For tourism in Ras Al Khaimah, 'the risk is not being authentic'

TOURISM CHIEF SAYS RAPID GROWTH MUST NOT COME AT EXPENSE OF IDENTITY

- BY DHANUSHA GOKULAN

You might expect the person steering tourism in Ras Al Khaimah at this pivotal moment to be loud, flashy and relentlessly high-octane.

Instead, in walks Phillipa Harrison — warm, composed and quietly formidable. She has the kind of open, unfiltered laugh that makes you lean in — a warmth that contrasts with the scale of the plans she’s outlining.

The new CEO of the Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority (RAKTDA) arrived from Australia just five months ago. She had been running tourism there for six years when, as she puts it, “the usual way — you get a phone call out of the blue” — brought her to the UAE.

What she found surprised her.

“I was so blown away,” she says. “I was blown away by a couple of things. One about the beauty of the emirate.”

Now, at a time when Ras Al Khaimah is preparing for rapid expansion, her ambition is clear: to ensure the world not only knows about the emirate but understands it.

“I want to make sure that the world knows about Ras Al Khaimah and they know what a special place it is to visit.”

Defining distinction

Her first priority is positioning.

Ras Al Khaimah sits just up the road from two global heavyweights — Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The challenge, she says, is clear: how does it complement them without trying to copy them?

“We have two incredibly powerful, large, global, world-class destinations on our doorstep... And the challenge for me is, how does Ras Al Khaimah fit into that?”

She believes the answer lies in nature, space and what she calls “quiet luxury”.