Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

UK visits to Dubai down by almost 70% as coronavirus crisis bites

UK visits to Dubai down by almost 70% as coronavirus crisis bites

Airline bookings to Dubai from London in Q4 are currently 74.1% behind year-on-year

Air passenger arrivals to Dubai from London have slumped by 69.1 percent year to date, according to official data sources.

In a blow to the emirate’s tourism market, bookings to Dubai from London in Q4 2020 are currently 74.1 per cent behind year-on-year, travel analytics firm ForwardKeys revealed to Arabian Business.

Dubai’s tourism industry, like many major cities around the world, has suffered from collapsed consumer demand, flight restrictions and international quarantine measures.


“It is difficult to predict when normality will return to the previously busy London-Dubai route. The UAE is not currently included in the UK government’s safe travel corridor and, therefore, travellers are expected to quarantine for 14 days on arrival,” said Olivier Ponti, VP of insights at ForwardKeys.

“Travel restrictions in both the UK and UAE, as well as the development of the pandemic, will have a major influence on recovery,” Ponti said.

According to research firm Euromonitor International, the UK is an important source market for Dubai historically, ranking as the third biggest source market to Dubai in 2019.

“While Dubai has opened up to tourists, COVID-19 has severely impacted the UK’s economy,” said Rabia Yasmeen, senior analyst at Euromonitor.

“With Brexit coming up, the increased economic uncertainty in the UK has also impacted the British outbound market to long-haul destinations such as Dubai,” she added.



Euromonitor International forecasts that overall visitor arrivals from the UK to UAE are expected to decline by 69 percent in 2020.

“Brits are more likely to travel domestically to countryside locations or regionally for relaxation. Likewise in the UAE, domestic tourists are currently a key market for local hotels,” Yasmeen told Arabian Business.

Hans-Peter Betz, director of the Dubai-headquartered the International Association of Hotel General Managers, confirmed that hotel occupancy is currently being driven by domestic demand. “Dubai's hospitality is driven by local demand at this point with weekends doing very well. The percentage of international tourist is still very small,” he said.

Dubai’s state-owned Emirates airline on Monday revealed that is has returned over AED5 billion ($1.4 billion) in Covid-19 related travel refunds to date.

More than 1.4 million refunds requests have been completed since March, representing 90 percent of the airline's backlog. This includes all requests received from customers around the world up until the end of June, save for a few cases which require further manual review, the airline said in a statement.


Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, Emirates laid on six daily A380 flights to London’s Heathrow and a further three a day to Gatwick. It had also just begun a double-daily 777-300ER service to Stansted.

As of September 8, a sizeable proportion of its A380 fleet remains grounded – only one A380 flight makes it to Heathrow, as well as several 777-300ERs.

Demand for the London-Dubai air route remains “tempered”, according to Saj Ahmed, founder of UK-based Strategic Aero Research.

“Amid a backdrop of ever-changing quarantine guidance, travellers are wary about making travel plans that could be halted almost without notice,” Ahmed said.

However, he noted that the UAE is far from alone in experiencing severely depleted tourism demand.

“Several major city pairs across the globe, operated by a slew of airlines, have all but collapsed in both demand and access as flight restrictions are in full force,” Ahmed said. “A good example of this is British Airways standing down its entire widebody fleet for services that would have connected New York/JFK several times a day.”



The key to restoring demand relies almost exclusively on the global medical community coming up with a COVID-19 cure or a suppressant, the expert added.

“A return to global pre-COVID travel demand levels, in terms of yield and profitability, could easily be five to ten years away. And that’s a bullish assessment,” he said.

The expert also noted that the increased take up of remote working software such as Zoom, Skype and Microsoft Teams would mean that companies now no longer see the benefit of expensive business flights.

“There’s no expensive hotel tabs and you can safely conduct business at home – what’s not to like?” Ahmed said.

“There’s no airport queues, no lost baggage and ability to work 24-7 remotely. For that reason, the airline industry will never be the same again.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Trump Backs Putin’s Land-for-Peace Proposal Amid Kyiv’s Rejection
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
United States Sells Luxury Yacht Amadea, Valued at Approximately $325 Million, in First Sale of a Seized Russian Yacht Since the Invasion of Ukraine
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Mediators Edge Closer to Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Agreement
Germany Seeks Taliban Deal to Deport Afghan Migrants
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
×