With vaccinations becoming more readily available and countries opening borders, dreams about traveling are becoming reality this summer. Trove has the inside scoop on where to visit first, and Dubai will be at the top of the list for many travelers.

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Dubai Tourism Executive Issam Kazim made a statement this past week on his hopes that new markets can make up for recent COVID-related visitor losses. Dubai welcomed 5.5 million overseas visitors in 2020, compared to 16.7 million arrivals in 2019. This is improving in 2021, with the exception of the Indian and UK markets who are for the most part banned or under strict quarantine restrictions upon arrival. These are two usually prominent markets to the UAE, so Dubai is working to continue forging its partnerships with new markets, including in Europe, Africa, and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) markets.

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For example, John brought up the fact that most companies do not think about accessibility beyond what is legally required. They often think the only physical disability that needs to be accommodated for is people in wheelchairs. This completely disregards a large market of older, retired travelers who have the most time and money to travel compared to other market segments - but often have bad knees. Increasing safety and comfort for travelers with bad knees would create a very profitable opportunity for companies while also improving people’s quality of life.

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With Expo 2020 coming in October of 2022, there are major hopes of recovery of the tourism sector, especially for the Dubai market which has historically seen very high inbound tourism numbers.

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Dubai houses some of the world's best hotels, restaurants, architecture, shopping, and beaches, and the city began to re-open on August 1st. As the country with the 12th most efficient vaccination roll-out, the UAE has recorded 1,710 deaths related to COVID and 39.27% of its population fully vaccinated so far. If you are planning to go to Dubai make sure you pay a visit to the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding (SMCCU). They aim to have ‘Open doors, open minds’, where anyone can come in and learn more about Emirati culture. They offer cultural learning with meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner), Arabic classes, tours of Dubai and Mosque visits, and presenters which consist of a unique team of Emirati nationals and members of Emirati families, all while being located in a beautifully restored wind tower house.

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Event-based tourism is also showing major gains in Dubai, with Arabian Travel Market in May 2021, the UFI MEA (the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry) Conference in June 2021, seeing 150 attendees from 10 countries attend the UFI event at the Dubai World Trade Centre, and the upcoming Arab Health and The Hotel Show. Momentum is building towards Expo 2020 Dubai.

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In addition to consumer based adventure or cultural based experiences, Dubai is set to be the next big health tourism destination, Dr. Marwan Al Mulla, CEO of the Health Regulation Sector at the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) recently stated. The UAE’s high vaccination rate is boosting visitor’s and patient’s confidence in Dubai as the next big destination for health tourism. The profound health infrastructure as well will lead Dubai to be a big draw going into the second half of 2021 and early 2022. As the COVID-19 global pandemic turns a corner, Dubai will be looking at traditional target markets like India, West Africa, Russia and Europe for medical tourist visits in 2022.

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To facilitate ease of travel, Dubai is planning to scale up its lata Travel Pass, a digital pass initiative from the International Air Transport Association that allows travelers to register their personal information, find out about COVID testing requirements for their destination and share pre-departure test results with airlines before flying.

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It is exciting to see life beginning to return back to normal as we are able to share cultures across borders once again. Once in Dubai, what will be your first stop?

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