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UAE

UAE

Visitor characteristics

  • There were more male than female visitors in each journey purpose categories in 2016, except when visiting friends and relatives; most visitors from the UAE are between 25 and 54 and there are very few 65+ Emiratis visiting Britain
  • 76% of all holiday visitors from the UAE (excluding British expats) are making a repeat visit to Britain (within 10 years)
  • In 2016 46% of visitors from the UAE were British nationals while only 17% were Emiratis
  • Just over 78% of departing UAE staying holiday visitors (excluding British expats) say they are ‘extremely likely’ to recommend Britain for a holiday or short-break, which is above the all market average of 69%

Popular activities

Visited Countryside/ Villages

Visited Parks/ Gardens

Went Shopping

Global context

Measure2016
International tourism expenditure (US$bn)17.1
Global rank for international tourism expenditure18
Number of outbound visits (m)3.2
Most visited destinationSaudi Arabia
Most visited destination in Western EuropeUnited Kingdom

Key demographic and economic data

Measure2017
Population (m)9.4
GDP per capita PPP (US$)65,866
Annual average GDP growth over past decade (%)2.8
Annual average GDP growth in the past year (%)1.7

Resources

GCC market profile. Published February 2018

visitbritain_marketprofile_gcc.pdf

Examine the perceived barriers to visitors from the UAE exploring Britain outside of London. Published October 2014 

2014-10 Exploring Great Britain research – Emerging Markets_0.pdf

Find out where visitors from the UAE to the UK reside in their own country. Published in 2010

annual_states_of_residence_2016_for_web.xlsx

More resources

United Arab Emirates market snapshot

uae-snapshot-aug17.pdf

United Arab Emirates aviation profile (PDF, 180 KB)

aviation_market_uae_18072018.pdf

Inbound visits to Britain

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Seasonality (Share of visits)

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Visits % total Visits % total
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Regional spread (Share of visits)

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Visits % total Nights % total Visits % total Nights % total
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Journey purpose (Share of visits)

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Visits % total Visits % total
Sample size less than 30!
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What Emiratis think about Britain

  • Key holiday ‘wants’ include ‘enjoying the beauty of the landscape’, ‘having fun and laughter’ and ‘good value for money’ with Italy seen as the ‘best place’ for delivering the former two and the US for the latter
  • Factors that are low on the holiday wish-list include ‘getting some sun’ and ‘watching a sporting event’
  • Britain rates well for ‘visiting a place with lots of history’ for example, but not as favourably as Italy

Caring for visitors

  • English is widely spoken and understood
  • Arab families like to have hotel suites or inter-connecting rooms, or to rent an apartment
  • When on holiday Emiratis often go to bed late and rise after standard hotel breakfast times, meaning that lunch and dinner are the main meals of the day
  • Coffee is preferred boiled rather than filtered or percolated

 

The leisure & travel trade

  • Many travel agents are in effect ticketing agents with limited product knowledge
  • Key times of year for promotional visits to the region are February to late May and September to November
  • The working week traditionally starts on Sunday and ends on Thursday
  • Discussions in meetings are often conducted at a leisurely pace

Access to Britain from the UAE

Measure2017
Weekly aircraft departures218
Weekly seat capacity92,414
Airports with direct routes in the United Arab Emirates3
Airports with direct routes in Britain7
  • Both Dubai airports* as well as Abu Dhabi airport serve up to 7 airports in the UK with an average of 218 direct, non-stopping flights per week. On average there are 92,414 seats departing the UAE to the UK weekly**
    Departing visitors heading home to the UAE currently pay £75 in Air Passenger Duty if travelling in economy class
    Visitors from the UAE require a visa to visit Britain, with a six-month visa currently costing £89

 

*Thomson Airways started seasonal services to/from Al Maktoum airport near Dubai, linking a third airport in the UAE to the UK between January and March 2017

**2017 data

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