Deep inside Abu Dhabi’s colossal Emirates Palace hotel lies an exhibition. Not just any exhibition, but one which drives home with breathtaking clarity the emirate’s lofty ambition to become one of the great cultural centres of the world.
Amid the array of images, models and words explaining the development of Saadiyat Island’s Cultural District are designs by four of the world’s leading architects for four of the most ambitious cultural projects ever seen in the Middle East: Frank Gehry’s abstract Guggenheim Abu Dhabi; Zaha Hadid’s futuristic Performing Arts Centre; French architect Jean Nouvel’s dome-covered Louvre Abu Dhabi; and Tadao Ando’s Maritime Museum, which utilises a reflective surface to create an illusion of sea merging with land.
It’s impressive stuff, and even more so when you consider the quantities of cash involved. Money, it would appear, is no object to Abu Dhabi and its vision to position itself as a cultural tourist destination and in the process move away from its dependence on oil revenues. And the architectural feats don’t end there – 13 of the world’s top architectural practices have entered a competition to create an inspirational design for the Cultural District’s Sheikh Zayed National Museum.
The development of Saadiyat Island – which lies 500 metres off Abu Dhabi island – is the government’s flagship project and will cost the Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC) US$1.5 billion in infrastructure costs alone. The island is being developed in three phases and will include six individual districts, 29 hotels (including an iconic “seven-star” property), three marinas, two golf courses, civic and leisure facilities and sea-view apartments and elite villas. Completion is scheduled for 2018.
Yet it is the Cultural District – the centrepiece of the project – which has grabbed the world’s attention and helped prove that, for the time being at least, Abu Dhabi’s strategy is spot on. With big cultural developments comes international attention. And with international attention will come high-spending tourists.
“The Cultural District is intended to create a cultural asset for the world,” says His Excellency Mubarak Al Muhairi, director general of Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) and managing director of the TDIC. “It will be a gateway for cultural experience and exchange. We firmly believe that culture truly does cross all boundaries, and therefore the Saadiyat Cultural District will belong to the people of the UAE, the greater Middle East and the world.”
The district has been developed, says Al Muhairi, to meet the government’s overall criteria of creating an upscale, world-class destination which will attract a substantial and highly sustainable, local, regional and international visitor base with a propensity towards repeat tourism. So has the strategy been successful so far?
“Extremely successful in terms of creating awareness of Abu Dhabi and its long-term plans,” acknowledges Al Muhairi. “We have received tremendous feedback from literally all parts of the globe. The Cultural District and all of its assets have received international media coverage in mainstream publications, specialist art publications, on TV and radio, from the US to Australia.”
In monetary terms, the 30-year cultural accord between the governments of Abu Dhabi and France to create the Louvre Abu Dhabi is costing the emirate an estimated US$1.3 billion. In exchange, the Louvre Abu Dhabi will receive special temporary exhibitions and management advice from its French partner, while hundreds of works of art will be loaned to the museum. Due to open in 2012 and covering 24,200 sqm, the Louvre Abu Dhabi will include art from all regions and eras – with special emphasis on Islamic art – while French expertise will assist in the acquisition of an Abu Dhabi art collection over the next decade.
As for the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, the fact that it is designed by Gehry, who was also responsible for Spain’s Guggenheim Bilbao, is enough to cause a global stir. His buildings have become tourist attractions in their own right, and the government of Abu Dhabi is hoping he will have the same effect on the emirate as he did on Bilbao.
He also, no doubt, has come at great expense, but the financial outlay for the Guggenheim and for the whole Cultural District is justified says Al Muhairi. “A project of the sheer scale and scope of Saadiyat Island and the Cultural District could never be achieved without strong governmental support – which this project has, given its integral part in the long-term strategy of Abu Dhabi,” he says.
“We are very well aware of the role major cultural assets can play in developing sustainable economic growth. As the Guggenheim in Bilbao proved, a cultural asset of international renown not only attracts upscale tourists, but also a high level of repeat business. This matches our ambitions perfectly.”
Although driven most visibly by the government, Abu Dhabi’s desire to differentiate itself from other destinations in the region – in particular Dubai – and to stand tall as a global capital city is a shared one. Virginie Collin, director of sales and marketing at Al Raha Beach Hotel, the first and only boutique hotel in Abu Dhabi, explains the situation thus: “It’s like a brotherly or sisterly rivalry with Dubai. We’re all part of the same family, but each one has its own personal vision and you grow up in a different way and at different speeds. The profile is completely different, the orientation is different, but they will complete each other.”
