An Overview of Bahrain's Tourism & Hospitality Industry

Bahrain's Tourism & Hospitality Industry

Gulf countries are well known for their innovation and development. Bahrain, being one of them has set its own standard of success on a global level. It is constantly one of the top 10 most visited locations in the Middle East. With the newly introduced eco-friendly underwater theme park Bahrain has taken a gigantic step towards world tourism. Bahrain is known for being tourist friendly with its liberal culture, hospitality and flexible religious milieu for visitors. The island state has faced some challenging economic and political times. It shows how economic growth plays the role of a country’s backbone.

Tourism Industry in Bahrain

Tourism plays a prominent role in contributing to the economy of a country. Bahrain tourism is open to a variety of experiences in the world. It's the land of historic, religious, archeological sculptures, scientific and modern inventions with the preservation of originality and native essence. Although the resident population of the country is only 1.5-1.6 million people, the total number of tourists who visited Bahrain was 11.5 million in 2017 and estimated to reach 15 million by 2020. Experts have estimated that by the year 2024 the tourism sector is to contribute 8-9% to the total GDP.

These are 5 basic things that give an idea on the primary level of what Bahrain tourism is all about.

  • The kingdom of Bahrain witnessed a large number of daily travellers who visited the country for a single day from different parts of Saudi Arabia. Hence, there are chances that these visits can turn into a longer stay with the purpose of visiting many tourist attraction sites nearby.
  • Experts have estimated that revenue from tourism market in Bahrain raised up to 1billion US dollars by the year 2021.
  • Bahrain has 2 UNESCO world heritage sites; Qal'at Al Bahrain also known as the Bahrain Fort which is famous for its antiques which were found in various excavations and Bahrain Pearling Trail, a historical UNESCO site dating back to 2000 BC, has a 3.5 km long pathway. It is situated in Al Muharraq Island. Archeologists claim that the coastline pathway was used by pearl divers in the ancient era of Bahrain history.
  • The BTEA (Bahrain Tourism and Exhibition Authority) is aiming towards creating an eco-friendly atmosphere for the visitors by implementing sustainable development principles and at the same time not compromising the original essence of its nativity, cultural & religious factors as well.

Hospitality Industry in Bahrain

Bahrain being the smallest country among the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) is home to 33 natural islands. The tourism industry of Bahrain attracted millions of tourists in 2017 but its hospitality industry experienced a slow performance; occupancy rates decreased by 1.1% and room rates dropped by 8.5% as the revenues in the hotels took a hit same year. But BTEA took some effective and serious measures in the business sector of hospitality and tourism industry by implementing flexible and durable regulations. As a result, a surprisingly high amount of development and progress was recorded in the middle of 2018 and its consistency is maintained till now. Bahrain's hospitality industry is a growing opportunity for investment in the field of hotel management because of the healthy boost in revenue and the tourism of Bahrain is at its peak.

The hospitality industry in Bahrain is made of different factors. A few of them are mentioned below explaining how the industry works.

  • Bahrain hospitality industry is investment friendly because there is ease of doing business in Bahrain. Bahrain is open to all standards of hotels and resorts including three to five-star ones with high demand.
  • There is a continuous demand for three-star hotels and serviced apartments as the choice for accommodation in larger families or a group of visitors. But the kingdom of Bahrain has also classified a need of the travelers and tourists with business purposes towards mid-range high-quality such as three-star accommodation choices.
  • If we are talking from the Investment point of view about overall employment opportunities in Bahrain, there are plenty. The percentage of unemployment is surprisingly low compared to other parts of the Middle East. It was 4.3% as recorded in 2016. It is estimated that the percentage of unemployment will drop down to 2.80% by the year 2024 according to some statistics.

As the number of tourists who visit Bahrain increased in terms of millions, the congestion on the road became chronic. So to relieve the pressure of hectic local travel off the residents and tourists, the country is all set to render its first Metro with the length of 104km for the smooth movement of domestic transport in 2019 which is built over the span of four years. Bahrain is much more than just a country in the Middle East. It is one of the very few locations that cover almost all aspects of the tourism and hospitality industry. Bahrain makes an effort to ensure that all the credible expectations are met in respective fields.

If this article gives you the needed push to set up a tourism or hospitality business in Bahrain, then we at Business Setup Worldwide can help you with it. Contact us today to know more.

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