Yas Island on its success
By Staff Writer, écoute moi
Rounding off a year of remarkable accomplishments, Yas Island Abu Dhabi has cemented its place as a world-class destination, sweeping up 34 local, regional and international awards and accolades brought home by its highly popular attractions, as well as its infrastructure projects and developments.
Mohammed Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman of Miral, said, “As we continue to transform Yas Island into one of the top global destinations, we are both proud and humbled to be recognised for excellence around the world. The long list of local and international accolades and recognitions awarded to our attractions during 2018, including our recently opened Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi, are a testament to Yas Island’s successful journey this year and our continuous efforts to evolve, bringing new experiences and attractions and welcome more visitors to the island.”
Yas Island on its success
“We reflect and look forward to the future, where we see more accomplishments that will help us move closer to achieving our vision of welcoming 48 million visits by 2022 and becoming a world-class destination for leisure, entertainment and business,” Al Mubarak added.
The island continues to reaffirm its place as a destination of choice for leisure and entertainment seekers, and the awards won in 2018 are a testament to many aspects of the destination experience that strongly resonated with visitors from the UAE and around the world. Yas Island’s three world-class theme parks were all named winners at this year’s World Travel Awards (WTA) Middle East gala ceremony, which took place on the 25th of April. Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, home to the world’s fastest rollercoaster, was named the ‘Middle East’s Leading Theme Park’ for the third year running, while fan-favorite Yas Waterworld Abu Dhabi was recognized as the ‘Middle East’s Leading Water Park’. Making its inaugural debut at the World Travel Awards after opening its doors to the public in July 2018, Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi earned the title of the ‘Middle East’s Leading Tourist Attraction’, racking up more votes than its fellow nominees.
Yas Island on its success
Commenting on the triple bill of accolades, Mark Gsellman, vice president of theme parks at Farah Experiences, said: “We could not be more thrilled to see our beloved parks win big at this year’s World Travel Awards. Voted for by members of the public, these awards are a testament to the world-class guest experience that we work tirelessly to deliver, day in and day out. Our commitment to guests is our highest priority, and it is imperative that we hold ourselves to world class industry standards to ensure that we can deliver some of the most unique, truly immersive, and fun-filled family entertainment the region has to offer”.
“Our three iconic theme parks make Yas Island an ideal destination for guests and travelers from across the globe – there’s something to satisfy all ages, tastes and interests. Every year, we proudly add to our list of achievements, channeling our success into further developments to create unforgettable memories for our guests from across the globe,” Gsellman continued.
Yas Island on its success
This year’s Middle East’s Leading Theme Park award was accepted by Bianca Sammut, general manager of Ferrari World Abu Dhabi. Yas Waterworld Abu Dhabi’s award was accepted by Leander Werner De Wit, general manager of the award-winning waterpark, while Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi’s General Manager Don Strickler, collected the award on behalf of the park.
The World Travel Awards were established in 1993 to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all key sectors of the travel, tourism and hospitality industries. Today, the WTA brand is recognized globally as the ultimate hallmark of industry excellence.