Strategies for attracting tourists from the Gulf countries discussed at a conference in Minsk

The development of Belarus’ tourism exports to the Gulf countries was discussed at a conference in Minsk.

Experts on international cooperation in the field of tourism presented strategies for entering these markets. They also shared what destinations are attractive for travelers from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, UAE, Oman, Kuwait. Tourists from the region often travel with large families and prefer a measured rest, looking for something that they do not have at home, but with the usual level of comfort. Among the preferences are visiting parks, shops, water walks.

Chairman of the Board of the Republican Union of Tourism Industry Philip Guly noted that the Belarusian tourism business considers the countries of the Persian Gulf as a promising market. However, in order to get concrete results, it takes much more than the promotion of the usual excursion product. The experience gained before the pandemic gave an idea of the peculiarities of distribution, aspects of interaction.

The Republican Union of Travel Industry traditionally holds the Belarusian-Russian Tourist Congress in spring. Our colleagues from Uzbekistan and Turkey are also interested in it, so the format will expand. But our industry should have a marketing strategy for potential markets, where the consumption criteria are somewhat different. Today is the first such trial event, where we consider topical issues, said Philip Guly.

He added that next year RSTI also plans to organize a conference on the diversification of tourism services exports, including discussions of other regions, B2B negotiations.

Chairman of the Committee for International Cooperation of the Russian Union of Tourism Industry Sergey Voitovich shared how to adapt a tourist product to the specific requirements of travelers. One of the important factors is the creation of conditions for food, accommodation and service that meet the norms of Islam.

“Belarus has significant potential to attract travelers from the Gulf countries. There is something that Arab tourists appreciate: greenery and coolness in summer, snow in winter, as well as cleanliness, safety, a variety of recreation options, a competitive price for hotels, a wide range of goods.

The participants also discussed the promotion of the country’s brand, specific objects in artificial intelligence systems at the stage when a tourist chooses a destination for recreation. According to statistics, 72% of travelers from the UAE and Saudi Arabia use AI services to plan trips, and 69% are ready to book accommodation through neural networks.

For the travel industry, this means a new challenge: it’s not enough to have a good website and do classic SEO. It is necessary that AI systems correctly understand what Belarus is like as a tourist destination, what travel scenarios it offers, what advantages it has and for what audience it is suitable.

In addition, on the example of one of the booking systems, key trends in inbound tourism in 2026 were presented, based on data on the structure of bookings, consumer behavior.