Airport Plan for Al Gharbia
http://www.thenational.ae/article/20080521/NATIONAL/983363207/1040/NEWS
ABU DHABI // A new airport is to link the isolated Al Gharbia region with the rest of the country as part of ambitious plans to boost tourism in the area.
Spectacular resorts are being developed in the westernmost region of Abu Dhabi emirate to revitalise one of the country’s most underdeveloped areas.
Some of the attractions will be up to 250km from Abu Dhabi International Airport. However, the company behind many of the projects intends to set up the country’s first dedicated internal air-shuttle service.
Al Gharbia, previously known as the Western Region, is a vast area comprising 83 per cent of the emirate and 71 per cent of the entire country, and large parts of it are difficult to reach by car. Efforts to revitalise the region, chiefly through the development of exclusive holiday resorts on Sir Bani Yas and Dalma islands and the Qasr al Sarab desert outpost, mean up to 250,000 visitors a year can be expected, with many arriving at Abu Dhabi airport.
Lee Tabler, the chief executive of the Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC), said there had been discussions with Etihad and other airlines about an air-bridge between the capital and Al Gharbia.
“We are studying types of aircraft – water-borne aircraft, pontoon aircraft and Fokker aircraft, which can land on water and also fly people into the Empty Quarter,” he said.
In an area rich with natural and cultural assets, it is not clear whether visitors who used the proposed airport would be allowed to visit areas other than the new hotel resorts.
“The people of the region are always at the forefront of our plans,” said Mohamed bin Azzan al Mazrouei, the director general of the Western Region Development Council (WRDC).
“We also work closely with our various government and non-government partners to push infrastructure development including road, rail and air – aiming to make the region easily accessible for those wanting to live, work, invest and visit Al Gharbia.”
There were a number of “great projects lined up for the region”, he said, including those announced by TDIC. “To ensure success, through various meetings with the Department of Transport, Abu Dhabi Aviation and Abu Dhabi Airport Company, we are all working collaboratively to ensure that Al Gharbia is more accessible.”
It had not yet been decided where the airport should be built. Although it would have to be large enough to accommodate the anticipated boom in tourists, it would not be the size of the Abu Dhabi airport.
Some of the most exclusive hotels in the country will be built in the northern coastal region of Al Gharbia. At a cost of Dh11.5 billion (US$3.1bn), the Sir Bani Yas, Dalma and Desert islands developments are all expected to be completed by 2010 and will offer a variety of facilities, including seven-star hotel facilities, secluded island breaks and the opportunity to see some of the country’s rarest animals in the wild.
The first hotel is due to open in September. The Qasr al Sarab resort near Liwa will feature a five-star hotel, villas, a spa with hammam healing baths and an observatory. Mr Tabler said the foundations of the resort had already been built.
Although the region generates 60 per cent of the wealth of the country through its considerable oil reserves, very little, up to now, has been invested in the area.
http://www.thenational.ae/article/20080521/NATIONAL/983363207/1040/NEWS
ABU DHABI // A new airport is to link the isolated Al Gharbia region with the rest of the country as part of ambitious plans to boost tourism in the area.
Spectacular resorts are being developed in the westernmost region of Abu Dhabi emirate to revitalise one of the country’s most underdeveloped areas.
Some of the attractions will be up to 250km from Abu Dhabi International Airport. However, the company behind many of the projects intends to set up the country’s first dedicated internal air-shuttle service.
Al Gharbia, previously known as the Western Region, is a vast area comprising 83 per cent of the emirate and 71 per cent of the entire country, and large parts of it are difficult to reach by car. Efforts to revitalise the region, chiefly through the development of exclusive holiday resorts on Sir Bani Yas and Dalma islands and the Qasr al Sarab desert outpost, mean up to 250,000 visitors a year can be expected, with many arriving at Abu Dhabi airport.
Lee Tabler, the chief executive of the Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC), said there had been discussions with Etihad and other airlines about an air-bridge between the capital and Al Gharbia.
“We are studying types of aircraft – water-borne aircraft, pontoon aircraft and Fokker aircraft, which can land on water and also fly people into the Empty Quarter,” he said.
In an area rich with natural and cultural assets, it is not clear whether visitors who used the proposed airport would be allowed to visit areas other than the new hotel resorts.
“The people of the region are always at the forefront of our plans,” said Mohamed bin Azzan al Mazrouei, the director general of the Western Region Development Council (WRDC).
“We also work closely with our various government and non-government partners to push infrastructure development including road, rail and air – aiming to make the region easily accessible for those wanting to live, work, invest and visit Al Gharbia.”
There were a number of “great projects lined up for the region”, he said, including those announced by TDIC. “To ensure success, through various meetings with the Department of Transport, Abu Dhabi Aviation and Abu Dhabi Airport Company, we are all working collaboratively to ensure that Al Gharbia is more accessible.”
It had not yet been decided where the airport should be built. Although it would have to be large enough to accommodate the anticipated boom in tourists, it would not be the size of the Abu Dhabi airport.
Some of the most exclusive hotels in the country will be built in the northern coastal region of Al Gharbia. At a cost of Dh11.5 billion (US$3.1bn), the Sir Bani Yas, Dalma and Desert islands developments are all expected to be completed by 2010 and will offer a variety of facilities, including seven-star hotel facilities, secluded island breaks and the opportunity to see some of the country’s rarest animals in the wild.
The first hotel is due to open in September. The Qasr al Sarab resort near Liwa will feature a five-star hotel, villas, a spa with hammam healing baths and an observatory. Mr Tabler said the foundations of the resort had already been built.
Although the region generates 60 per cent of the wealth of the country through its considerable oil reserves, very little, up to now, has been invested in the area.
