Dubai sees record 9.31 million...

International overnight visitors up 9% year-on-year

Dubai welcomed 9.31 million international overnight visitors from January to June 2024, a 9% increase on the first half of 2023, data published by Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) shows.

The influx of visitors to the emirate follows an impressive 2023, which saw the city host 17.15 million international overnight visitors.

The results show that Dubai has maintained its robust tourism momentum into the first six months of this year, putting it on track for a record 2024.

The year began well with Dubai being named the top global destination for the third successive year in the Tripadvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards.

Dubai was also named the Middle East’s leading destination by

In the World Travel Awards, Dubai was also named the Middle East’s leading destination, while Dubai International Airport and Mina Rashid were named the Middle East’s leading airport and cruise port for 2024 respectively.

Data also showed that Dubai has maintained its position as a first-choice travel destination for visitors from both traditional and emerging markets.

From January to June 2024, the proximity markets from GCC and MENA had a combined 26% share of overall visitors, 1.27 million (14%) and 1.09 million (12%) arrivals respectively, with Western Europe accounting for 20% of visitors to Dubai, 1.89 million in total.

South Asia was another major source market, with 1.62 million visitors (17%).

World-class hotels continue to be one of the core pillars of Dubai’s destination offering and in the past six months, the emirate has seen the opening of The Lana, Dorchester Collection’s first Middle East property; SIRO One Za’abeel, Dubai’s first fitness hotel, and Hilton Dubai Creek Hotel & Residences.

Among the highest in the world, Dubai hotels’ average occupancy of 78.7% is a 1.0 percentage point higher than the 77.7% occupancy achieved for the same period in 2023.

Occupied room nights increased by 3%, with 21.35 million at the end of H1 2024, compared to 20.73 million in H1 2023.

Meanwhile, total available rooms in Dubai reached 150,879 by the end of June 2024, compared to 148,689 rooms in June 2023, with the number of establishments standing at 823, up from 810 at the same point last year.

Issam Kazim, CEO of the Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DCTCM), said: “Dubai has continued to stay ahead of the curve by further elevating standards with innovative and distinctive world-class infrastructure, experiences and attractions. We look to build on this positive growth throughout the rest of 2024.”

For more information, visit www.visitdubai.com

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