Dubai is setting a new record by receiving 9.88 million international visitors during the first half

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Dubai, August 3 / WAM / The Emirate of Dubai received 9.88 million international visitors during the period between January and June of the year 2025, which represents a 6% growth compared to the same period in 2024, according to the latest statistics issued by the Dubai Economy and Tourism Department.

On this occasion, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of Defense and Chairman of the Executive Council of the Emirate of Dubai stressed that the strong successes achieved by the tourism sector in the emirate embodies the inspiring vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister, Ruler of Dubai, may God bless him, who instilled in us the culture of challenge, and set for us the impossible for us. The tops of excellence and leadership.

His Highness said: “The exceptional performance recorded by the tourism sector in Dubai during the first half of the year 2025 reflects the insightful vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who made Dubai a city that does not stop development, and is only accepted by the lead in every sector .. And today we are taking the fruits of this vision that established the pillars of a comprehensive renaissance that made Dubai one of the fastest cities in the world growing, and the most attractive to visitors and investors And talents.

His Highness added: “It is continuing to enhance our competitiveness and consolidate Dubai’s position on the global tourism map by investing in exceptional experiences, advanced infrastructure, and providing a global model in the quality of life and the diversity of options, in line with the targets of Dubai Economic Agency D33 and Dubai’s future vision.”

His Highness praised the joint efforts and fruitful cooperation between the public and private sectors, stressing that this strong partnership enhances Dubai’s position as the most important tourist destination in the world, and as a major axis in the global tourism map.

His Highness said that Dubai leads the global tourism scene that reflects the concerted efforts and fruitful and anti -general cooperation between the public and private sectors and local and international partners.

This growth is the culmination of the distinguished development witnessed by Dubai’s offers as a tourist destination, driven by the effective marketing strategy that the emirate adopts at the global level, and the established partnerships that bring together the public and private sectors, as these joint efforts contribute to the emirate’s extensive praise.

In light of the rational leadership of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, may God bless him,; The directives of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense and Chairman of the Executive Council of the Emirate of Dubai; This rise in the number of international visitors comes in the first half of 2025 to continue to record the standard growth numbers achieved by the tourism and hospitality sectors in the emirate over the past years.

The high number of international visitors reflects the role of the tourism sector in attracting new residents and companies to the emirate, in line with the ambitious targets of the 33D Economic Agenda to double the size of the emirate’s economy by 2033, and the establishment of its position is a leading global destination for business and entertainment, and this growth is closely related to the economic progress made by the emirate, contributes to creating new job opportunities and attracting more investments, and greatly supports GDP of the emirate.

Partnerships, events and global campaigns and launching a series of new destinations in the city have contributed to transferring a more comprehensive image about Dubai for international visitors, whether they are new or permanent visitors.

The allocated marketing strategy implemented by the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism in cooperation with more than 3,000 global and local partners achieved more growth in the main markets.

Dubai’s Economy and Tourism Department data indicate that the markets of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and their neighboring markets in the Middle East and North Africa region acquired 26%of the total visitors of Dubai from January to June 2025, as they numbered 1.51 million (15%) and 1.12 million (11%), respectively.

Western Europe acquired the largest percentage of Dubai visitors with 2.12 million visitors (22%), followed by the Association of Independent Countries and Eastern Europe (15%), Southern Asia (15%), northeastern countries and Southeast Asia (9%), the Americas (7%), Africa (4%), and Estalassia (2%).

Dubai has maintained its position as the favorite travel destination for visitors from traditional and emerging markets, thanks to its unique offers, high safety levels, ease of access and movement.

Dubai continues to develop residency offers to provide various options in high quality that suit all budgets, which enhances its attractions.

In the first six months of 2025, the emirate expanded its portfolio from hotels with the announcement of new launch operations in all groups and in different locations, including Jumeirah Morsi Al Arab in Umm Suqeim, Chefal Mizon in Expo, and the villas of Biltermore in Al Barsha, and the Vida Dubai Mall in central Dubai.

On this occasion, His Excellency Hilal Saeed Al -Marri, Director General of the Department of Economy and Tourism in Dubai, said that the distinguished performance achieved by the tourism sector in Dubai during the first half of 2025 confirms the strength of the economic model in the emirate and its flexibility, even in light of the continued global challenges … and the pressure of inflation, the change of travelers, and economic instability at the global level, represents the challenges existing in front of tourism destinations around the world and despite that, Dubai continues Her promotional career, in an achievement starting from the ambitious vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, may God bless him, as well as in line with the strategic targets of Dubai Economic Agenda “D33”.

His Excellency added: “Dubai’s response to these variables came in advantage and studied, by investing in enhancing visitors’ experiences through innovation and technology, and focusing on certain sectors such as luxury, fitness and interesting travel experiences in addition to supporting cultural exchange through the involvement of the local community .. The emirate also continues to integrate the concepts of sustainability within its tourism system, with a focus on meeting the aspirations of the new generation passengers and visitors from the owner of the spending Higher.

