DCT Abu Dhabi Strengthens UK and Global Travel Trade Partnerships with Eight Agreements at World Travel Market London 2026
New agreements with seven UK travel companies and a renewed global partnership with Hotelbeds aim to boost visitor arrivals, encourage longer stays and promote Abu Dhabi’s expanding tourism portfolio.
London, 12 November 2026: The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) has strengthened its international tourism outreach by signing and renewing eight strategic agreements at World Travel Market (WTM) London 2026. The partnerships aim to convert growing traveller interest into actual visits, increase visitor numbers, encourage longer stays, and support year-round tourism in the emirate.
Seven of the agreements focus on the UK market, bringing DCT Abu Dhabi together with Best At Travel, Destination2, Elevate DMC, Kenwood Travel, loveholidays, Luxury Holidays and Southall Travel. In addition, the department has renewed its global strategic partnership with Hotelbeds, further expanding Abu Dhabi’s international distribution network.
The UK-focused sales incentive agreements will enable travel partners to strengthen the promotion of Abu Dhabi holidays through multiple sales and marketing channels. The collaborations will target diverse traveller segments and encourage bookings across single-destination holidays, multi-centre itineraries and the increasingly popular stopover segment.
The UK continues to be one of Abu Dhabi’s key international source markets, with demand supported by the emirate’s growing collection of cultural attractions, entertainment offerings and family-friendly experiences. With forward bookings for 2027 already showing encouraging momentum, DCT Abu Dhabi is focusing on building greater destination awareness and attracting both first-time and repeat visitors.
In August 2026, DCT Abu Dhabi further strengthened its engagement with the UK travel trade by organising its largest-ever Experience Abu Dhabi UK Roadshow. The delegation visited London, Chester and Glasgow, marking the first time the roadshow extended to the Scottish city. The initiative highlighted Abu Dhabi’s expanding tourism landscape and its pipeline of major attractions, including Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, a Disneyland theme park and resort, Sphere Abu Dhabi, Topgolf Abu Dhabi and three Harry Potter-themed lands at Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi.
Abdulla Yousuf, Director, International Operations at DCT Abu Dhabi, said: “World Travel Market London is an important opportunity to deepen the partnerships that connect Abu Dhabi with travellers around the world. The UK remains an important source market for the emirate, and these agreements will help our trade partners make Abu Dhabi easier to discover and book. Across our wider network, each collaboration supports our ambition to share the destination’s living heritage, welcoming Emirati hospitality and year-round experiences. They will also encourage visitors to explore further, stay longer and build lasting connections with Abu Dhabi.”
At the global level, DCT Abu Dhabi has renewed its strategic partnership with Hotelbeds for the fifth consecutive year. The collaboration will focus on generating hotel demand and expanding Abu Dhabi’s visibility across key international markets by leveraging Hotelbeds’ extensive global B2B distribution network.
Joint marketing campaigns, travel trade engagement and destination education initiatives will form key components of the partnership. Covering both Abu Dhabi and the Al Ain Region, the collaboration aims to strengthen destination awareness, encourage longer visitor stays and contribute to sustained tourism growth.
The eight agreements reinforce DCT Abu Dhabi’s commitment to building strong international trade relationships and creating shared commercial opportunities with travel industry partners. Through these collaborations, the emirate aims to connect more travellers with its rich cultural heritage, authentic Emirati hospitality, world-class attractions and diverse calendar of year-round experiences.
