There is no better sign of post-pandemic recovery than looking at travel and tourism activity charts, as it was among the most devastated non-essential sectors during the critical months of the viral outbreak.
According to a tweet that was posted by the Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, who is also the ruler of Dubai, Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, tourism in the UAE is nearing full recovery as it generated more than $5 billion within the first six months of 2022.
Official figures point out that hotel occupancy rates in the UAE have grown by 42% during H1 2022 compared to H1 2021, reporting more than 12 million visitors in 2022's first six months.
#UAE’s tourism revenues were 19 billion dirhams ($5.17 billion) in the first half of 2022, UAE Vice President Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum says. https://t.co/e8kgEATN6f pic.twitter.com/IzrgQuxzbP
— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) September 11, 2022
This has been closely linked to the decline in COVID-19 cases in the UAE and the world altogether, thanks to vaccines that have been administered to 99% of the country's adult population.
Dubai alone has attracted 7.12 million of the 12 million visitors to the UAE, during H1 2022, a 183% jump compared to H1 2021, but still 15% lower than 2019 levels, with hotel occupancy rates reaching as high as 73.5%.
So far, May has been the highest month in terms of tourists in the UAE, with 73%, while June's heat has lowered the number down to 63%.
Zawya also reported that the countries from which most tourists traveling to the UAE during the first half of 2022 came were: India, Oman, Saudi Arabia, the UK, and Russia. However, they noted that the number of travelers coming from Russia declined in March 2022, which has been linked to the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
For the remaining months of the year, the UAE is believed to welcome an even high volume of tourists for four different reasons. The first is the UAE's warm weather during the northern hemisphere's coldest months, which usually encourages more and more travelers to visit the country.
The second reason is the extremely eased restrictions on travelers in the post-pandemic world, as the UAE's vaccination policies have allowed for more flexibility during 2022.
While the UAE is expected to welcome many returning tourists who already visited the country during Expo 2020, it is also preparing its facilities for a busy winter during which the 2022 FIFA World Cup will be held 214 air miles away in Qatar.
Last month, the UAE announced plans to grant visit visas to all world cup ticket holders, hoping to attract many of the one million football fans who are expected to attend the global championship.
