UAE tourism records robust growth on back of reforms and innovation

Abu Dhabi: The UAE continues to make strong gains in the tourism sector, strengthening its position as one of the world’s leading travel destinations while attracting steady investment backed by high returns and a competitive business environment. These achievements are part of a long-term national strategy aimed at diversifying the economy and reinforcing tourism as a key growth pillar.

With rising visitor numbers, expanding hotel capacity and sustained investor interest, the UAE’s tourism model is increasingly seen as both resilient and future-focused.

The country’s success is driven by a unique mix of natural, social and legislative strengths. Its strategic location connecting East and West, combined with political and economic stability, has helped position the UAE as a safe and attractive destination for travellers throughout the year.

Tourism benefits from the country’s diverse landscapes, including deserts, mountains, oases, beaches and coastal plains. Mild winter weather, especially appealing to global travellers, adds to its year-round appeal. This is supported by a culture of tolerance and coexistence, modern infrastructure, international events and a wide range of accommodation options suited to all budgets.

These strengths have translated into strong global rankings. The UAE is among the world’s top seven destinations for international tourist spending and ranks first globally in several aviation and travel competitiveness indicators, particularly the quality of air transport infrastructure.

Tourism and hospitality recorded solid growth in the first half of the year, with hotels welcoming more than 16 million guests. By mid-year, the UAE had 1,243 hotel establishments offering over 216,000 rooms. A total of 16 new hotels entered the market in 2024, reflecting continued confidence from investors.

To support this momentum, the UAE has rolled out incentives to attract investment and encourage entrepreneurship in tourism. The ‘World’s Coolest Winter’ campaign, launched under the theme ‘Our Winter is Entrepreneurial’, highlights opportunities available to investors and supports small and medium tourism businesses.

The country has also introduced national initiatives to strengthen tourism, including the National Tourism Charter, the UAE Hospitality Summer Camp, support for domestic tourism, and the promotion of new destinations across the seven emirates. Tourism concepts are also being introduced into educational curricula to build future talent.

The Ministry of Economy and Tourism is implementing digital projects under the UAE Tourism Strategy 2031. These include electronically linking hotel data with local tourism authorities to improve planning, transparency and service standards.

From 2026, new projects will focus on diversifying tourism products, accelerating digital transformation through advanced technologies, and embedding sustainability across tourism services and activities.

Over several decades, the UAE has invested heavily in tourism infrastructure, including airlines, airports, hotels and landmark leisure attractions. In the past ten years, the focus has expanded to premium experiences, cultural and heritage programmes, and innovative tourism offerings.

Growth is being driven by close cooperation between government bodies and private companies. Authorities are working with investors to raise service quality, align hotel classifications with global benchmarks, form international partnerships and ensure visitor expectations are met.

The UAE offers one of the world’s most attractive environments for tourism investors. Benefits include tax exemptions, 100 per cent foreign ownership, access to more than 40 free zones, no requirement for a local sponsor, no minimum capital requirements, no income tax and full repatriation of profits.

These are supported by long-term residency visas of five to ten years, easy access to skilled labour and a flexible labour framework that attracts global talent and innovation.

To further boost investor confidence, the UAE introduced wide-ranging legislative reforms from 2021, modernising laws to keep pace with global economic changes. The National Tourism Strategy 2031 aims to strengthen the UAE’s global tourism identity and leverage the diverse offerings of all seven emirates.

The strategy targets raising tourism’s contribution to GDP to Dh450 billion, attracting Dh100 billion in new investments, achieving annual growth of Dh27 billion, and welcoming 40 million hotel guests in the coming years.

Tourism investment reached Dh28.8 billion in 2023, rose to Dh32.2 billion in 2024 and is projected to hit Dh35.2 billion in 2025. During the first eight months of 2025, UAE airports handled about 102.9 million passengers, a 5.3 per cent increase year-on-year.

International visitor spending reached Dh217.3 billion in 2024, while domestic tourism spending stood at Dh57.6 billion, both well above pre-pandemic levels.

In recognition of its performance, the UAE ranked first regionally and 18th globally in the World Economic Forum’s 2024 Travel and Tourism Development Index, underlining its growing influence on the global tourism map.

– With inputs from WAM