China held its first winter roadshow in Dubai this week, with eight provinces and cities taking part, including Shanghai and Beijing. The event, organized by the country’s National Tourism Administration (CNTA), is looking to attract more visits from the Arab world. It’s part of China’s efforts to market itself as a winter holiday destination for the first time in this region.

The roadshow is all about selling China as a holiday destination.

“The Middle East is a big market to China, with big potentiality. We have brought with us many members of the tourism sector, including entrepreneurs – so that they can meet with their counterparts in this region, to establish long-term cooperation relationships,” said Zhang Lizhong, head of China National Tourism Delegation.

According to official figures, China welcomed 138 million visitors last year, a four percent rise on 2015. The CNTA expects further growth in the coming years, and emerging markets like this one will be key to those plans. 

Tourism ties between the country and Dubai have surged recently. In the first three months of this year, 230,000 Chinese people visited – that’s an increase of almost 65 percent year-on-year.

The main reason for the sharp rise was the decision by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government last September to offer visas-on-arrival for Chinese nationals. And Dubai Tourism, the body responsible for luring in travelers, admitted that it’s working closely with China’s government and businesses to expand the relationship further. 

“With Dubai government specifically, we’ve been working very closely with our partners Emirates airline and other Chinese carriers as well, to ensure that there are continuous route expansions into China,” said Hoor Khaja, senior manager for Asia-Pacific at Dubai Tourism. 

With China and the UAE expecting slower economic growth this year, tourism is an increasingly important focus for either side. 

For the Emirates in particular, it’s resting a great deal on the industry as it looks to move its economy away from a dependence on oil. But, it’s clear both sides are realizing the potential in each other’s markets.