Dubai leads the way in global tourism recovery

Dubai has welcomed 3.7 million overnight visitors during the 11-month period from July 2020 to May 2021, according to the latest data published by Dubai’s Department of Tourism.

As Dubai marks a year since reopening its borders to international tourists on 7 July 2020, the positive performance reinforces the leading role Dubai is playing in global tourism recovery.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai said, “We have seen inspiring commitment and proactivity from all stakeholders in the public and private sector to work together to adopt innovative approaches that can consolidate the sustainable recovery of the sector.”

The Crown Prince said that one of the prime reasons for the achievement being that the city has been able to set the gold standard when it comes to safety protocols, making it one of the world’s safest destinations.

The data revealed that Dubai received more than 1.7 million visitors between July and December last year from markets that were open, and an additional two million visitors in the first five months of 2021.

Demand for staycations among UAE residents, both Emiratis and expatriates from over 200 nationalities, drove tourism growth with hotel occupancy rising significantly from 35 per cent in July last year to 58 per cent in May this year. Hotel occupancy in Dubai peaked in December 2020 (69 per cent) and in January 2021 (66 per cent) with the city ranking second globally in terms of occupancy after Singapore and ahead of Paris and London, according to data from hotel management analytics firm STR.

Despite the disruption caused by COVID-19 across sectors, Dubai continues to represent a major opportunity for hotel developers. A total of 591 hotel establishments with 100,000 rooms were operating in July 2020 in full compliance with health and safety protocols. This has now increased to 715 hotel establishments offering 128,000 rooms in May 2021.