Dubai tops cities with highest spending by international tourists

Dubai tops cities with highest spending by international tourists

Dubai has topped the list of cities with the highest spending by international visitors this year, pulling ahead of Doha and London in the top three places, the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) said.

The Gulf tourism and finance hub has raked in $29.4 billion in international visitor spending so far this year, overtaking Doha where tourists spent $16.8 billion and London with $16.1 billion, WTTC said in its latest Cities Economic Impact report.

The cities that have recovered best, compared to pre-pandemic levels of 2019 in terms of international visitor spending, are Doha with a 21 per cent rise in tourist spend, Orlando, Florida, with a 19 per cent increase and Antalya in Turkey with 15 per cent.

The report, which was released at the WTTC global summit in Riyadh this week, analysed 82 international city destinations and found that their tourism sectors’ recovery was well underway after the Covid-19 pandemic that paralysed travel for nearly three years.

According to the report, 10 of the 82 cities analysed are projected to exceed pre-pandemic levels in terms of direct travel and tourism gross domestic product contribution to their economies this year. Doha is forecast for the largest increase from 2019, in terms of