Dubai tourism on the rise and hotels to see robust occupancy in 2013

A recent report shows that Dubai achieved significant growth in terms of hotel occupancy and tourism arrivals in 2012. Dubai recieved about 10% more tourists during the first half of 2012 than in 2011, about 5 million.

The Arab Spring has been a major factor in the rebound of hotel performance in 2011-2012 as traditional leisure destinations in the Levant and Egypt faced political and social unrest during this period, forcing tourists to opt for safe destinations like Dubai. Dubai also expects a rise in tourists from Russia with a 40% rise in the number of seats on airlines going from Dubai and major Russian and CIS cities. Dubai registered in 2012 a 27% increase in the number of hotel guests from China as per Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, making China an important market for Dubai.

The hotel sector room supply increased by 3,600 branded rooms in 2012. Along with announcement of major developments such as Mohammed Bin Rashid City, which will have 100 hotels, 5 theme parks and the world's largest mall, other major tourism and entertainment projects are in the pipeline which will aid in strong occupancy of hotels over the next 5-7 years.