A shift towards experiential journeys, growing demand for premium travel options – Indians approach to travel is evolving, according to Mukul Sukhani, senior vice president of business development at Mastercard.
25.08.2023 - 13:21 / skift.com / Peden Doma Bhutia
In the Middle East and Africa region, travel and entertainment spending by small businesses was up 49 percent in March 2023 versus a year ago, according to the Travel Industry Trends 2023 report by Mastercard Economics Institute. From March 2019, it is up 78 percent. Large businesses observed growth as well, but at smaller rates.
And for the first time in the history of the report, Egypt and Saudi Arabia joined the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the top 10 destinations list. In 2023, a new dynamic emerged, with travelers exploring destinations closer to home, according to the report. Egypt and Saudi Arabia landed in seventh and eighth place, respectively even as UK, U.S., UAE and France remain the most popular international destinations for travelers leaving the Middle East.
The report also notes that consumers from the region, are increasingly embracing leisure travel and exploring new travel corridors worldwide. The report indicates that both leisure and business travel are growing at the same pace globally, with corporate flight bookings catching up to leisure travel in regions prioritizing a return to office culture. From January to March, leisure flight bookings in the UAE were up 49 percent in 2023.
Another significant trend is the preference for experiences over material possessions, with travelers seeking unique and immersive cultural experiences. Social media and entertainment have influenced tourists to venture into lesser-known destinations. In the Middle East and Africa region, spending on experiences has surged, with Morocco experiencing a remarkable 117 percent year-over-year increase in experience-oriented spending by March 2023.
Dubai International Airport is set to witness a significant surge in passenger numbers during the upcoming weeks. As the UAE’s summer school break aligns with the six-day long Eid Al Adha holidays, Dubai airport is preparing to welcome an estimated 3.5 million guests between June 20 and July 3.
Average daily traffic is anticipated to reach 252,000, with a notable increase in departures from June 23 to 25, exceeding a quarter of a million outbound travelers. The peak day for departures is forecast to be June 24, with almost 100,000 passengers leaving the airport. Additionally, the end of the Eid Al Adha holiday is expected to witness even higher arrival numbers, surpassing a record-breaking 305,000 passengers on July 2.
To ensure a seamless travel experience despite the peak traffic, the airport said its teams are working collaboratively with state-of-the-art operations control centers, monitoring and addressing operational situations proactively.
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A shift towards experiential journeys, growing demand for premium travel options – Indians approach to travel is evolving, according to Mukul Sukhani, senior vice president of business development at Mastercard.
Ankit Gupta, the India CEO of hospitality technology platform Oyo, and Mandar Vaidya, the head of Oyo’s European operations, will both be moving on from the company.
In the second quarter of 2023, the Middle East’s hotel construction pipeline has seen significant growth, marking its highest project count since the first quarter of 2020, according to Lodging Econometric’s Middle East Hotel Construction Pipeline Trend Report.
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The United Arab Emirates government on Sunday announced the lifting of all precautionary measures implemented in the country during Covid-19. With the lifting of restrictions, wearing of masks has now been made optional in all open and closed facilities, including places of worship and mosques. However, those categorized as “people of determination” would be required to wear mask while visiting health facilities and centers. The Al Hosn app would now only be required to furnish proof of vaccination and for test results inside and outside the country, when required. The green pass on the app would no longer be required to enter public facilities and sites. The requirement of a polymerase chain reaction test would also no longer be made mandatory for those attending or participating at sporting events. The authorities said they have decided to ease the restrictions after studying the epidemiological situation in the country and having monitored occupancy rates in hospitals and intensive care for Covid cases.
Dubai-based property developer Nakheel announced it has secured $4.6 billion in strategic financing deal to drive what it calls, “the new phase of growth.”
Saudi Arabia’s increasing focus in the tourism sector and the shift to leisure travel has brought Seera Group from the red to report the company’s first post-pandemic operating profit of $8 million in the third quarter.
The Middle East is leading international travel recovery in the fourth quarter as inbound arrivals to the region witnessed an increase of 4 percent, long ahead of the global average of a decrease of 30 percent, according to travel analytics firm ForwardKeys. “The FIFA World Cup is certainly the key driver for its travel recovery,” said Juan Gomez, head of market intelligence at ForwardKeys. The latest air ticketing data by ForwardKeys also shows that international arrival levels may be back to normal in 2023, with travel to the Middle East up by 15 percent on pre-pandemic levels in the first quarter. Overall, the outlook for 2023 looks promising, despite high inflation in key source markets and the looming recession, FowardKeys noted. The Middle East is also attracting more premium travellers than in 2019, the travel analytics firm noted with Saudi Arabia showing the greatest growth. Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon are also showing growth, with a regional average of 11 percent above 2019.
American comedian and actor Kevin Hart is a man on a mission as he is looking to hire an ambassador for Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island. Hart, who was appointed Yas Island’s first-ever chief island officer in May, announced the job opening on social media on Monday, calling it the “world’s best job.” The salary being offered for the two-month role is $100,000. Anyone aged 21 years or above can apply for the job, the last date for receiving entries is January 23. “No CV, previous experience or cover letter needed, just your video up to 60 seconds (videos over 60 seconds will be disqualified),” the website mentioned. Once hired, the ambassador will take part in a variety of tourism activities for Yas Island while being put up at the W Abu Dhabi for 60 days. Yas Island has also made all the video applications public in its website.
Having witnessed a stronger than expected recovery in 2022, the Middle East could see international tourist arrivals return to pre-pandemic levels this year, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). Data from the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer noted that while all regions enjoyed significant increase in international arrivals in 2022 over the previous year, the Middle East recorded the strongest relative increase as international tourist numbers climbed to 83 percent of pre-pandemic numbers last year. “The region welcomed large events such as Expo 2020 Dubai and the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, as well as a highly attended Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia,” noted UNWTO in its report. “UNWTO anticipates a strong year for the sector even in the face of diverse challenges including the economic situation and continued geopolitical uncertainty,” Secretary General Zurab Pololikashvili said. UNWTO noted that over 900 million tourists travelled internationally in 2022, which was double the number of those who travelled in 2021 though still 37 percent below 2019.
Hotel development in the Middle East is ramping up as investors begin to see opportunity in the region again, according to Lodging Econometrics’ Middle East Construction Pipeline Trend Report. The report said new project announcements in the region continued to trend upward throughout 2022 closing the fourth quarter of 2022 with 67 new projects housing 19,837 rooms, an increase of 56 percent year-on-year. The fourth quarter also witnessed 33 new hotels accounting for 6,452 rooms open in the region. Overall, 2022 saw a record number of hotels openings with 81 hotels accounting for 17,736 rooms. Lodging Econometrics’ forecast for new hotel openings in 2023 is 123 new hotels with 30,113 rooms while 116 new hotels and 29,085 rooms are forecast to open in 2024. Countries in the Middle East with the greatest number of projects in the construction pipeline at the close of fourth quarter were Saudi Arabia with 243 projects and 67,618 rooms, followed by the United Arab Emirates with 104 projects and 29,210 rooms. Egypt came third with record high project and room counts of 87 projects and 21,672 rooms.
The Tatas will let go of Indian full-service carrier Vistara as they look to merge the airline with the more “internationally-recognized” Air India, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said on Monday.