The trade engagement program was attended by over 150 travel trade partners in each city, fostering new networks with the stakeholders and deepened knowledge about the destination. The strong turnout at the roadshows reinstated the heightened interest of the Indian travel trade in all that Dubai has to offer. Be it futuristic innovations, sports, gastronomy, tourism or leisure (business + leisure) options, since reopening to the global market in July 2020, Dubai has never looked back. Indian visitors including families, honeymooners and MICE travellers have made their way to Dubai in 2020, 2021 and continuing the trend in 2022 to participate in strategic initiatives for growth. Dubai recorded 858,000 Indian tourists in H1 2022, making India the no. 1 source market for the emirate.As compared to H1 2021, Dubai witnessed a 100% growth in visitor arrivals from India.
Moreover, this number was close to the number of tourists achieved in the first half of 2019, which saw 996,000 Indian arrivals. The emirate’s ability to quickly return to near pre-pandemic tourism levels is even more remarkable given the impact of unprecedented challenges and other macroeconomic factors on the global economy and tourism sector.
Bader Ali Habib, South Asia International Operations Region Head of Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism, said, “Looking at the economic growth trajectory of Tier II cities in India and the growing purchasing power among consumers, the accessibility that Dubai enjoys into smaller cities as well as the growing appetite for travel in India, we see an opportunity to further penetrate through a more targeted and personalised approach. Tier II audiences have a different travel pattern and behavior and we continue to closely study them and tailor our efforts for them..”
Habib further added, “As India remains our no. 1 Source Market for the year, a lot of our efforts in the market are tailored, data-driven and dedicated to the tastes and liking of our audiences. From a B2B perspective, this year we have taken a more aggressive route in terms of B2B engagements, visits and outreach to ensure we can continue building relationship with the trade in smaller cities across all regions of India. We have partnered with leading travel agencies, OTA’s and B2B travel platforms. These strategic tie-ups have calendar plug-ins to ensure packages are dynamically pushed throughout the period addressing different audience segments and profiles.”
As travel confidence increases, Dubai is anticipating a sustained visitation from India in 2022 and beyond, as more and more travellers discover and re-discover the city and the emirate’s diversification of offerings and experiences. With the continued support of Dubai Tourism’s stakeholders and partners, Dubai is committed to always offering something new, unique and world-class for the sophisticated global traveller. Early on this year, the emirate witnessed the inauguration of the beautiful building, the Museum of the Future, by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. Many other mega projects are in the pipeline as Dubai continues to build on the destination pillars – whether it is culture or gastronomy, entertainment, wellness and relaxation, outdoor adventures or beach activities, family-oriented experiences and shopping in line with the emirate’s visionary leadership’s goal to make Dubai the most attractive destination and the best city in the world to live in and work.
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