Dubai could exceed the pre-pandemic annual number of international visitors this year following a growing influx of tourists, according to a new report.
The emirate hosted 3.1 million visitors in the first two months of 2023, according to the latest data from Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism.
In January, the number of visitors increased by 50 per cent year-on-year and stood 9 per cent below pre-pandemic levels of 2019, according to an assessment by Emirates NBD.
However, in February Dubai’s tourism exceeded pre-pandemic levels with 1.63 million visitors, up 7 per cent from 2019 and 35 per cent year-on-year.
The strong start for the year shows promising signs that Dubai’s tourism may exceed the record number of visitors of 16.7 million in 2019
Emirates NBD
“The strong start for the year shows promising signs that Dubai’s tourism may exceed the record number of visitors of 16.7 million in 2019,” Emirates NBD said in a report on Monday.
The tourism sector, an important pillar of the emirate's economy, has strongly rebounded from the coronavirus-induced slowdown.
Dubai recorded 14.36 million international visitors in 2022, inching closer to the 16.73 million tourists in 2019, according to DET statistics.
Dubai also came second behind Paris in a report by Euromonitor that revealed the top 100 city destinations last year.
Business activity in Dubai's non-oil private sector economy hit a five-month high last month as output expanded on stronger increases in both jobs and inventories, with growth rates reaching multiyear records.
Dubai International Airport remained the world's busiest international hub for passengers last year for the ninth year in a row, as long-haul travel demand surged, rankings by the Airports Council International showed this month.
In March, the airport handled 16,713 flights, marking an annual increase of 23.7 per cent and surpassing pre-pandemic levels for the same period, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed, chairman of Dubai Airports, said on Tuesday.
“These impressive figures reaffirm Dubai's role as a global hub for trade and travel, and resilience in the face of economic challenges around the world,” he said on Twitter.
State-owned operator Dubai Airports forecasts the number of passengers that will pass through the hub by the end of this year will reach 78 million, up from 66.1 million last year, as the UAE prepares to host major international events such as the Dubai Airshow and the Cop28 climate summit.
A full recovery to pre-pandemic levels on a monthly basis could come by the end of this year, or the beginning of next year, if monthly passenger figures reach 7.5 million, Paul Griffiths, chief executive of Dubai Airports, told The National in February.
In the first two months of the year, western Europe was the largest source of visitors to Dubai by region, making up 22 per cent of the total volume, the latest DET data showed.
The GCC and South Asia followed, each accounting for 16 per cent. India was the largest source of tourists to Dubai by country, with 401,000 visitors in January and February. This was followed by Russia with 229,000, Oman with 201,000, the UK with 196,000 and Saudi Arabia with 183,000.
Oman overtook Saudi Arabia as the largest source of tourists from the GCC countries to Dubai in the first two months of the year. Visitor numbers from Saudi Arabia are still about one-third below pre-pandemic levels for the first two months of the year, while the number of visitors from Oman is around 15 per cent above January-February 2019 levels.
Chinese visitors, one of the largest sources of tourism to Dubai in the last decade, grew 176 per cent year-on-year to 52,000 in January and February. However, this was down 75 per cent for the same period in 2019.
“We do expect the number of visitors from China to Dubai to continue to rise over the course of the year,” Emirates NBD said in its report.
Last month, the director general of Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism said he expects a greater influx of Chinese tourists within the next six to 12 months, after the Asian country loosened Covid-related travel restrictions, as airlines increase the number of international flights.
Dubai's hospitability sector is also rebounding strongly. Hotel occupancy rates in January and February rose to 84.4 per cent, up from the 78 per cent recorded in the first two months of 2022 and 84 per cent in 2019, according to DET data.
“Although the guests’ length of stay declined from 4.3 nights to an average of four nights, and the average daily rate declined by 2 per cent to Dh623, the average revenue per available room increased by 6 per cent year-on-year to Dh514, a 19 per cent increase from 2019, despite the significant rise in the supply of available rooms,” Emirates NBD said.
