In this chapter
Chapter 06
This chapter examines the UAE's accommodation supply by class, type and emirate, and explains how each segment performed during the 2025 peak and the 2026 disruption. Dubai's stock is top-heavy: Upscale, Upper Upscale and Luxury together hold 67.4% of about 152,000 rooms (H1 2025), Economy only 5.5%, and nearly 90% of the hotel openings scheduled for 2026 before the conflict were in the higher-end categories (Cavendish Maxwell). In H1 2026 that structure worked against the market: in Cavendish Maxwell's Dubai sample, Luxury occupancy was 51.2% while Upper Midscale held 65.7%, and Dubai short-term rentals shifted about a third of their booked nights to 29+ night stays.
This chapter uses three types of count, which are not interchangeable. Operating rooms are licensed, trading inventory counted by DET or sampled by an advisory firm. Planned rooms are pipeline figures: an announced project is not operating capacity, a scheduled opening can slip, and a pipeline total mixes both. Holiday-home listings are a vendor's count of active advertisements on rental platforms, which rise and fall with hosts' decisions and the vendor's scraping method; a change in a listing count is not a hotel census and does not measure licensed units. Each figure below is labelled operating, planned or listing.
In brief
- Two operating room counts exist for Dubai: DET's 154,264 rooms at end 2025 and Cavendish Maxwell's advisory-sample 158,700; the ADR series also differ (DET AED 579, advisory sample AED 746, 2025) and must not be mixed.
- By chain scale, Dubai rooms were 24.4% Upscale, 22.6% Upper Upscale, 20.4% Luxury, 14.0% Midscale, 12.9% Upper Midscale and 5.5% Economy in H1 2025 (Cavendish Maxwell). By star rating, 54,100 five-star and 43,400 four-star rooms made up about 64% of about 152,300 rooms in January to August 2025 (TradeArabia citing Cavendish Maxwell, Jan to Aug 2025).
- Upper Midscale had the highest occupancy of any class in 2025 (84.4%) and the strongest ADR growth (+10.4%); hotel apartments led DET's class table at 81 to 82% for January to September 2025 (Cavendish Maxwell; Gulf News citing DET and musafir.com, Jan to Sep 2025).
- The 2026 shock inverted the ranking in Cavendish Maxwell's Dubai sample: H1 2026 occupancy was Luxury 51.2%, Upper Upscale 51.8%, Upscale 58.7%, Midscale 63.7%, Upper Midscale 65.7%; ADR fell 6.2% for Luxury and 2% for Upper Upscale; sample ADR was AED 701, down 7% (Khaleej Times citing Cavendish Maxwell, H1 2026).
- Abu Dhabi's advisory data show a resort versus city split: city hotels 82.8%, resorts 78.6% in 2025; Dubai publishes occupancy by area instead, from 86% in Dubai Marina to 77% in Downtown (2025 year to date) (Cavendish Maxwell; Khaleej Times citing DET).
- Dubai short-term rental listing counts rose from 18,000 (Valustrat, August 2024) to 35,316 (PriceLabs, April 2026), on different vendors' definitions; PriceLabs booked nights fell from 426,992 to 183,410 between April 2025 and April 2026 and 29+ night stays tripled to about one-third of nights (AGBI citing Valustrat, 2024; Rental Scale-Up). Abu Dhabi had 4,771 eligible holiday-home units at end 2025 (TradeArabia citing DCT Abu Dhabi).
- Knight Frank counts 175 branded-residence schemes in Dubai (68 completed, 107 pipeline), against Miami's 73; the UAE holds 19% of the global pipeline; pipeline schemes are not operating supply.
- Planned supply: Dubai's 12,861-room pipeline is 47% luxury, 21% upper upscale and 24% upscale (Knight Frank, October 2025), and 61% of the 2026 pipeline was luxury in Cavendish Maxwell's H1 2025 release; JLL recorded no hotel launches in its tracked Dubai and Abu Dhabi sets in H1 2026, and about 5,400 Dubai rooms left the market in April 2026 (The National; Zawya/TradeArabia citing S&P Global Ratings and CoStar).
- Fujairah had 34 hotels and more than 5,000 rooms in 2025, with nearly 802,000 guests across hotels and hotel apartments.
- Distribution channel shares by hotel class were not found for the UAE in the sources reviewed; the only regional split is an undated eRevMax survey (OTAs about 48%, wholesalers 23%, online direct 18%).
Two counts and two ADR series
To interpret figures by hotel class, readers first need to know which properties are included. DET counts every licensed establishment: 154,264 rooms across 827 establishments at the end of December 2025, 152,875 rooms in 820 establishments at the end of October 2025, and 153,500+ rooms in 831 establishments in April 2025. Cavendish Maxwell, an advisory firm working from its own hotel population, counted 158,700 rooms in 770 establishments for full year 2025, up 3,400 rooms (2.2%) across 10 new hotels; its 2024 review had counted 151,245 rooms in 724 hotels at the end of 2024; its H1 2025 PDF gives about 152,000 rooms in about 730 properties while its H1 2025 release gives 157,144 keys across 748 properties, and JLL puts Dubai at about 159,300 keys in H1 2026. The counts differ because the consultancies measure a sample under a different establishment definition from DET's licence register, and the advisory firm's own year labels are not always consistent; this report records the differences without attempting to reconcile them. It does not combine advisory counts with DET counts to calculate growth.
