Dubai welcomes 3.97 million overnight visitors in Q1 2022

Dubai received 3.97 million overnight visitors in Q1 2022, up from 1.27 million welcomed during the corresponding period last year, representing a 214 per cent year-on-year visitation growth.

According to the latest data released by Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) at the ongoing Arabian Travel Market, the first quarter international visitation reflected the best Q1 performance since the pandemic.

#Dubai welcomed 3.97 million international overnight visitors between January and March 2022, up from 1.27 million visitors for the corresponding period last year, representing a massive 214 percent YoY visitation growth.https://t.co/AIazb1BUni pic.twitter.com/H1ue5gv8VH

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) May 10, 2022

As many as 1.78 million international tourists visited Dubai in March 2022, posting a 11 per cent increase over pre-pandemic visitation. The city welcomed 1.61 million overnight visitors in March 2019.

#Dubai also ranked No.1 globally in hotel occupancy in the first quarter of 2022, with 82%.

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) May 10, 2022

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, said: “Dubai’s ability to surpass other major global cities in key tourism indicators demonstrates the success of the far-reaching vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to create a hub for business, investment, entrepreneurship and tourism that rivals the world’s best.”

.@HamdanMohammed: #Dubai records 3.97 million overnight visitors in Q1 2022, which represents 214% growth compared to Q1 of 2021, also #Dubai ranks No. 1 globally in hotel occupancy in first quarter of 2022 with 82%.

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) May 10, 2022

“The exceptional number of visitors in the first three months of the year is testament to the fact that Dubai is at the forefront of global tourism recovery. These results attest to the emirate’s ability to develop a compelling new value proposition in a changed global environment and create innovative new offerings that meet the needs and preferences of the most discerning global travellers.”

Helal Saeed Almarri, director general, Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), commented: “The hugely successful Expo 2020 Dubai, alongside a compelling portfolio of leisure and business events in the first three months of this year, has firmly placed the city on the world stage, while reinforcing Dubai’s position as a global economy and tourism hub.

“Since leading global tourism recovery with the reopening of the city to international travellers in July 2020, Dubai has only gone from strength to strength, building on the momentum year on year by carefully calibrating a multi-pronged approach with the support of our valued ecosystem of stakeholders and partners to ensure the city remains open, safe and accessible.”

Read: Dubai reopens to international tourists

Source markets
Dubai’s traditional source markets delivered strong tourism volumes in the first quarter. MENA and GCC collectively contributed to 35 per cent of the total volumes. Western Europe accounted for 24 per cent, while South Asia accounted for 14 per cent of total international visitation, Dubai Media Office reported.

Dubai hotels also achieved significant growth across key hospitality metrics in Q1 2022 with the average daily rate (Dhs649), guests’ length of stay (4.3 nights) and occupied room nights (10.22 million) exceeding pre-pandemic levels. Dubai’s visitors and residents can choose from a total of 769 hotel establishments and 140,192 rooms, compared to 716 hotels establishments that were open with 117,434 rooms in Q1 2019.

In the first three months of 2022, hotels achieved average occupancy levels of 82 per cent, at par with levels of 84 per cent for the same period in 2019. In terms of hotel occupancy, Dubai ranked on top globally in the first quarter, ahead of other international destinations including London (56 per cent), New York (55.3 per cent) and Paris (51.2 per cent), according to data from hotel management analytics firm STR.

Issam Kazim, chief executive officer, Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing, said: “Dubai’s continued success as demonstrated by the Q1 2022 results validates the strategic framework that was put in place at the outset of the pandemic to implement the highest levels of health and safety, further reinforcing the trust that UAE residents and global travellers place in the city as one of the safest destinations in the world. Our commitment to safety and the strength of our government, public and private sector partnerships, as well as our effective promotional and marketing outreach, have been fundamental in fuelling growth during this period. As we are in the early stages of what promises to be an outstanding year for our tourism industry, we will continue to maintain constant dialogue with both our domestic and international partners to sustain Dubai’s multifaceted global appeal throughout 2022 and beyond.”

Dubai has launched major initiatives designed to meet the needs of a new generation of travellers. The Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan will further reinforce the city’s diverse development programmes embedded with sustainability features.

Read: Sheikh Mohammed launches mega Dubai 2040 urban development plan

The Dubai Can sustainability initiative was launched earlier this year, designed to encourage people to undertake simple lifestyle changes to inspire mass action to actively reduce the use of single-use plastic bottles.

Read: Dubai Can: Free drinking water to be made available across city