Dubai: Exotic limousines are always a head-turner in Dubai. But more so if they’re driving in a convoy — all 40 of them — to transport hundreds of the more than 7,000 Chinese tourists in Dubai for a holiday.
Some 16,000 Chinese tourists from the Nu Skin China company are in Dubai for a holiday as an incentive for helping drive record profits for 2013. The incentive trip is also part of the company’s 30th founding anniversary celebration.
Called “Nu Skin Success Trip”, the first batches arrived on April 6 and the 10-day trip will run until April 16. The last batch will finish their tour on April 20.
Gulf News caught up with the group while at a company conference meeting at the World Trade Centre on Sunday afternoon. The Chinese tourists, however, were not allowed to speak to the media about their experience because it is “an internal event”.
But tour agents hosting them had a lot to say. Some 40 exotic limousines for the VIPs and 250 buses were used to transport them. The limousines seat between 13 and 30 people each.
“This is the biggest group we have handled so far. And this is the first time that all the limousines from six companies are together for one event,” Fazal, who drives a 16-seater limo, told Gulf News.
“The Chinese tourists are very nice and clever. They take a lot of pictures,” Fazal added.
Irfan Khan, driver of a 30-seater Hummer H2, believed to be the longest limousine in the Middle East, said the trip is a big boost to the tourism industry in Dubai.
“The Chinese tourists are very friendly. They don’t give us any problem. And they also spend money while travelling, which is good for Dubai,” Khan said.
Rashad Zain, Excursion Manager at Alpha Tours that’s handling the city tours for the group, told Gulf News that this is not the first time their company is handling massive numbers of tourists at one time. But this is the biggest by far.
“We have handled thousands of tourists from the Costa Cruise. Tourists could number between 1,000 and 1,500 or between 4,000 and 5,000 at one time. But still, this group we have now is more than 7,000 and there are two batches at that,” Zain said.
Zain said the logistical challenges for this tour are huge, but with teamwork and support from the government, everything has so far gone smoothly.
“From our side, the operation team is divided in batches. We have advance parties to check on the roads and on the next destination,” Zain said. “We are really grateful for the support of the government and the police who are with us every step of the way.”
The group attended a gala dinner reception at Yas Marina Circuit on Saturday night hosted by Shaikh Sultan Bin Tahnoun Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority. Shaikh Sultan paid tribute to the Nu Skin clients in a “hats off” gesture.
While in Abu Dhabi, the guests toured the city, the Shaikh Zayed Grand Mosque, and Ferrari World.
The Chinese tourists were flown into Dubai on 77 flights, including two chartered trips organised by Emirates airline. The company has booked 39,514 rooms in 40 hotels and 409 tourist guides.