The same applies to rates. DET's all-inventory ADR was AED 579 for 2025, up 8% from AED 538, AED 531 for January to October 2025 and AED 470 for January to August 2026. Cavendish Maxwell's sample ADR was AED 746 for 2025 (up 8.7%) and AED 701 for H1 2026 (down 7%). The gap is consistent with the advisory sample's weighting toward branded upper-tier hotels; each chart in this chapter uses one series and identifies it.
| Measure | DET (all licensed establishments) | Cavendish Maxwell advisory sample | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rooms | 154,264 in 827 establishments | 158,700 in 770 establishments | End 2025 | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai hotel market expands to 158,700 rooms as luxury segment dominates)Official Industry |
| Rooms | 153,500+ in 831 establishments (Apr 2025) | About 152,000 in about 730 (PDF); 157,144 in 748 (release) | H1 2025 | Gulf News citing DET (Will UAE residents turn to staycations as Iran-Israel conflict disrupts summer travel plans?); Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai Hospitality Market Performance H1 2025, PDF); Cavendish MaxwellIndustry |
| Occupancy | 80.7% | 81% | 2025 | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai hotel market expands to 158,700 rooms as luxury segment dominates)Official Industry |
| ADR | AED 579 | AED 746 | 2025 | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai hotel market expands to 158,700 rooms as luxury segment dominates)Official Industry |
| ADR | AED 470 (Jan to Aug 2026) | AED 701 (H1 2026) | 2026 | Emirates 24; Khaleej Times citing Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai hotel occupancy to recover in H2 2026 after sharp first-half decline)Industry |
| Rooms, 2026 (operating) | About 149,000 (end Aug) | About 152,139 in 727 hotels (H1); 159,300 keys (JLL) | 2026 | Khaleej Times citing DET (Dubai hotels record 66% occupancy in August); Khaleej Times citing Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai hotel occupancy to recover in H2 2026 after sharp first-half decline); IndexBox (UAE Hospitality Report H1 2026), data JLLIndustry |
Dubai supply by chain scale
Cavendish Maxwell's H1 2025 report is the only public source that splits Dubai rooms by chain-scale tier. Upscale held 24.4%, Upper Upscale 22.6%, Luxury 20.4%, Midscale 14.0%, Upper Midscale 12.9% (the report's table shows 13.1%) and Economy 5.5%, so the three upper tiers together held 67.4% (Cavendish Maxwell, H1 2025). The full-year 2025 release puts the high-end share at nearly 70%, the 2024 review at about 70%, and Knight Frank's 2024 count gives Dubai about 52,995 luxury keys within 151,420 existing keys.
At UAE level the mix is similar but the two reports of the same Knight Frank study disagree. Knight Frank's own page gives upscale 26%, luxury 22% and upper upscale 21% of existing UAE rooms; Aletihad's report of the same study gives luxury 26%, upscale 22% and upper upscale 21%. The two sets conflict and both are recorded. On branding, Knight Frank's 2024 review said 82% of upcoming UAE supply was internationally branded (January to July 2024); the branding chart in its 2025 review could not be read reliably from the published text and its values are not reproduced here.
Dubai supply by star rating
DET's published categories are five-star, four-star, one to three star, deluxe and standard; advisory reports apply the deluxe or superior and standard labels to hotel apartments (Cavendish Maxwell, Jan to Aug 2025; Dubai Pulse). Cavendish Maxwell's reading of the register for January to August 2025 gives about 152,300 rooms in 818 hotels, of which 54,100 were five-star and 43,400 four-star, so four- and five-star rooms made up about 64% of stock. New supply in 2024 was concentrated at the top: five-star hotels added 1,933 rooms across 7 hotels, four-star new rooms rose 17% across 9 hotels, three-star new rooms fell 48% against 2023 and serviced-apartment additions fell 17%, so nearly two-thirds of 2024 additions were luxury or upper upscale (AGBI citing Cavendish Maxwell). Monthly counts of hotels and rooms by the five categories, with occupancy, ADR, RevPAR, occupied room nights and length of stay, exist in DET's Dubai Pulse open dataset (CSV download and API, key required; last updated 17 December 2025 when checked), but the values were not fetched for this edition.
Occupancy and ADR by class, 2025
Levels by class come from DET through press reports, and growth by class from Cavendish Maxwell. For January to April 2025 DET's year-to-date occupancy was 83% overall, five-star 83% and four-star 85% (Gulf News citing DET, Jan to Apr 2025 / Q1 2025). For January to September 2025 five-star stood at 77%, four- and three-star at 79% and hotel apartments at 81 to 82% (Gulf News citing DET and musafir.com, Jan to Sep 2025). Cavendish Maxwell's full-year 2025 figures show overall occupancy of 81% (reported as "up 3.8%", without stating whether this is percentage points or relative change), Upper Midscale the highest class at 84.4%, ADR AED 746 (up 8.7%) and Upper Midscale ADR up 10.4%. In H1 2025 the occupancy growth leaders were Upscale (+5.5%), Upper Upscale (+5.2%), Luxury (+4.5%) and Upper Midscale (+3.4%), again as reported without a points or relative basis, with ADR up 8.5% for Upper Midscale, 4.9% for Luxury, 2.7% for Upscale and 2.5% for Upper Upscale (Cavendish Maxwell H1 2025 PDF). In the same firm's 2024 review, Luxury had the largest occupancy gain (+3 points) and Upper Midscale +2.4 (Gulf News citing Cavendish Maxwell).
