Etihad Airways and the DCT Abu Dhabi celebrate success of ‘Abu Dhabi Stopover Programme’
Photo: (from left flanked by Etihad Cabin Crew) Tiago Phillimore, Etihad Director Destinations, Products & Holidays; Aysha Al Kaabi, Etihad VP of Commercial Enablement & Engagement; Abdulla Yousuf, DCT Director International Operations; Haitham Al Khamis, DCT Section Head of Aviation, Cruise & Global Partnerships; and Nahla Al Shorbaji DCT Project Manager Aviation.
Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) and Etihad Airways celebrated the success of the Abu Dhabi Stopover Programme at Arabian Travel Market 2025, with customer numbers persevering with to speed up at a powerful tempo.
The Stopover Programme has achieved 25,000 bookings in the first 4 months of 2025, representing a 47% progress in gross sales in comparison with the similar interval in 2024. More considerably, the quantity of guests has surged to 44,000 between January and April 2025, marking a considerable 76% enhance over the 25,000 guests recorded throughout the similar interval final 12 months.
The success of the Abu Dhabi Stopover Programme extends past preliminary visits, with many travellers who first skilled the emirate throughout a brief stopover returning for longer devoted holidays. This progress builds on the sturdy efficiency all through 2024, which welcomed 85,000 worldwide stopover guests in comparison with 12,000 in 2023. Etihad Airways anticipates internet hosting greater than 130,000 stopover company in 2025, persevering with to carry incremental guests to Abu Dhabi at an accelerated tempo.
The programme attracts guests from throughout Etihad’s world community, with notable curiosity from the United States and Canada, the place travellers are more and more breaking their journey to expertise Abu Dhabi’s cultural sights. European guests from the United Kingdom, Germany, and France are discovering the emirate’s distinctive mix of custom and modernity. The programme additionally resonates with travellers from India, Japan, and South Korea, highlighting Abu Dhabi’s numerous attraction to worldwide guests.
The programme’s attraction has been additional enhanced by the new Abu Dhabi Pass launched in March, which supplies extra advantages for travellers in search of to maximise their time in the emirate.
The digital Abu Dhabi Pass supplies guests with free airport transfers, a vacationer SIM card with information connectivity, limitless entry to public buses, and 24-hour limitless entry to the hop-on-hop-off vacationer bus community. Pass holders additionally get pleasure from unique reductions of as much as 15% at main sights together with Qasr Al Watan, Louvre Abu Dhabi, and Yas Island’s leisure locations equivalent to Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, Warner Bros. World™ Abu Dhabi, SeaWorld Yas Island, Abu Dhabi and Yas Waterworld.
Saleh Mohamed Al Geziry, Director General for Tourism at DCT Abu Dhabi, stated: “Abu Dhabi’s strategic funding in data-led advertising and marketing, numerous programming, and a culture-first method is yielding important tourism progress, evidenced by 1.4 million Q1 2025 in a single day company. With the success of our stopover programme, we goal to strengthen partnerships and broaden our world attain, making certain our distinctive cultural identification stays central to our long-term tourism imaginative and prescient.
“The multi-sensory teamLab Phenomena Abu Dhabi opened on 18 April and is the newest addition to Saadiyat Cultural District. This 17,000 sqm immersive art space features transformative exhibits at the intersection of art, science, and technology, adding to the emirate’s growing portfolio of world-class experiences.”
Antonoaldo Neves, Etihad Airways Chief Executive Officer, stated: “Our Stopover Programme continues to exceed expectations as more travellers choose to break their journey and discover Abu Dhabi. The 76% growth in visitors during the first four months of 2025 demonstrates the programme’s accelerating momentum. By offering up to two complimentary hotel nights, we’re giving visitors the perfect opportunity to experience our remarkable destination. The introduction of the Abu Dhabi Pass has further enhanced this experience, providing practical benefits and exclusive discounts that allow visitors to make the most of their time in the emirate.”
The common size of keep for stopover guests has elevated since 2024, with travellers exploring extra sights throughout their go to. This progress helps the targets of Abu Dhabi’s Tourism Strategy 2030, which goals to draw 39.3 million guests, create 178,000 new jobs in the tourism sector, and contribute AED 90 billion to Abu Dhabi’s GDP by 2030.
Looking forward, DCT Abu Dhabi and Etihad Airways plan to additional improve the customer expertise by way of continued collaboration, with formidable targets set for worldwide customer arrivals in the coming years.