Dubai tourism pushes ahead with mega events, global campaigns after war disruption

Dubai: Dubai has said it is pressing ahead with a packed events calendar, new tourism campaigns, infrastructure upgrades and aviation expansion as it looks beyond the disruption caused by the US-Israel-Iran conflict earlier this year.

Speaking at the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism’s (DET) first stakeholder meeting of the year, Issam Kazim, CEO of the Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing, said Dubai’s long-term tourism and economic plans remain unchanged despite the regional crisis.

“We remain focused on our D33 goals. That’s unchanged,” Kazim said. “The path remains the same, which is ambitious.”

The conflict, which escalated on February 28, created uncertainty across regional travel markets and temporarily affected tourism demand in the UAE.

Several luxury hotels in Dubai, including the Burj Al Arab, Armani Hotel Dubai, Park Hyatt Dubai and Anantara World Islands Dubai Resort, underwent refurbishment closures during the slowdown period.

The United States and Iran later agreed to a conditional ceasefire on April 7, which was extended indefinitely on April 21 to allow negotiations to continue. Since then, travel demand across the UAE is slowly recovering.

According to Kazim, Emirates has restored 96 per cent of its network. It is now flying to 138 destinations across 73 countries. The airline is operating 1,300 weekly flights. As for flydubai, nearly 80 per cent of its network is active. The carrier serves 100 destinations in 50 countries and operates 1,750+ flights per week.

Kazim's comments also come a day after Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of the UAE, said the emirate will continue strengthening its economy and tourism sector through “practical measures, enhanced facilitation, and innovative solutions” aimed at boosting resilience and future growth.

In a post on X, Sheikh Hamdan said the focus remains on closer collaboration between the public and private sectors to support investment and maintain Dubai’s global competitiveness.

“During a review of the Department of Economy and Tourism’s operations and plans to strengthen economic resilience and accelerate growth, I stressed the importance of public-private sector integration in driving investment, economic growth, and Dubai’s global competitiveness,” Sheikh Hamdan said.

The next phase

Dubai is now focusing on future growth through major events, new visitor experiences, enhanced connectivity and global marketing campaigns.

Kazim said events will remain one of the city’s biggest drivers of tourism. Dubai is preparing for a busy summer calendar that includes esports events, retail campaigns, gastronomy promotions and entertainment programmes.

Meanwhile, Ahmed Alkhaja, the CEO of Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE), said Dubai added new events and promotions to its existing calendar during the slowdown period to support sectors such as hospitality, retail and restaurants.

The city will host its biggest edition yet of the GameExpo esports event at the Dubai World Trade Centre (this weekend), while Dubai Summer Surprises returns with expanded retail promotions and hospitality offers.

Officials also announced a new retail campaign that will allow shoppers to enter weekly draws to win a home in Dubai for 12 weeks by spending Dh500 at participating malls and retail outlets.

Upcoming summer events include:

• Dubai Summer Surprises

• Back to School 

• Great Dubai Summer Sale

Dubai is also continuing work on major infrastructure and transport projects despite the earlier disruption.

Kazim pointed to ongoing expansion works across the city, including road infrastructure upgrades and the development of air taxi stations announced earlier by Dubai authorities.

“There’s been no stop on infrastructure,” he said.

A wider audience

DET highlighted projects such as the Beautiful Destinations Academy, which trains digital content creators in Dubai, as well as collaborations with Amazon Prime productions and international television programmes filmed in the city.

Kazim said these partnerships were helping showcase Dubai to wider global audiences through organic content and entertainment productions.

“What’s important again is that we never stood still,” he said.

DET officials said Dubai would continue to expand its offerings in events, gastronomy, and wellness while pushing ahead with the Dubai Fitness Challenge and major business events later this year.

The department also said that several business events postponed during the crisis period are now expected to take place in the final quarter of the year. For example, the annual Arabian Travel Market, which usually takes place in May- June, has been postponed to September this year.

Business continuity

While outlining future plans, DET officials also detailed how Dubai managed tourism and business continuity during the regional conflict.

The government also introduced economic support measures worth Dh2.5 billion for sectors including tourism, hospitality, retail, events and SMEs.

DET said communication became a major priority during the crisis period. The department launched the Dubai Info Hub WhatsApp platform with support from Meta to share real-time updates and counter misinformation. The platform quickly grew to more than 95,000 subscribers.

Officials also said inspections were conducted across Dubai to prevent price increases on goods and services during the uncertainty.

Kazim said Dubai’s approach was shaped by lessons learned during earlier crises, including the 2008 financial downturn and the Covid-19 pandemic. “Everything that we learned during the crisis in 2008, we adapted to that,” he said. “The learnings from Covid have also been layered on top of that.”

The next growth phase

DET data presented during the meeting showed tourism activity recovering steadily after the ceasefire announcement.

According to the figures shared, hotel performance during the pre-Eid period reached 80 per cent of 2025 levels, while Eid occupancy averaged 77 per cent, with some areas recording occupancy of up to 85 per cent.

Dubai Airports recently said May 31 was expected to become the busiest travel day of the period, with nearly 194,580 passengers projected to pass through Dubai International Airport. The airport said its busiest departure day was recorded on May 23, when more than 67,000 travellers departed through DXB.

Kazim said Dubai’s focus now remains on maintaining momentum and preparing for future growth. “This is a challenge, but it’s a situational one, it’s not a systemic one,” he said.