Dubai needs an entertainment resort on the size and scale of Disneyland if it is to attract a larger slice of the global tourism pie, the president of UAE's Enterprise said.
The UAE's trade and tourism hub must create an anchor attraction to push it into the league of destinations such as the US and UK, and mark Dubai as the region's top holiday spot, Mohi-Din said.
"We need an entertainment anchor for the family, something like Disney but not Disney. If we have a project like this in Dubai, we have an anchor for the whole of the world," he told. "There is a big gap between Euro Disney and Tokyo Disney. There is a craving for an entertainment anchor [in this region]."
The UAE plans to attract 15 million tourists by 2020 under efforts to diversify its petrodollar-driven economy. The capital is spending billions on visitor attractions, in a bid to establish itself as a holiday destination.
