Calling it a “momentous marker for global tourism recovery,” Dubai tourism reports that the Emirate welcomed 7.28 million international overnight visitors in 2021, representing 32 percent year-over-year growth.
According to the latest data, international visitation to the city surpassed 3.4 million visitors in the fourth quarter of 2021, achieving 74% of the total pre-pandemic tourist arrivals of Q4 2019, and paving the way for hotels in Dubai to deliver a stellar fourth quarter performance that surpassed pre-pandemic levels.
Other key statistics include:
• In a significant boost to the economy, international arrivals during fourth quarter of 2021 climbed to 3.4 million, accounting for 47% of total visitation
• Strong hotel performance surpassed pre-pandemic levels in Q4 2021
• Total number of rooms sold in Dubai during 2021 is almost 1% of all rooms sold worldwide
• Dubai’s hotel room demand for 2021 equalled the combined hotel room demand of London, Paris, and Oslo
• Average hotel occupancy reached 67% in 2021, among the highest occupancy numbers internationally
• Dubai’s key international markets regained momentum with positive performances led by No.1 source market India with 910,000 visitors, followed by Saudi Arabia, Russia, and UK
The positive trend is expected to continue throughout 2022 and beyond, say tourism officials, advancing the city’s goal of becoming the world’s most visited destination.
Citing both Expo 2020 and UAE Golden Jubilee celebrations as major boosts, the former having already attracted 11.6 million visitors since opening in October, Helal Saeed Al Marri, Director General of Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism, said, “Dubai’s success in 2021 is testament to the carefully calibrated strategy and decisive measures that were put in place at the outset to counter and manage the pandemic across all sectors including trade and tourism…”
Dubai was one of the first destinations in the world to close, then open and remain open during the pandemic, and continued to invest in a wide spectrum of new attractions and leisure destinations, among them Ain Dubai, Deep Dive Dubai, Hatta Dome Park, and The View at The Palm.
At the same time, Dubai continues to build on the destination’s pillars – culture, cuisine, entertainment, outdoor adventures to beach activities, family-oriented experiences, and shopping – as well as leveraging the opportunities provided by festivals and events like the Dubai Shopping Festival, Dubai Summer Surprises, Dubai Fitness Challenge, Gulfood, ATM and Gitex to increase visitation by leisure and business travellers.
And as one of the most vaccinated nations in the world, with more than 94% of the population vaccinated, the UAE achieved the No.1 position globally in Bloomberg’s Covid Resilience Ranking in January 2022.