Abu Dhabi: The holiday season is fast approaching, but one popular international destination has fallen off the list of UAE travellers.
Following the November 13 terrorist attacks on Paris that left 137 dead and over 300 injured, many residents have either cancelled or postponed their trips to the French capital, travel agents said.
“Over 70 per cent of trips from Abu Dhabi to Paris have been cancelled in the last week over security fears, said Murugan Shanmugan, assistant operations manager at Kanoo Travels.
Sana Molhem of Abu Dhabi based Binham Travel and Tour said she is beseiged by phone calls from clients who were due to fly to Paris in the coming days.
Daily cancellation
“We are getting cancellation calls almost daily. Even today, I had three Emirati families calling to cancel their plans to holiday in Paris during Christmas,” she said.
“Since the attack, enquiries about European destinations have declined dramatically. People think it’s not safe there. They are looking for alternatives. Of late I rebooked dozens of families from Paris to places like Sri Lanka and Bangkok,” she said.
France has been one of the most sought-after European destinations for GCC and Middle East visitors with more than 1.1 million from the region in 2014.
Travel agents said they were optimistic things will change in the coming weeks. “We hope Paris will find favour with UAE residents soon. But until that happens, Seychelles, Maldives, Cyprus, and South Asian destinations like Sri Lanka, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia remain their most popular tourist destinations for December,” said Rajesh Mathew of Four Seasons Travels in Abu Dhabi.
Tourist attractions such as the Eiffel Tower and Disneyland Paris remained shut and many concerts were cancelled after the attack.
A survey by Synhorcat, the French hotel and restaurant operators’ union, suggests that sales in the city’s cafés, bars and brasseries during the past week were down 44 per cent on the same period last year, and hotels have suffered a 57 per cent drop in business.
YOUSPEAK: Have you ever had to cancel your holiday plans?
