Tourist rush expected in UAE for Eid

A wave of tourists from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and India are expected to head to the UAE in time for the Eid holidays, according to travel agents and tourism officials.

Factors like good air connectivity, shopping deals and availability of many budget hotels are encouraging tourists to visit the country during the Eid period, says Kulwant Singh, managing director of Lama Tours in Dubai.

Singh anticipates the majority of tourists during Eid will be from the GCC, India and China.

Similarly, Micky Bhatia, general manager at Al Futtaim Travel, said: "Thousands of tourists are expected to be in UAE during the Eid holidays. Most of them will be from the GCC countries, Saudi Arabia being number one as usual, followed by Oman. This includes both nationals and expatriates.”

Emirates, the world's biggest airline by international passenger capacity, has "registered a sizable increase over last year” for passengers travelling to Dubai during the Eid holiday, an airline spokesperson told Gulf News by email. The airline's biggest inbound destinations to Dubai during Eid are Karachi in Pakistan, London and Manchester in the United Kingdom and Mumbai in India.

When asked about the number of tourists expected this Eid, the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) said that they could not forecast the number of visitors arriving in Dubai.

Dubai received around 600,000 visitors from 197 countries through its air, sea and land ports during the Eid vacation in 2014, according to statistics released by the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) in Dubai last year.

Statistics showed that out of the 597,652 visitors to Dubai, 28 per cent were from GCC countries, with 166,945 visitors.

Abu Dhabi expects visitor numbers during Eid to grow by more than 20 per cent compared with the same period in 2014, helped by entertainment activities, Sultan Al Daheri, acting executive director of tourism at the Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi), told Gulf News in an emailed statement.

The Abu Dhabi Summer Season programme, which runs until September 5, will feature a range of activities in the capital during Eid, including a Mohammad Abdo concert at Yas Island's du Forum and shows targeted at children, such as Shaun the Sheep: Save our Tree and Barney.

Al Daheri expects an increase in the number of GCC visitors this Eid holiday.

"We expect more visitors from the GCC as we have been working very closely with key travel trade players and media in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman and Qatar; and they have given us a very positive response. With their help, we will stimulate demand from what is a very significant market for us,” he said.

Similarly, in Ras Al Khaimah, the number of tourists during Eid are anticipated to grow by 20 per cent compared to a year ago, which saw 20,000, with the majority arriving from other emirates and the GCC, according to Haitham Mattar, chief executive of the Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority.

"RAK hotels are witnessing unprecedented demand over the upcoming Eid holidays on the back of a number of joint promotional activities by the hotels and RAK Tourism Development Authority,” he said in an emailed statement.

With the boost in visitor numbers, he expects an increase of 15 per cent in tourism revenue from last year.

Travel agents said that they expect fewer tourists from Europe this holiday due to the weaker euro against the US dollar, which the UAE dirham is pegged to, as well as Russia amid lower oil prices.

Al Futtaim's Bhatia said that there could be fewer Saudi tourists in the country during Eid compared to last year because cheaper destinations, such as Egypt, are more attractive.

"[Saudis] have the option of travelling to Egypt for a fraction of the amount they spend here. They have chartered flights operating to resort towns like Sharm Al Shaikh. Saudis are getting tourist visas for the United States much easier these days and so they have the option of travelling to the States,” he said.

Dubai-based carrier flydubai is "experiencing an increase in passengers travelling to Dubai from the GCC” during Eid, a flydubai spokesperson said by email. The carrier's top five inbound destinations during the Eid week include Kuwait, Jeddah (in Saudi Arabia), Doha, Bahrain and Abha (in Saudi Arabia).
Source: Gulf News