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Dubai welcomes over 9m visitors in first seven months

DUBAI, October 16, 2017

Dubai's visitor numbers have continued to rise at an impressive rate, recording a total of 9.2 million during the first seven months of 2017, a 7 per cent increase on the 8.4 million travellers received in the same period in 2016,  according to a report by the global real estate consultancy CBRE.

This was driven by substantial increases in tourist arrivals from Russia (96 per cent), China (53 per cent), Iran (23 per cent) India (21 per cent) and Jordan (21 per cent). However, declines were noted for some regional markets, including Oman (down 27 per cent) and Saudi Arabia (down 2 per cent), which reflected the ongoing challenges in the Middle East economy at this time.

India remains the emirate's top international source market, with close to 1.2 million visitors recorded during the first seven months of 2017. This was followed by Saudi Arabia with 904,000 visitors, the UK with 712,000, Oman with 506,000 abd China with 466,000.

Whilst there has been some pressure on hotel revenues, demand levels have actually remained quite robust, with occupancy rates reaching 75.4 per cent for year-to-date August figures, representing a 0.4 per cent increase from the same period in 2016, as per figures from STR.

Around 28,000 hotel keys and 7,500 hotel apartment keys could be delivered by the end of 2019 alone. The sizeable additional room supply will help to keep affordability levels in check, which is important as the emirate tries to reach 20 million visitors by 2020.

If all developments under construction or in the later stages of planning become operational as per current timelines, Dubai could become the fifth largest hospitality (by supply) globally by 2020, according to STR.

Average daily rates (ADR) remain under pressure, making the emirate a more competitive market for international visitors. This trend is being driven by the heightened price competition between the properties during the lower summer season. ADR's reached Dh668 ($181.8) per room/per night for year-to-date August, versus Dh695 ($189.1) per room/per night  for year-to-date 2016, representing a change of 3.9 per cent year-on-year.

Limiting price competition by increasing communication between the properties, as well as offering packages during the low season instead of only competing on rates, are some of the initiatives that have been put forward by the hospitality industry to enable Dubai to continue its positive evolution as one of the world's key tourism market. - TradeArabia News Service




Tags: Dubai | Supply | demand | numbers | Visitor |

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