Noel Massoud, general manager of Emirates Palace hotel, agrees: “Every destination has to have its motive, its objective, its difference. Especially now, since the world has become so easy to travel and information is so easy to get hold of. Therefore, I think destinations should label themselves with what they offer. And, yes, Abu Dhabi is heading in the right direction when we talk about cultural tourism, when we’re talking about a different kind of tourism to the other emirates. It has to have a unique appeal.”
Positioning itself differently, especially to the mass-market tourism of Dubai, is of paramount importance. As Donald Getz, professor of tourism and hospitality management at the University of Calgary, told a senior executive workshop organised by the ADTA in June: “Abu Dhabi has massive potential to offer a completely unique experience for visitors and the overall vision must be to differentiate itself from all other destinations globally.”
The stunning Emirates Palace hotel, which is idyllically situated at the end of Abu Dhabi’s Corniche and is reputed to be the most expensive hotel ever built, is at the forefront of the UAE capital’s cultural surge. With much of its interior décor in gold and marble, it would be difficult to get more high-end than the government-owned and Kempinski-managed hotel. The venue has already staged performances of Aida and Swan Lake and is set to bring more events to the city later in the year.
“We fit right into this cultural concept,” says Massoud. “That’s why we started introducing Emirates Palace as the centre of cultural events. Aida was sold out and it was a great success and the same thing with Chicago [the musical]. And we hope that in November we will bring another internationally famous opera to the hotel.”
In November the hotel also hosted Art Paris-Abu Dhabi, a collaboration between the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage and Art Paris, an international fair dedicated to modern and contemporary art which takes place in the French capital every year. The partnership means the region now has an annual meeting point for the art market and has, according to the organisers, confirmed Abu Dhabi’s status as the region’s arts and culture capital.
But it’s easy to get carried away with the focus on culture and luxury. Both aspects may form the focal point of Abu Dhabi’s long-term plans and grab the majority of the headlines, but the city’s cultural ambitions should not be viewed in isolation. Ronald Barrot, chief executive officer at developer Aldar Properties, believes culture is just one of the component parts that will eventually lead to Abu Dhabi becoming one of the world’s leading capital cities. “Abu Dhabi is developing as a global capital city, and the majority of capital cities throughout the world have significant elements of cultural attractions already built on their urban space,” he says. “Abu Dhabi is a relatively new city that’s being expanded and we’re putting in the necessary components. There’s Saadiyat Island and the Cultural District, and Yas Island is where we’re developing – as Aldar – the entertainment attraction for the capital. We’re simply ensuring that Abu Dhabi has on offer what visitors would expect to find in any capital city.”
Yas Island – which has a total land area of 2,500 hectares, of which 1,700 will be developed – is Aldar’s landmark project and will be home to attractions such as a Ferrari theme park, resorts, a water park, a 300,000 sqm retail area, polo clubs, apartments and villas. Its primary claim to fame, however, is that it will be home to Formula One racing come 2009, thanks to a deal brokered between Formula One and the government of Abu Dhabi.
Other islands are also being developed by the TDIC, including Dalma Island, Sir Bani Yas Island and the Discovery Islands. Here the emphasis is on ecological beauty and nature, with tourists having direct access to the wonders of the natural world. “As a capital city, we are looking to attract people from throughout the socio-economic profile,” says Barrot. “We’re targeting the luxury end but we’re also catering for families so the city can be enjoyed by everybody.”
Culture, high-profile sporting entertainment such as Formula One and eco-friendly hospitality may form the main components of Abu Dhabi’s plans for future economic prosperity, but Getz says that a pre-requisite for achieving this growth and prosperity is marketing the destination internationally. “There is considerable synergy between the TDIC’s promotional efforts, those of the ADTA and other government agencies within Abu Dhabi who are all now working closely to present the emirate to the world as a high-calibre business, cultural and tourism destination which respects, and is sensitive to, its many environmental and cultural assets,” says Al Muhairi.
Barrot agrees: “Abu Dhabi is now establishing itself in marketing terms and we at Aldar are promoting the brand internationally through our various sponsorships and our own marketing programme. Abu Dhabi is becoming well known – it’s certainly known in financial circles, and it’s known within corporate business. We now need to spread the word among the world’s travellers.”
With so many spectacular projects in the pipeline, and with the insatiable global appetite for novelty, Abu Dhabi’s renaissance looks certain to be a talking point for some time to come.
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