| Class | Occupancy level | Occupancy change | ADR change | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Five-star (DET) | 83% (to Apr); 77% (to Sep) | +4.1 pts (Jan to Aug) | Not published | Dubai, 2025 YTD | Gulf News citing DET (Will UAE residents turn to staycations as Iran-Israel conflict disrupts summer travel plans?); Gulf News citing DET and musafir.com (UAE National Day: new hotels, high airfares spike staycation demand); Cavendish Maxwell (5-star sector leads Dubai hotel growth)Official |
| Four-star (DET) | 85% (to Apr); 79% with three-star (to Sep) | Not published | Not published | Dubai, 2025 YTD | Gulf News citing DET (Will UAE residents turn to staycations as Iran-Israel conflict disrupts summer travel plans?); Gulf News citing DET and musafir.com (UAE National Day: new hotels, high airfares spike staycation demand)Official |
| Hotel apartments (DET) | 81 to 82% (to Sep) | Deluxe +3.8, standard +2.5 (Jan to Aug) | Not published | Dubai, 2025 YTD | Gulf News citing DET and musafir.com (UAE National Day: new hotels, high airfares spike staycation demand); Cavendish Maxwell (5-star sector leads Dubai hotel growth)Official |
| Luxury (chain scale) | Not published | +4.5% as reported (H1) | +4.9% (H1) | Dubai, H1 2025 | Cavendish Maxwell H1 2025 PDF (as above)Industry |
| Upper Upscale | Not published | +5.2% as reported (H1) | +2.5% (H1) | Dubai, H1 2025 | Cavendish Maxwell H1 2025 PDF (as above)Industry |
| Upscale | Not published | +5.5% as reported (H1) | +2.7% (H1) | Dubai, H1 2025 | Cavendish Maxwell H1 2025 PDF (as above)Industry |
| Upper Midscale | 84.4% (highest, FY) | +3.4% as reported (H1) | +10.4% (FY); +8.5% (H1) | Dubai, 2025 | Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai hotel market expands to 158,700 rooms as luxury segment dominates); Cavendish Maxwell H1 2025 PDF (as above)Industry |
| Economy | Not published | Not published | Not published | Dubai | None found Estimate |
| All (advisory sample) | 81% (FY); 81.4% (H1) | +3.8% (FY); +4.5% (H1), basis not stated | +8.7% to AED 746 (FY) | Dubai, 2025 | Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai hotel market expands to 158,700 rooms as luxury segment dominates); Cavendish Maxwell H1 2025 PDF (as above)Industry |
The 2026 shock by class
Dubai occupancy fell from 84.7% in February 2026 to about 33% in March (DET: 36%), with the week ending 14 March at 22.8%, the lowest since April 2020, and some hotels in single digits (Zawya/TradeArabia citing S&P Global Ratings and CoStar; CoStar News). By class, Cavendish Maxwell's reported H1 2026 sample observations are Luxury 51.2%, Upper Upscale 51.8%, Upscale 58.7%, Midscale 63.7% and Upper Midscale 65.7%, with ADR down 6.2% for Luxury, 2% for Upper Upscale, 3.1% for Upscale, 4.4% for Upper Midscale and 2.4% for Midscale; sample ADR was AED 701 (down 7%) across 727 hotels and about 152,139 rooms. Separately, and not a realised result, the firm's full-year 2026 forecast was 60.4 to 66.2% occupancy and ADR AED 600 to 675 (Khaleej Times citing Cavendish Maxwell, H1 2026). JLL's H1 2026 Dubai figures are occupancy 56.4%, ADR AED 701.10 and RevPAR AED 395.70 (down more than 35%); these are advisory samples, separate from DET's all-establishment inventory (The National citing JLL).
In H1 2026, Upper Midscale hotel occupancy was 14.5 percentage points higher than Luxury hotel occupancy
Occupancy by chain-scale tier, %, Dubai, H1 2026 (Cavendish Maxwell sample observations); Economy not published; dashed line is the same firm's overall 2025 occupancy of 81%
View accessible chart data
| Measure | Occupancy H1 2026 |
|---|---|
| Luxury | 51.2 |
| Upper Upscale | 51.8 |
| Upscale | 58.7 |
| Midscale | 63.7 |
| Upper Midscale | 65.7 |
The pattern was the same at UAE level. Cavendish Maxwell told Skift that luxury and upper-upscale hotels had the steepest occupancy declines, while midscale held up on domestic, regional and corporate demand. DET's January to August 2026 data put mid-range hotel apartments at 73% occupancy, the highest category, with hotel revenue above AED 6bn and ADR of AED 470 (Emirates 24, Jan-Aug 2026). Property-level reports confirm the spread: Premier Inn ran 91% in Abu Dhabi and 73% in Dubai in July 2026, IHCL cut rates by up to 40% at the peak and Majestic Hotels expects Q4 2026 rates 15 to 20% below last year. Supply contracted: about 5,400 Dubai rooms left the market in April 2026 and are expected back through late 2026 and 2027; the advisory sample stood at about 152,139 rooms in H1 2026 while DET's count was about 149,000 at the end of August, two different populations rather than one series; and JLL recorded no hotel launches in its tracked Dubai and Abu Dhabi sets in H1 2026, which does not establish that no property opened anywhere in either emirate (Zawya/TradeArabia citing S&P Global Ratings and CoStar; Khaleej Times citing Cavendish Maxwell). Recovery began in August 2026 at 66% occupancy, 89% of the August 2025 level, and UAE occupancy was 67.6% in September 2026, down 12.3 percentage points year on year (Khaleej Times citing DET; CoStar, via Skift).