The number of total available rooms grew by 7 per cent on an annual basis to 148,450 rooms. Five-star hotels had the largest share of the inventory with 34 per cent, while four stars hotels comprised 29 per cent and hotels from one to three stars made up 20 per cent, DET data showed.
A calendar of corporate and entertainment events, coupled with the increase in tourist numbers, have “firmly placed the hospitality sector on a growth track”, according to Faraz Ahmed, associate at the research unit of property consultancy JLL Mena.
Dubai’s hotel stock rose to 150,000 keys in the first quarter of the year, with the delivery of around 2,000 keys, according to a JLL report on Tuesday. Propelled by increased demand, around 8,000 keys are expected to be delivered in the year, it said.
“With the continuous growth in tourist numbers and a well-planned calendar of events throughout the year to cater to various segments of the market, the hospitality industry is expected to sustain its growth in the UAE,” the report said.
However, global economic volatilities continue to influence travel trends worldwide, making it critical for hotel operators to apply “effective revenue management strategies” to boost their top-line revenue, particularly for those in the luxury segment, JLL said.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The biog
Name: Marie Byrne
Nationality: Irish
Favourite film: The Shawshank Redemption
Book: Seagull by Jonathan Livingston
Life lesson: A person is not old until regret takes the place of their dreams
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Specs
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THREE
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
The five pillars of Islam
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Stormy seas
Weather warnings show that Storm Eunice is soon to make landfall. The videographer and I are scrambling to return to the other side of the Channel before it does. As we race to the port of Calais, I see miles of wire fencing topped with barbed wire all around it, a silent ‘Keep Out’ sign for those who, unlike us, aren’t lucky enough to have the right to move freely and safely across borders.
We set sail on a giant ferry whose length dwarfs the dinghies migrants use by nearly a 100 times. Despite the windy rain lashing at the portholes, we arrive safely in Dover; grateful but acutely aware of the miserable conditions the people we’ve left behind are in and of the privilege of choice.
Graduated from the American University of Sharjah
She is the eldest of three brothers and two sisters
Has helped solve 15 cases of electric shocks
Enjoys travelling, reading and horse riding
Best Foreign Language Film nominees
Capernaum (Lebanon)
Cold War (Poland)
Never Look Away (Germany)
Roma (Mexico)
Shoplifters (Japan)
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
if you go
The flights
Etihad, Emirates and Singapore Airlines fly direct from the UAE to Singapore from Dh2,265 return including taxes. The flight takes about 7 hours.
The hotel
Rooms at the M Social Singapore cost from SG $179 (Dh488) per night including taxes.
The tour
Makan Makan Walking group tours costs from SG $90 (Dh245) per person for about three hours. Tailor-made tours can be arranged. For details go to www.woknstroll.com.sg
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
'My Son'
Director: Christian Carion
Starring: James McAvoy, Claire Foy, Tom Cullen, Gary Lewis
Rating: 2/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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At a glance
Fixtures All matches start at 9.30am, at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free
Thursday UAE v Ireland; Saturday UAE v Ireland; Jan 21 UAE v Scotland; Jan 23 UAE v Scotland
UAE squad Rohan Mustafa (c), Ashfaq Ahmed, Ghulam Shabber, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Shaiman Anwar, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Qadeer Ahmed, Mohammed Naveed, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Developer: Ubisoft Montreal / Ubisoft Toronto
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platforms: Playstation 4, Xbox One, Windows
Release Date: April 10
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Read more about the coronavirus
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
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Four-day collections of TOH
Day Indian Rs (Dh)
Thursday 500.75 million (25.23m)
Friday 280.25m (14.12m)
Saturday 220.75m (11.21m)
Sunday 170.25m (8.58m)
Total 1.19bn (59.15m)
(Figures in millions, approximate)
