DUBAI, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), was named the "2018 Luxury Travel Destination" at China Travel and Meeting Industry Awards, Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT) of Abu Dhabi said on Friday.
The event was held in China's capital Beijing. The sheikhdom was nominated alongside more than 20 other destinations including Switzerland and South Africa.
The award was presented to DCT Abu Dhabi representatives at a gala dinner in the presence of more than 200 members of China's travel and tourism industry, according to DCT.
The China Travel and Meeting Industry Awards was established in 2002 and is organized by Travel Weekly China, the country's leading trade publication.
"We are delighted and honored to have won this award," said Saif Saeed Ghobash, undersecretary for DCT Abu Dhabi.
A total of 477,606 visitors stayed at Abu Dhabi's 162 hotels during August, an increase of more than 45,000 people from August 2017, said DCT earlier in September.
The number of Chinese visitors increased by 9 percent year on year in August, it added.