Resorts, city hotels and airport hotels
Abu Dhabi is the only emirate for which a resort versus city split was found, in Cavendish Maxwell's 2025 review (page undated; the 2025 period is inferred from the Dubai statement in the same release): city hotels ran 82.8% occupancy with ADR up 21.3%, resorts 78.6%. Dubai publishes occupancy by area, which stands in for the split. For 2025 year to date: Dubai Marina 86%, Palm Jumeirah 85%, Oud Metha 85%, Al Barsha 84%, Bur Dubai 83%, Jumeirah 82%, DWTC 82%, Deira 80%, Jebel Ali 80% and Downtown 77%, within 43.03m occupied room nights for 2024 (Khaleej Times citing DET). Beach districts and inland mid-market districts both recorded higher occupancy than Downtown; in September 2026 a secondary source reported prime areas (Downtown, DIFC, Palm Jumeirah) above 80% as the recovery started (Dubai Chronicle). In other emirates, RAK's resort-led market ran 75% in 2025 at ADR AED 618 and Fujairah about 75% at ADR AED 433, on the same advisory basis (Cavendish Maxwell; Cavendish Maxwell, Jan-Dec 2025).
Serviced apartments and hotel apartments
Hotel apartments were the best-performing DET class in 2025 and the most resilient in 2026. DET's year-to-date occupancy for January to September 2025 was 81 to 82% for hotel apartments against 77% for five-star and 79% for four- and three-star (Gulf News citing DET and musafir.com, Jan to Sep 2025). Occupancy growth for January to August 2025 was 3.8 points for deluxe and superior apartments and 2.5 for standard (Cavendish Maxwell, Jan to Aug 2025). Knight Frank put Dubai luxury aparthotels and aparthotels at 82% occupancy for the year to August 2025. In January to August 2026 mid-range hotel apartments were the highest category at 73% (Emirates 24, Jan-Aug 2026). Supply growth has lagged: serviced-apartment additions fell 17% in 2024 against 2023 (AGBI citing Cavendish Maxwell). Monthly counts for the deluxe and standard categories are carried in the Dubai Pulse dataset but not in any press release found. Hotel apartments were named alongside hotels and holiday homes in the temporary fee relief Dubai announced for 2026, which allowed postponement of sales fees and the Tourism Dirham from 1 April 2026; the relief is separate from the baseline Tourism Dirham, and its precise terms, eligibility and expiry require the applicable DET circular (Government of Dubai Media Office).
Holiday homes and short-term rentals
Permits and listings
Dubai's licensed holiday-home count is available only second-hand. Two secondary sources attribute "more than 22,000 fully licensed" holiday-home apartments and villas at the end of 2024 to DET, with licensed growth of over 35% year on year and about 50% since 2022; the DET release itself was not located (Travelling for Business; Royale Stays). Listing counts from data vendors are a different measure: they count active advertisements on rental platforms, not licensed units, and each vendor scrapes a different population. Valustrat counted 18,000 listings in August 2024 (up 38% year on year); PriceLabs data reported by Rental Scale-Up show 31,265 active listings in April 2025 and 35,316 in April 2026; First Class Property Management's index shows a peak of 36,500 in January 2026 and 33,795 at the end of Q2 2026 (up 10.2% year on year); Airbtics' model added 8,030 listings in 2025 (up 52.6%). AirDNA, by contrast, reported available UAE listings down nearly 5% in July 2026. The vendors conflict on direction for mid-2026 and their geographies and definitions differ; both are recorded, and none of these listing counts is combined into one supply trend or treated as a DET licence total.
Dubai short-term rental listings doubled from 18,000 in August 2024 to a 36,500 peak in January 2026
Active listings as counted by each vendor (advertisements on rental platforms, not licensed units or hotel rooms), Dubai, Aug 2024 to Q2 2026; points come from three vendors (Valustrat, PriceLabs via Rental Scale-Up, First Class Property Management) with different definitions, so the line shows direction, not one series
View accessible chart data
| Measure | Active listings |
|---|---|
| Aug 2024 (Valustrat) | 18000 |
| Apr 2025 (PriceLabs) | 31265 |
| Jan 2026 (First Class) | 36500 |
| Apr 2026 (PriceLabs) | 35316 |
| Q2 2026 (First Class) | 33795 |
Occupancy and ADR before the shock
Pre-crisis performance estimates disagree because the methods differ. Valustrat's reading, reported by AGBI in October 2024, was 56% occupancy (down about 1 point), ADR AED 762 (up 4%), RevPAR AED 434 and a 5-day average stay; only the 18,000 listings figure is explicitly tied to August 2024, the performance figures are for the latest period the report covered. Airbtics' scraped model for 2025 gives 73.0% occupancy, ADR AED 620, about 6.2m booked nights, 75% international guests with the United States the top origin, 4+ bedroom units the best-performing type and revenue per listing of AED 167,256; for the UAE as a whole it gives 66.33% occupancy and ADR AED 475. Bayut and dubizzle's H1 2025 listing data give daily rates by tier: luxury apartments in Downtown, JBR and the Marina AED 516 to 762; mid-tier in JVC, Business Bay and Al Barsha AED 384 to 472; budget in Bur Dubai, Deira and Dubai Silicon Oasis AED 206 to 269; Palm Jumeirah villas up to AED 6,960, up 14.6% year on year; these are portal asking rates, not realised hotel ADR (Khaleej Times citing Bayut and dubizzle, H1 2025).
