JEDDAH, 23 November 2007 — The 13th edition of the month-long Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) 2008 starting on Jan. 24 will showcase “endless options available for shoppers in Dubai,” Ibrahim Saleh, chief operating officer of DSF, told the media at the InterContinental Hotel here on Wednesday night.

He said last year’s festival witnessed a 24 percent increase in visitors from the GCC.

Accompanying the delegation were officials of the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing and representatives of various travel and tour companies, hotels, hotel apartments and car rental agencies.

Emphasizing that the Dubai government is committed to catering to all the needs of the visitors by enhancing various available services in different sectors, Saleh mentioned, as an example, that 46,000 hotel rooms will be provided by 409 world-class hotels and hotel apartments.

“The road show is our way of bringing DSF to the families in Jeddah, and to enable potential visitors to have a preview of a unique experience in Dubai. We will also highlight the new and innovative strategy that we have planned for DSF till 2010. The DSF team constantly endeavors to put up an innovative DSF edition every year and the increasing visitor numbers, especially from Saudi Arabia, are a testament that the festival is on the right path,” Saleh said.

“ Our aim during the roadshow will be to highlight the endless options available for shoppers in Dubai,” he said.

Rana Ghazi, DSF’s PR and communication manager, said that the GCC road show was part of the bigger marketing strategy planned for the next DSF.

The roadshow will move on to Riyadh, the last stop of the GCC-wide road show tomorrow. Al-Faisaliah Hotel will host the DSF delegation.