UAE | Tourism
Many expats throw travel plans out the window
Gulf News found many residents have no intention of travelling abroad during the holidays despite the fact many travel agents have enjoyed a busy spell over the last few weeks.
- Staff Report
- Published: 23:25 December 2, 2008
- I think the economic crisis has had an effect on people's travel plans this year, says Blake Pickering, a 31-year-old copywriter from South Africa.
- Image Credit:
Dubai: Gulf News found many residents have no intention of travelling abroad during the holidays despite the fact many travel agents have enjoyed a busy spell over the last few weeks.
Blake Pickering, a 31-year-old copywriter from South Africa, is staying in the UAE over the Eid holidays because his wife is expecting a baby in a fortnight.
He said: "I think the economic crisis has had an effect on people's travel plans this year, especially as there has been a wave of redundancies across Dubai over the last few weeks. "People are nervous and tightening their budgets... A lot of my friends are staying put in Dubai during Eid while a few others are travelling around the UAE to places like Hatta. There is a lot to see and do right on our doorstep."
Rick Houghton, a 35-year-old engineer from the UK, says there is a good chance he will be working throughout the Eid holidays. "It will just be business as usual for me. I'll probably go out and meet up with friends but there's a good chance I'll be at work. "I was thinking about heading back to the United Kingdom for a few days but the airlines always hike their prices at this time of year. It was going to cost me about Dh5,000 just to go home for a few days and I decided it really wasn't worth it."
Sharon Kelly, a 48-year-old housewife from Ireland, has just returned from a holiday in the Maldives with her husband.
"We usually travel abroad outside of the school or Eid holidays because it's cheaper...
"I think a lot of people will be rethinking their plans this year."
High prices of airline tickets at this time of the year and biting global crisis cited as reasons
Share this article
Related Articles
-
Travel agents report brisk business over long holidays
Travel agents report brisk business over long holidays
Popular in UAE
-
Your pictures
Readers' pictures
A Selection of the best Gulf News reader pictures this week
Latest news
- Safe ways of handling medical waste discussed
- Emirati students to be chosen for German internship
- Public urged to ensure food safety
- Residency section clears 6,000 cases
- Residents opt for other gifts as gold soars
- UAE residents spend hours trying to cross into Oman
- Traditional theme at Etihad celebrations
- Dubai in for breezy conditions
- The true meaning of festival of sacrifice
- Maguindanao massacre victims remembered
- School buses must do safe drop-offs
- Rulers exchange Eid greetings
- Plan to make you reach for the book
- The last strand could count in time
- Mohammad endorses Watani campaign
Community Reports
-
School buses must do safe drop-offs
Some bus drivers let students off at the wrong side of the road
-
Munching on a health hazard
Residents must be careful about consuming snacks and sandwiches prepared along the roadside as they attract dirt and bacteria
-
Faded signage fails to guide visitors
Reader seeks better upkeep of signboards in green areas
-
Noise pollution must be regulated
Residents are finding it difficult to sleep well at night owing to ongoing construction work
