Pascal Maigniez, France-Benelux Director of the Dubai Government's DTCM*.

Why Dubai?

Pascal Maigniez - For its vitality, its extravagance, its trendy places and, of course, its climate. Despite all the work going on in the city, there have been very few complaints. This dynamism is part of the atmosphere.

How does the destination behave?

P. M. - In 2007, Dubai welcomed around 7 million visitors, an increase of 8 % on 2006. Our main visitors are the British (around a million a year), as the emirate was once a British protectorate and many of them speak English. As for the French market, it totals 120,000 visitors, including 36,000 tourists, with business tourism accounting for 20 % of this population. Over the last ten years, the French market has grown by 18 %.

Will the infrastructure keep pace?

P. M. - No, and yet we are regularly surprised by the huge construction site that Dubai represents and its constant ballet of cranes. It's not about the scenery, it's about being able to meet demand! For some time now, the infrastructure has been woefully inadequate. Over the last three years, we estimate that this mismatch between supply and demand has resulted in a shortfall of one million visitors a year, which is no mean feat in terms of economic spin-offs!

So there are very few rooms available in Dubai?

P. M. - During major trade shows, and for most of the year, it's difficult to accommodate a group of around sixty people in a seaside hotel. These establishments prefer to work with individuals, and their annual occupancy rate is 85 %! Despite the 52 four- and five-star hotels due to open between now and 2009, we already know that this new supply will not meet the increase in demand.

The ideal group size?

P. M. - In this context, I would tend to say that the smaller they are, the better. What interests us is the customer's budget. Dubai offers good value for money, given its top-of-the-range services, but there's not much organised there for less than €1,000 per person per day. For seaside hotels, the emphasis is on quality: management seminars, PR operations, product launches, etc. In the city, there are several establishments that can accommodate 400-500 people. But no more than that. For the moment, we're also short of jumbo jets.

* DTCM: Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing