UAE Winter: Tourism To Focus On Startups, Small Businesses This Season

The UAE is set to blend its vibrant tourism sector with its flourishing entrepreneurial spirit as it launches the sixth edition of the World's Coolest Winter campaign. Officials announced that this year's campaign will run under the theme 'Our Winter is Entrepreneurship', aiming to empower startups and showcase innovative, locally grown tourism experiences.

The campaign, organised by the Ministry of Economy and Tourism in collaboration with various tourism, culture, and heritage authorities, builds on the remarkable success of its previous editions.

This year, it will place a special emphasis on projects led by entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized enterprises, which form the backbone of the nation's economy.

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Speaking at the press conference held on Tuesday, Mohamed Al Ahbabi, Director of the Tourism Development Department at the Ministry of Economy and Tourism, highlighted the strategic vision behind the new theme.“This year, we are celebrating the power of national entrepreneurship and innovation to transform our country's beauty into exceptional, world-class tourism experiences,” he stated.

“We are investing in a golden equation making our accelerating tourism growth a driver for entrepreneurial projects, and in return, making youth innovation a force that unlocks further growth in the tourism sector.”

The UAE has firmly established itself as a global leader in entrepreneurship, ranking first worldwide for the fourth consecutive year in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) report. This supportive ecosystem is a key focus of the campaign.

Khaled Kalbat, Director of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Department at the Ministry of Economy, detailed the significant role of SMEs in the national economy.“SMEs contribute 63.5 per cent to the UAE's non-oil GDP and represent 95 per cent of all companies operating in our markets,” he explained.

He noted that the UAE's supportive environment, which includes 100 per cent foreign ownership in most sectors and streamlined digital registration processes, has enabled five local startups to achieve unicorn status, each with a valuation exceeding one billion dollars.

“Every tourist destination in the UAE, and every one of its natural, cultural, and heritage assets, represents a real opportunity for the launch of promising entrepreneurial projects capable of growing locally and expanding globally,” stated Al Ahbabi.

Officials reported that the sector's contribution to the national GDP reached Dh257.3 billion in 2024, accounting for 13 per cent of the total economy and marking a 26 per cent increase compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019.

International visitor spending reached 217.3 billion dirhams in 2024, representing a growth of 5.8 per cent compared to 2023 and 30.4 per cent compared to 2019.

Domestic tourism spending totaled Dh57.6 billion, marking a 2.4 per cent increase from 2023 and a substantial 41 per cent rise compared to pre-pandemic 2019 levels.

Previous editions of the 'World's Coolest Winter' campaign have significantly contributed to this success.

Hotel revenues during the campaign have grown from Dh1 billion in the first edition to 1.9 billion in the fifth, with a total reach exceeding 1.2 billion people globally.

This year's campaign aims to build on this momentum as the goal is to accelerate the national target of increasing the tourism sector's contribution to GDP to Dh450 billion by 2031, a key objective of the 'We the UAE 2031' vision.

Officials also announced that a series of anticipated projects targeting UAE villages will be unveiled following the recent success of Masfout in Ajman that has won the 'Best Tourist Village in the World' award for 2025 from the United Nations Tourism Organisation (UNTO), following a strong competition with 270 villages from 65 countries around the world.

The government plans to announce further details on initiatives aimed at supporting tourism and entrepreneurial ventures in villages across the emirates at a later date.

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