According to an Arabian Business report, the UAE tourism sector recorded the second highest hotel occupancy in the world in the face of the coronavirus crisis last year and according to figures released by the Ministry of Economy, the UAE was among the least affected and fastest to recover around the world.
The report says that the UAE recorded a 54.7% hotel occupancy rate in 2020, beaten only by China, while the global rate dropped to 37% under the weight of the ongoing pandemic with hotels in the Middle East region overall recorded just 43% occupancy on average.
This is in parallel to the decline in tourist activity, which fell by 74% around the world and 76% percent in the region.
Hospitality businesses in the UAE welcomed 14.8 million guests in 2020, who spent 54.2 million nights in 1,089 tourism companies that provided approximately 180,000 rooms, according to official statistics issued by the World Tourism Organisation and the Emirates Tourism Council, which was established by the Council of Ministers in January and chaired by Dr Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi, Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and Small and Medium Enterprises [pictured].
The average stay was 3.7 nights per guest, with returns of AED318.5 [AUD113.779] per room and domestic tourism contributed AED41 billion to the national economy last year – a figure that is expected to double over the next few years.
Dubai is leading the global post-coronavirus tourism recovery and is well-prepared for the expected travel pickup in the second half of the year, with Al Falasi saying, “The global tourism
industry bore the brunt of the Covid-19 pandemic,” adding, “Guided by the directives of its wise leadership, the UAE was able to quickly contain the outbreak’s impact on the local tourism sector, relying on innovation and agility in its efforts to provide incentives, launch initiatives, and create opportunities to accelerate the recovery of the tourism sector and boost its contribution to GDP.”
He added: “Despite the tremendous challenges it brought onto the industry, the pandemic also created new opportunities for domestic tourism, with a surge in demand recorded over the past year, especially during the holidays and vacation season, and some establishments even reporting full occupancy”’ adding, “This reflects the high quality of the services the sector provides, which rank among the best in the world”, and “Strengthening domestic tourism is essential for ensuring the tourism sector’s full recovery and driving faster economic recuperation” and “The UAE can benefit from its advanced infrastructure, modern facilities, and wide range of services and activities to promote itself as a tourist destination with a lot to offer visitors – be they UAE residents or travellers from abroad.”
Al Falasi also hailed the UAE’s response to the global pandemic, adding, “UAE authorities actively encouraged widespread testing for infections, leading the world in the number of tests performed as a percentage of the total population”, adding, “The preventive measures established a sense of reassurance and helped create a safe environment to welcome tourists.”
According to global statistics on tourism, China ranked first in the world in occupancy rates at hotel establishments with a rate of 58 %, followed by the UAE and the United States in third with 37 %.
The top 10 also included Mexico (32 %), Turkey (30 %), Thailand (27 %), the United Kingdom (26%), Spain (23%), Italy (16%), and Germany (12%).
Statistics also revealed that the UAE suffered the least in terms of tourist traffic in 2020, where activity fell by 45.2 %, the lowest drop in the world, followed by Mexico, where tourist traffic decreased by 52%, then Italy (63%), Germany (69%), Turkey (73%), Saudi Arabia (76%), the US (77%), Spain (78%), the UK (82 %) and Thailand (83%.
An edited report from Arabian Business by John Alwyn-Jones
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