Dubai is last week's holiday hotspot, says World Travel Guide

Travel fashionistas will not be joining the bargain hunters and making a bee-line for Dubai next year, according to World Travel Guide (www.worldtravelguide.net). Oh no, holidaymakers who really have their fingers on the pulse will be going to Abu Dhabi, Dubai's larger and more sophisticated neighbour.

Anyone who has been following news of Dubai's sudden financial meltdown will know that it was Abu Dhabi that came to the rescue of its brash neighbour (albeit a little reluctantly) and it is Abu Dhabi where the most exciting tourism development is taking place.

According to World Travel Guide (WTG), the emirate is also creating a high-end cultural district on Saadiyat Island, which will include a Guggenheim Museum.

Also tipped to be popular next year are Colombia, India - which is hosting the Commonwealth Games from October 3 - 14, New Zealand, Nepal, South Africa - which will host the FIFA World Cup in June and July, Mozambique, Sweden, Croatia and Turkey.

Of course, others in the travel industry have different ideas about which destinations will be popular next year. Ebookers.com, one of the largest online travel agencies, agrees that Cape Town in South Africa and Istanbul in Turkey are already selling well for 2010, but its top 10 for next year also includes Honolulu, Miami Beach, Las Vegas, New York, Orlando, Rome, Venice and?..Dubai.

Ben Reynolds, Head of Marketing for ebookers.com, says: This year's list reveals that people are still visiting old favourites such as New York and Rome but that travellers are keen to head further afield to the cultural hotspot of Istanbul and the sun kissed beaches of the States.""

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