government and its policies of investing in new ground-breaking projects that had all the potential of transforming Dubai into a glittering and futuristic metropolis.

In terms of the total revenues generated by hotel establishments, a 20 per cent increase was recorded from the first quarter of 2005 to the first quarter of   2006.   The total revenue of hotel establishments jumped from AED 2.36 billion in Jan-March 2005 to AED 2.83 billion during the corresponding period in 2006.

The number of nights spent by international guests in Dubai 's hotels came to 4,483,603 in the first quarter of 2006 when compared to 4,242,560 in 2005. There was a significant increase of 5.7 per cent from 2005 to 2006.

The total number of hotel and hotel apartments also increased from 379 in the first quarter of 2005 to 410 during the same time in 2006.  The room capacity also spiralled from 27,438 in Jan-March 2005 to 30,162 in Jan-March 2006.

The total number of furnished apartments in Dubai in Jan-March 2005 stood at 7,531 and it increased by 12 per cent to 8,446 in 2006. The number of furnished apartments occupied in 2005 Jan-March were 6,312 and it increased by 11 per cent during the corresponding time in 2006 to stand at 6,984.