UAE hotels hit 62 percent occupancy in the first six months of 2021 as the tourism sector continues to rebound from the Covid-19 pandemic, ahead of Expo 2020 Dubai opening in October, state news agency WAM reported.
Nearly 8.3 million guests visited the UAE’s hotels and tourism establishments in the first six months of the year, a 15 percent growth compared to the first half of 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic-induced lockdowns prevented much travel and tourism.
The Emirates outperformed other global tourism destinations in the first half, including China (where hotels reached 54 percent occupancy), US (45 percent), Mexico (38 percent), the United Kingdom (37 percent), and Turkey (36 percent).
Guests spent nearly 35 million nights in UAE hotels reflecting a growth of 30 percent, while the average length of their stay increased to 4.1 nights at a 12.5 percent growth. This is accompanied by a 31 percent growth in hotel establishments’ revenues to reach AED11.3 billion. Domestic tourism accounted for 30 percent of the total number of guests at these hotel establishments.
“This increase in demand for domestic tourism has sparked a healthy competition among tourism companies to provide distinctive tourism offers aimed at promoting domestic tourism in nationwide,” said Mohammed Jassim Al Rayes, executive vice president of Al Rayes Travel.
Dr. Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi (pictured below), Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and SMEs, and chairman of the Emirates Tourism Council, said the first half results reflect guests’ trust in the national tourism products, and their competitiveness in establishing themselves as preferred choices for the country’s citizens and residents, compared to other foreign tourist destinations, WAM reported.
Dr. Al Falasi pointed to the high vaccination rate that has subsequently raised the level of safety and confidence in the UAE’s tourism sector. The UAE’s vaccination drive has been one of the fastest in the world, with 81 percent of the population now fully vaccinated – on Sunday, the country reported fewer than 400 Covid-19 cases for the first time in a year.
33,216 doses of #COVID19 vaccine were given in the last 24 hours, to reach a total of 19,445,872 doses, with a distribution rate of 196.61 doses per 100 people. A percentages of 91.93% have received 1 dose and 81.08% is fully vaccinated of the population.#TogetherWeRecover
— NCEMA UAE (@NCEMAUAE) September 19, 2021
Expo 2020 Dubai, which will open its doors to the world on October 1, is expected to further boost the country’s tourism sector as the six-month event is forecast to welcome 25 million visits and will bring to Dubai delegations from more than 192 countries.
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