Desert safari demand remains high during summer

Desert safari demand has remained high during summer as operators offer 25% discounts.

Vivek Menon from Deira Travels said, "Usually, June and July are a pretty low demand period for us. However, this year the demand has been exceptionally high and one of the reasons for this is a shortage of vehicles. A lot of companies and private drivers sold their vehicles during the Covid-19 pandemic. This means there are lesser vehicles on the circuit right now."

Fawaz bin Abdul Khader from Raptor Team Tourism said, "With the global shortage of vehicles, we are not able to buy new or second hand cars. This has driven up the demand. This year was probably one of our best summers in the recent past."

He also said that they give preferential rates to long-term customers and residents. "Sometimes, we extend the 20-25% discount to people who have been our customers for a long time."

However, Menon admits that August has seen the demand for desert safaris cooling off a bit.
"It isn't the same as the previous months," he said. "Our weekend drives are still running pretty full, but our weekdays desert safari camps are about 25% cheaper."

"Lowering our prices will affect the market," said Asim Rahim from Air King Travel and Tourism."So, we keep our prices according to the market standard. A decent desert safari experience can be anywhere between Dhs125 to Dhs150, depending on what the customer wants."

With the summer almost at an end, desert safari providers are excited for the upcoming winter season.

"We are sure that demand during this winter will be extremely high," said Fawzan. "With the Qatar world cup coming and tourists flowing into the UAE, our bookings are already getting busier. Our only worry is securing more vehicles in time for the season so that we can give quality service to all those who approach us," he said.