Dubai short-term rental daily rates ran from AED 206 in budget districts to AED 762 in luxury apartment districts
Listed (asking) daily rate range by tier, AED, Dubai, H1 2025 (Bayut and dubizzle portal data, not realised hotel ADR); Palm Jumeirah villas reach AED 6,960 and are not shown
View accessible chart data
| Measure | Daily rate range |
|---|---|
| Luxury apartments (Downtown, JBR, Marina) | 516 to 762 |
| Mid-tier (JVC, Business Bay, Al Barsha) | 384 to 472 |
| Budget (Bur Dubai, Deira, Silicon Oasis) | 206 to 269 |
The 2026 shock and the shift to 29+ night stays
Short-term rentals fell further than hotels in April 2026 and then changed shape. PriceLabs data quoted in April 2026 show 35,316 active listings against 31,265 a year earlier and booked nights of 183,410 in April 2026 against 426,992 a year earlier, ADR of USD 153 in March 2026 (USD 142 in March 2025) and USD 132 in April, a median booking window of 3 days (6 in 2025), and 29+ night stays tripling to about one-third of booked nights; the article's early-April occupancy and booking-pace comparisons are internally inconsistent and are not reproduced (Rental Scale-Up). Hotels in March 2026 were at about 33 to 36% on the DET and advisory series (Zawya/TradeArabia citing S&P Global Ratings and CoStar; Khaleej Times citing DET). By Q2 2026 First Class reported an average stay of 6 nights (5 a year earlier), Palm Jumeirah ADR of AED 682 (the highest district), Downtown occupancy of 59%, and an operator portfolio at 87% occupancy with about 70% of nights from 29+ night stays.
AirDNA's UAE-wide Q3 2026 reading is more cautious: occupancy up about 4%, booked nights about 13% behind the prior year, early Q4 ADR up 17% year on year, July villa ADR up 12.2% but apartment ADR down 7%, and a rise in 28+ day rentals; operators Homevy (88% occupancy, Q4 rates near AED 1,000, 6.5-day stay) and Frank Porter (rates 15% above 2025, 8-day stay) reported stronger figures. AirDNA's forward bookings for Dubai show November 2026 down 36% year on year, December down 8% and January 2027 down 6%. The AirDNA figures (demand down 13%, listings down 5%) and the First Class figures (listings up 10.2%, portfolio occupancy 87%) point in different directions for the same months; they measure different samples and are recorded as a conflict rather than resolved.
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi is the only emirate that publishes licensed holiday-home performance. DCT reported 4,771 eligible units at the end of 2025 (up 77%, with 2,000+ added), 335,000+ guests (up 77%) of whom 82,900 were domestic (up 114%) and 252,500 international (up 68%), and average daily revenue of AED 1,887 (up 28%); the September 2026 rules require the licence number on every listing, a maximum of three people per room and whole-unit rental only (TradeArabia citing DCT Abu Dhabi). DCT's annual release counts 338,000 holiday-home and glamping guests combined for 2025 (Abu Dhabi Media Office).
| Short-term rental indicator | Value | Geography, period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Licensed units (attributed to DET, unverified at source) | 22,000+ | Dubai, end 2024 | Travelling for Business; Royale StaysEstimate |
| Active listings (vendor count, PriceLabs) | 31,265 / 35,316 | Dubai, Apr 2025 / Apr 2026 | Rental Scale-Up (Dubai Short-Term Rental Market 2026)Industry |
| Active listings (operator index, First Class) | 36,500 peak / 33,795 | Dubai, Jan 2026 / Q2 2026 | Khaleej Times citing First Class Property Management UAE STR IndexEstimate |
| Occupancy (Valustrat) | 56% | Dubai, latest period in Oct 2024 report | AGBI citing Valustrat (Holiday homes fend off competition from Dubai's hotels)Industry |
| Occupancy (model) | 73.0% | Dubai, 2025 | Airbtics (UAE Short-Term Rental Market Review 2025)Estimate |
| ADR | AED 762 / AED 620 | Dubai, Oct 2024 report (Valustrat) / 2025 (Airbtics model) | AGBI citing Valustrat (Holiday homes fend off competition from Dubai's hotels); Airbtics (UAE Short-Term Rental Market Review 2025)Estimate |
| 29+ night share of booked nights | About one-third (tripled) | Dubai, Apr 2026 | Rental Scale-Up (Dubai Short-Term Rental Market 2026)Industry |
| Eligible licensed units | 4,771 (+77%) | Abu Dhabi, end 2025 | TradeArabia citing DCT Abu Dhabi (Abu Dhabi updates holiday home regulations); The NationalOfficial |
| Guests; average daily revenue | 335,000+; AED 1,887 | Abu Dhabi, 2025 | TradeArabia citing DCT Abu Dhabi (Abu Dhabi updates holiday home regulations); The NationalOfficial |
| Forward booked nights vs prior year | Nov 2026 -36%; Dec -8%; Jan 2027 -6% | Dubai, forward | Skift, data AirDNAIndustry |
Branded residences
Branded residences are the hotel sector's real-estate crossover and, where hotel-operated, feed hotel rental pools. In H1 2025 Dubai had 48,474 branded-residence units across 144 developments, with 140+ projects slated by 2031, price premiums of 40 to 60%, sales value up 37% year on year, and non-hotel brands making up one-third of completed stock and 80% of the pipeline (Khaleej Times). Knight Frank's Residence Report 2026-27 counts 175 Dubai schemes, combining 68 completed and 107 pipeline developments, against 73 in Miami and 30 in London; pipeline schemes are not operating supply; the UAE holds 19% of the global pipeline, Abu Dhabi has 24 schemes and RAK's Al Marjan Island 23; non-hotel brands account for 42% of Dubai schemes. The two non-hotel shares (80% of pipeline units per GBR, 42% of Dubai schemes per Knight Frank) measure different things and are both recorded.
