Domestic Travellers Buoy Dubai Tourism in Pandemic Year

Domestic Travellers Buoy Dubai Tourism in Pandemic Year

Nearly nine in ten (87%) guests who stayed at a Dubai-based property during the pandemic were satisfied with their experience; 85% would return.

Half of owner/operators expect occupancy rates above 60% in FY 2021 and 75% expect occupancy to return to pre-Covid-19 levels by 2023.

75% of owner/operators anticipate the vaccine to be highly effective in boosting occupancy rates.

An overwhelming majority (87%) of consumers in the UAE are satisfied with their stay in Dubai hotels since the beginning of the pandemic, and eight in ten consumers are confident hotels apply the required level of sanitization, according to KPMG's report on Dubai's hospitality industry. Despite strong outbound travel restrictions among many of the UAE's main source markets, Suite success: Dubai hospitality survey 2021 fuels hopes of recovery for the emirate's hospitality sector. More than half (55%) of consumers surveyed were willing to stay at a hotel in Dubai, notwithstanding Covid-19, with 85% willing to return.

Sidharth Mehta, Partner, Head of Real Estate, KPMG Lower Gulf, said: “Dubai's popularity as a staycation destination has been key in supporting the emirate's hospitality