Dubai reports strong UK & Ireland visitor levels in the first half of 2023

Figures reveal a 9.7% YOY growth in H1 visitor numbers from the UK and 15.7% YOY growth from Ireland.

From January to June 2023, Dubai welcomed over half a million visitors from the two regions.

The latest data released today by Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism shows a strong increase in visitor numbers on 2022.

The first half of 2023 saw 9.7% growth in visitor numbers from the UK versus 2022, with a 15.7% growth in numbers from Ireland. After being voted the World’s Most Popular Destination for the second successive year in the Tripadvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards earlier this year, the figures show that the Emirate is steadily advancing towards its goal of becoming the world’s most visited destination.

The figures revealed that between January and June 555,000 tourists visited from the UK, while 37,000 tourists visited from Ireland. Overall Dubai welcomed 8.55 million international visitors during the period, an increase compared to 7.12 million international visitors in the first half of 2022.

Issam Kazim, CEO, Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing, said: “The H1 industry performance is testament to the future-oriented strategy of our visionary leadership to position Dubai as the best city in the world to visit, live and work. Within a highly competitive global tourism ecosystem, Dubai has continued to accelerate momentum and stay ahead of the curve, primarily by highlighting the diversity of the city’s offerings and the flexibility of our portfolio.  Central to our success in showcasing Dubai as a must-visit destination is fostering multi-level partnerships between the public and private sectors.”

Dubai remains a first-choice destination for global travellers, with the city’s hotels outperforming all pre-pandemic metrics in occupancy, ADR, RevPAR, Occupied Room Nights and guests’ Length of Stay and an average occupancy of 78% in first six months of 2023, ranking among the highest in the world.

With a host of new hotels due to open in later 2023 and 2024, a vibrant dining scene which continues to flourish and a world-leading events programme, Dubai continues to offer visitors an unrivalled travel experience.