According to a recent analysis, the UAE continues to be the region’s top travel and tourist destination, with visitor spending expected to reach about $30 billion in 2021 alone.
The UAE saw the largest spending from leisure and business travellers in 2021, spending $27.4 billion in total, according to Alpen Capital’s most recent GCC Hospitality Report.
After Qatar ($16.5 billion), Kuwait ($5.5 billion), Oman ($2.5 billion), and Bahrain ($3 billion), Saudi Arabia came in second with total spending estimated at $22.2 million.
Over 64% of all travel and tourist expenditures in the area were made together in the UAE and Saudi Arabia last year.
Even while leisure travel and tourist expenditure made up the majority of it, corporate travel has been increasing significantly in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. According to Alpen Capital, this was primarily due to the governments’ attempts to showcase their markets as a top location for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibits.
With a 34.1% share of the region’s overall leisure tourist spending, the UAE also led Saudi Arabia (33.2%) and Qatar (19.8%) in that category last year.
The UAE has seen an increase in visitor visitation as COVID-19 rules have been loosened.
The number of foreign visitors coming in Dubai alone than quadrupled from 2.85 million to 8.1 million from January to July.
According to Ghazi Mousharafieh, Chief Financial Officer, Rotana Hotel Management Corporation, UAE, “the rise in the region’s hospitality sector has been amazing with destinations gradually opening up their borders and actively investing in their travel and tourist endeavours.”
“The recovery has been enormous in the UAE alone, especially as a result of the impact of [Expo 2020], which further established the nation as a safe travel destination,”