Desert resorts, eco resorts and glamping
Very little public data is available on desert resorts and glamping. Abu Dhabi is the only emirate with a related count, and it is combined: 338,000 holiday-home and glamping guests in 2025 (Abu Dhabi Media Office). IMARC values the UAE glamping market at USD 20.0m in 2025, rising to USD 52.1m by 2034 at a 10.79% CAGR, a market-research model rather than a count. No count of desert resorts, desert camps or glamping sites, and no desert-resort occupancy or ADR, was found for Dubai, Sharjah or RAK.
Supply in Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah
Knight Frank's October 2025 review gives hotel keys by emirate as existing plus upcoming to 2030, a planned figure rather than operating stock: Dubai 165,339 (55.9% of the UAE pipeline), Abu Dhabi 37,016, Sharjah 14,478, RAK 11,902, Fujairah 5,057, Ajman 2,450 and Umm Al Quwain 592, within 213,928 existing UAE rooms forecast to rise to 235,674 in 1,184 hotels by 2030. The UAE as a whole had 217,000 operating rooms in 1,240+ establishments at the end of 2025, at 79.5% occupancy on the Ministry of Economy's 25 May 2026 release; the ministry's earlier 15 April 2026 release gave 79.3% occupancy on the same 217,000 rooms, and the two are not merged here (Government of Dubai Media Office; Ministry of Economy, via Gulf News).
Fujairah. The Fujairah Statistics Centre's 2025 annual report, as reported by Gulf News, gives 34 hotels with more than 5,000 rooms and nearly 802,000 guests across hotels and hotel apartments in 2025. The Fujairah tourism department reported occupancy of 95% to 100% at the start of 2026, described as record levels, with the dates unspecified. On Cavendish Maxwell's advisory basis, Fujairah ran about 75% occupancy in 2025 at ADR AED 433 (up 12.8%).
Abu Dhabi. JLL counts 33,650 operating keys in H1 2026, flat, with about 120 more due by the end of 2026 (JLL, via IndexBox); DCT's 2030 strategy takes keys from 34,000 (2023) to a 52,000 target (2030) (Abu Dhabi Media Office). Performance in 2025: 5.9m hotel guests, 81% occupancy (up 3 points), ADR up 19%, RevPAR up 23%, hotel revenue AED 9.1bn (up 19.5%), average stay 2.9 nights, with India the largest source at 436,124 guests (up 22%; the release's 13% share has an unclear denominator), then Russia, the UK, China and Saudi Arabia (Abu Dhabi Media Office). City hotels ran 82.8% and resorts 78.6% on the advisory series (Cavendish Maxwell, 2025). In H1 2026 Abu Dhabi was the most resilient emirate in JLL's sample at 66.8% occupancy, ADR AED 668.30 (down 4.3%) and RevPAR AED 446.60 (down more than 20%) (The National citing JLL). No star-class split of Abu Dhabi rooms was found.
Sharjah. Cavendish Maxwell's advisory release, not an official census, gives 102 establishments and about 10,700 rooms, described as mostly mid-tier, with 2.1m hotel guests in 2025 (up 22%), an occupancy figure of 78% described as current rather than a full-year average, ADR AED 305, revenue AED 780m (up 20%) and a 2-night average stay; three luxury or upscale hotels with 476 keys are planned by 2030, and Sharjah airport handled 19.5m passengers (up 14%). Sharjah's 2024 guest mix was led by Russia (270,000+), India (170,000+) and Europe (100,000+) (SCTDA press release).
Ras Al Khaimah. RAKTDA cites 8,200+ operating rooms, more than half five-star, with 7,500 more keys planned by 2027; its 2025 CEO interview describes plans to more than double emirate-wide hotel capacity by 2030; 91% of the pipeline is five-star or ultra-luxury; the Marjan Beach masterplan (announced) adds 12,000 keys and Wynn Al Marjan Island (under construction) 1,530 rooms, with Wynn's budget raised to USD 5.7bn and opening scheduled for September 2027. RAK ran 75% occupancy in 2025 at ADR AED 618 on the advisory basis (Cavendish Maxwell, Jan-Dec 2025). RAKTDA's own H1 2026 infographic, on STR data, gives occupancy of 49.3% against 72.6% in H1 2025, a fall of 23.3 percentage points, with ADR up 5.2% to AED 705.60 and RevPAR down 28.6% to AED 347.70; advisory reports of the same half carry the same ADR, and one reports European guests down nearly 90% in February to April.