His Excellency stressed that this comprehensive approach embodies Dubai’s commitment to achieving its goals to be the best city in the world to live, work, visit and invest, and its position also establishes a global center for trade, innovation and cultural communication .. While we look at the future, we will continue to enhance this positive impact and achieve the target of the 33D agenda by advancing the vary and sustainable growth wheel.

“The distinguished performance achieved by the tourism sector in Dubai, driven by the rational leadership and the strategic targets of the Dubai Economic Agency 33D, reflects the high level of partnership between the public and private sectors and active community participation, which contributed greatly to highlighting Dubai As a global destination .. The population, companies and visitors played a supportive role in the success of this sector, as their sincere certificates and recommendations represented a powerful tool to promote Dubai and its unique experiences and access to Dubai became easier thanks to its distinctive infrastructure and its supportive environment for business that enhances cooperation, while its annual program full of entertainment and commercial activities, events, conferences and exhibitions attracted a new segment of The masses from all over the world and create a major economic impact .. In cooperation with our main partners, we are committed to continuing to improve the quality of life for visitors and population by developing infrastructure and permanent investment in upgrading capabilities to attract more new visitors from around the world.

In the context of reviewing the various and growing group of destinations in Dubai, the Dubai Tourism and Commercial Marketing Corporation, affiliated with the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism, launched a series of campaigns during the first half of 2025, such as “Choose your story”, in cooperation with Milli Bobby Brown and Jake Bungioffi; And “Dubai, an unforgettable summer”; And “Surprises in Dubai”, in cooperation with Firat Kohli and Anushka Sharma .. These distinguished global marketing campaigns are still contributing to attracting more visitors by promoting Dubai with a broader segment of the international public.

In the context of its continuous efforts to support the 33D Economic Agency targets, the Department of Economy and Tourism in Dubai signed strategic partnership relations in the first half of the year with Marriott International Hospitality Companies, Hayat, and Primer In, with the aim of enhancing the experience of visitors and upgrading the level of the emirate’s attractiveness at the global level .. The Dubai portfolio will continue from the residence places in growth with the launch of a prominent group of destinations, such as Mandarin Oriental Downtown Dubai; And Zaha Island in the world of the world; Dubai Marina, the luxurious hotel of the prestigious Fennette Colinate, which is scheduled to be the tallest hotel tower in the world.

Dubai won many international awards in the first half of 2025 and was one of the main achievements in April of this year in Dubai’s obtaining the certificate of the first approved tourist destination for autism ™ in the eastern half of the globe, which reflects its commitment to providing opportunities to travel to everyone.

With regard to its presence in the world in the field of tourism, Dubai continues to occupy the first positions as the best global destination in the 2025 passengers selection awards from the Trip Adviser site.

In a study conducted by the travel insurance company, Inchor My Trip, Dubai was chosen as the first city in the world for solo travelers and obtained the highest grades of 62 cities included in the study in the “feeling of safety” and “feeling safe when walking alone at night”.

The Dubai Business Events Office, the Office of the Dubai Conferences Contracts in Dubai’s Economy and Tourism Department, contributed to strengthening Dubai’s position as a strategic destination for influential business activities.

Dubai once again achieved the first rank in the Middle East in terms of the number of conferences of associations that it hosted during 2024, according to the International Association for Meetings and Conferences.

The Dubai Business Events Office set a record during the first half of 2025 by winning 249 offers to host international conferences, seminars and motivational programs .. It is expected that these activities will attract more than 127 thousand delegations to Dubai in the coming years.

Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism Data revealed that the hotel sector achieved distinguished results at all levels. During the period between January and June 2025, the average occupancy rate for hotels in Dubai reached 80.6% compared to 78.7% in the same period in 2024. Travelers to 3.71 nights.

The daily average price of the room increased to 584 dirhams, an increase of 5% compared to the same period last year, while the rate of revenue from the available rooms increased by 7% from 439 dirhams during the past year to 471 dirhams this year.

On the other hand, the total number of hotel rooms available in Dubai reached the end of June 2025 to 152,483, while the number of hotel establishments reached 822 facilities.

The restaurant sector continues to constitute a major attraction for visitors and international investments, as the diverse cuisine scene has a continuous global approval.

The fourth edition of the Michelin Dubai Directory, published in May, included a total of 119 restaurants, representing 35 global kitchen, including the first three -star Michelin restaurants in Dubai, the FBN Restaurant of Bourne Franzine, and Trissue Studio.

With this recent honoring of the FZN Restaurant, the Swedish chef Piurne Fantzin became the first chef in the world to get three Michelin stars for three different restaurants, while the Trendand Studio became the first Indian restaurant in the world to receive three Michelin.

The 2025 version of the guide also included three Michelin star restaurants, 14 Michelin star restaurants, 22 Pep -Gorndand Prize -winning restaurants, and three Michelin’s green restaurants.

The list of the best 50 restaurants in the world for the year 2025, announced in June, included two Dubai restaurants, Treesnd Studio, which came 27th on the list of the best Middle East restaurants, and Urfli Broz Bustro, who again entered the list, achieving 37th.