DUBAI, 3 August – Earnings from the hotels’ sector in UAE reached AED11 billion ($2.9 billion) in the first quarter of this year, a 19 per cent increase in the same period pre-pandemic in 2019, Arabian Business reported.
UAE’s national news Agency (WAM) said in a statement that hotels in the country resumed work at full capacity, with a total of 200,000 hotel rooms.
The country attracted nearly six million visitors and tourists who spent 25 million hotel nights in the first quarter of 2022, a 10 per cent increase compared with the same period in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.
WAM said that UAE is on a continuous way to maintaining its regional and international leadership as the country that witnessed progress in terms of outcomes and indicators after the pandemic, establishing itself globally as a leading international tourism destination among the top ten countries in several international competitiveness indexes in 2021, in the categories of tourism, travel and hotels.
Official data shows that the visitors’ period of stay in UAE hotels increased by 25 per cent in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period in 2019, and the hotel occupancy rate reached 80 per cent, one of the highest rates in the world currently.
UAE received over 20 million passengers in the first quarter of the year compared to only 8.6 million in the first quarter of last year, a staggering 135 per cent increase.
The tourism sector in UAE has an important role as it contributes to 3.4 per cent of the country’s GDP over three years, with a total of 15 per cent compared to 11.6 per cent in 2019.
WAM’s statement also highlighted the important role of local tourism in boosting the sector’s earnings, as the local tourist expenditure increased by 33 per cent in 2022 compared to 67 per cent by international tourists, higher than the 22 per cent recorded in 2019.
“These indicators underscore the growing confidence in the UAE’s tourism sector and its prominent local or international reputation, as well as the efficiency of its sustainable tourism policies and the success of its initiatives, campaigns and exhibitions aimed at supporting the tourism sector,” WAM said.
Source: WAM/Arabian Business