UAE occupancy rose from 75.5% to 78.5% in the year to August 2025; emirate values are approximate chart readings
Hotel occupancy, %, UAE and emirates, January to August 2024 versus January to August 2025 (Knight Frank, source line Knight Frank, STR Global, DET); the UAE and Dubai values are stated in the report text, the other five emirates are read from the report's chart in bar order and should be treated as approximate
View accessible chart data
| Measure | Jan to Aug 2024 | Jan to Aug 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| UAE | 75.5 | 78.5 |
| Dubai | 75.9 | 79.1 |
| Abu Dhabi | 77.1 | 79.6 |
| Sharjah | 74.5 | 77.0 |
| RAK | 69.3 | 71.6 |
| Fujairah | 71.6 | 71.3 |
| Ajman | 81.8 | 86.1 |
| Emirate | Rooms or keys | Occupancy 2025 | ADR 2025 | Occupancy H1 2026 | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai | 154,264 operating (DET); 165,339 existing plus planned to 2030 (KF) | 80.7% (DET); 81% (advisory sample) | AED 579 (DET); AED 746 (advisory sample) | 56.4% (JLL sample) | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Knight Frank (UAE Hospitality Market Review, Autumn 2025); Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai hotel market expands to 158,700 rooms as luxury segment dominates); The National citing JLLOfficial Industry |
| Abu Dhabi | 33,650 operating (JLL); 37,016 existing plus planned (KF) | 81% | +19% (level not published) | 66.8% (JLL sample) | IndexBox, data JLL; Knight Frank (UAE Hospitality Market Review, Autumn 2025); Abu Dhabi Media Office (Abu Dhabi's culture and tourism sectors delivered strong growth in 2025); The National citing JLLOfficial Industry |
| Sharjah | About 10,700 in 102 (advisory); 14,478 existing plus planned (KF) | 78% (described as current) | AED 305 | Not published | Cavendish Maxwell / Gulf News (Sharjah hotels draw 2.1 million guests); Knight Frank (UAE Hospitality Market Review, Autumn 2025)Industry |
| Ras Al Khaimah | 8,200+ operating (RAKTDA); 11,902 existing plus planned (KF) | 75% (advisory) | AED 618 (advisory) | 49.3% (RAKTDA, STR data) | Travel Trade Journal citing RAKTDA VP Iyad Rasbey; Knight Frank (UAE Hospitality Market Review, Autumn 2025); Cavendish Maxwell; RAKTDA (H1 2026 infographic), data STROfficial Industry |
| Fujairah | 34 hotels, 5,000+ rooms operating (2025, Fujairah Statistics Centre); 5,057 existing plus planned (KF) | About 75% (advisory) | AED 433 (advisory) | 95 to 100% reported early 2026 (dates unspecified) | Gulf News (Fujairah population reaches 328,495, GDP rises to Dh32.6 billion), data Fujairah Statistics Centre 29th annual statistical report; Knight Frank 2025 PDF; Cavendish Maxwell; TradeArabia (Fujairah hotels start 2026 strong), data Fujairah Department of Tourism and Antiquities; TradeArabia / TTN citing Fujairah Department of Tourism and AntiquitiesOfficial Industry |
| Ajman | 2,450 existing plus planned (KF) | 86.1% (Jan to Aug; approximate chart reading) | Not published | Not published | Knight Frank 2025 PDF; Knight Frank UAE Hospitality Market Review 2025 (PDF)Industry |
| Umm Al Quwain | 592 existing plus planned (KF) | Not published | Not published | Not published | Knight Frank 2025 PDFIndustry |
The pipeline by class
Every pipeline estimate found is weighted to the top tiers, and every figure in this section is planned, not operating, capacity. Knight Frank's October 2025 review puts Dubai's pipeline at 12,861 rooms, 47% luxury, 21% upper upscale and 24% upscale, with 43% of all upcoming UAE supply luxury; Dubai holds 55.9% of the UAE pipeline (Knight Frank, 2025). Cavendish Maxwell's pre-conflict plan showed about 4,600 rooms scheduled for 2026, with nearly 90% of the scheduled hotel openings (openings, not rooms) in higher-end categories, and its H1 2025 release said 61% of the 2026 pipeline was luxury. Its August 2026 update cut the near-term figure to about 39 hotels and 9,520 rooms for 2026 to 2029, with about 3,150 rooms by the end of 2026 (Gulf News citing Cavendish Maxwell, H1 2026). Lodging Econometrics counts 60 Dubai projects with 13,828 rooms and 103 UAE projects with 24,985 rooms in its Q2 2026 construction pipeline, against Saudi Arabia's 387 projects and 105,648 rooms; these are pipeline measures, not completed stock. JLL counts about 4,900 Dubai keys due to open and about 120 in Abu Dhabi by the end of 2026 (JLL, via IndexBox).
