Dubai, which has been breaking records for tourist inflows year after year, is pushing to strengthen and expand its tourism sector. And it’s showing results—the tourism sector is boosting its contribution to Dubai’s GDP. Dubai has been breaking records for tourist inflows and airport levels year after year. During the first half of 2024, the emirate hosted 9.31 million overnight international visitors, up by about 9% annually. 

“The strong tourism growth achieved by Dubai in the first half of 2024 is a testament to the city’s ability to foster productive public-private partnerships and build extensive global collaboration networks,” said Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence, and Crown Prince of Dubai.

“With every year, Dubai continues to consolidate its status as a front-runner in the global tourism landscape and grow in popularity as an international destination,” he added. 

Neighboring countries from the wider Middle East and North Africa and GCC region recorded a 26% share of overall visitors to the emirate. 

Hotels also got busy accommodating the large number of tourists arriving in Dubai, with average occupancy during H1 2024 rising to 78.7%, an increase from 77.7% in H1 2023.

Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General of the Department of Economy and Tourism, said, “Our success stems from a diversified market approach, strong public-private partnerships, liberal visa policies, and alternative growth pathways.”

With the airport expansion plans that Dubai International Airport (DXB) has set out, it expects to receive a record 91 million passengers this year. 

This will add to Q1 2024 levels when the airport witnessed more than 23 million passengers arrive in the emirate, up 8.4% annually and recording its busiest quarter in history. 

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