Longer-range projections point the same way. Cavendish Maxwell projected 162,600 Dubai rooms by 2027; Knight Frank's 2024 review projected 169,165 Dubai keys by 2030 and noted announced plans for 160 hotels on Palm Jebel Ali and Dubai Islands; Palm Jebel Ali's 80 hotels are announced with no operators named and a 2028 completion target (AGBI, Jan 2026). In 2024, 60% of Dubai's upcoming supply was luxury or upper upscale and 42% of UAE upcoming supply was luxury or upper upscale (Knight Frank, Jan to Jul 2024). The 2024 openings followed the same pattern: nearly two-thirds luxury or upper upscale, with three-star additions down 48% (AGBI citing Cavendish Maxwell). Operators' stated plans include Accor's nine-hotel Dubai pipeline (April 2025) and Rotana's UAE openings announced in May 2025 at Reem Island, Saadiyat and RAK (TTG Asia; Breaking Travel News). Dubai's Hotel Incentive Programme (October 2025) reimburses 100% of the Municipality fee and Tourism Dirham for two years for new hotels in Dubai South, Palm Jebel Ali, Dubai Parks and Dubai Islands (Arabian Business reporting DET City Briefing, Jan-Oct 2025).
| Pipeline measure | Value | Class mix | Geography, horizon | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knight Frank pipeline (planned) | 12,861 rooms | Luxury 47%, upper upscale 21%, upscale 24% | Dubai, to 2030 | Knight Frank (UAE Hospitality Market Review, Autumn 2025)Industry |
| Knight Frank UAE upcoming (forecast) | 23,008 rooms to 235,674 | Luxury 43% | UAE, to 2030 | Knight Frank 2025 PDF; Knight Frank (UAE Hospitality Market Review, Autumn 2025)Industry |
| Cavendish Maxwell, 2026 due (pre-conflict) | About 4,600 rooms (scheduled) | Nearly 90% of openings higher-end | Dubai, 2026 | Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai hotel market expands to 158,700 rooms as luxury segment dominates)Industry |
| Cavendish Maxwell, revised Aug 2026 | About 39 hotels, 9,520 rooms; 3,150 by end 2026 | Not published | Dubai, 2026-2029 | Gulf News citing Cavendish Maxwell (STR and Data.Dubai)Industry |
| Lodging Econometrics (construction pipeline) | 60 projects, 13,828 rooms | Not published | Dubai, Q2 2026 | Lodging EconometricsIndustry |
| RAK pipeline (planned and announced) | 7,500 keys by 2027; 12,000 Marjan Beach (announced) | 91% five-star or ultra-luxury | RAK, to 2030 | Travel Trade Journal citing RAKTDA VP Iyad Rasbey; RAKTDA press release; AGBI citing RAKTDA, STR, WTTCIndustry |
Distribution channels by class
No UAE-specific data on booking channel share by hotel class was found. The only regional split is an undated eRevMax survey of 108+ hoteliers in the UAE, Egypt, Qatar, Oman and Saudi Arabia, which found OTAs supplying about 48% of bookings, wholesalers about 23% and online direct about 18%, with 64% of respondents using a channel manager; the study is believed to pre-date 2020. Global references exist but do not cover the UAE: SiteMinder's 2026 report (130m+ bookings, 2025 data) found the hotel website produced the highest value per booking at USD 516, with no Middle East market listed; D-EDGE reports a direct distribution cost of 3.5% for its clients against OTA commissions of 12 to 28%, on European and APAC data; and Cloudbeds' global State of Independent Hotels 2026 (90m bookings, 180 countries) puts OTAs at 63.4% of independent hotel bookings.
Gaps in the evidence
Sources & evidence notes
Evidence grades describe provenance. Verification status records the supplied editorial review, not a guarantee of accuracy. Cite the original publisher when using a figure.
Cloudbeds via Webtonic/ColorWhistle qualified
OTAs 63.4% of independent hotel bookings, direct 36.6%; cancellation OTA 21.8% vs direct 10.6%
Scope: Cloudbeds State of Independent Hotels 2026, 90m bookings, 180 countries
Date: 26 Sep 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY (secondary)
Secondary attribution to Cloudbeds: 90m bookings across 180 countries. OTA and direct cancellation rates are observational, with different customer mixes. 21.8/10.6 = 2.06; no causal channel-switch saving follows.
Source locator as recorded: sameTradeArabia citing Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai's hotel inventory grows to nearly 152,300 rooms in 2025) verified
About 152,300 rooms in 818 hotels; 5-star 54,100 rooms; 4-star 43,400 rooms; 4+5 star about 64% of stock
Scope: Dubai hotel supply, Jan to Aug 2025
Date: 28 Oct 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Page opens and all figures and the Jan to Aug 2025 period match.
Open original source ↗Cavendish Maxwell (5-star sector leads Dubai hotel growth) not re-verified
Occupancy 78.5% (+3.0 YoY); 5-star occupancy +4.1; deluxe/superior hotel apartments +3.8; standard hotel apartments +2.5; ADR AED 526 (+4.6%)
Scope: Dubai, Jan to Aug 2025 (changes only for classes; levels not published)
Date: Oct 2025 (FHS World release)
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai Hospitality Market Performance H1 2025, PDF) verified
Room share by class: Upscale 24.4%, Upper Upscale 22.6%, Luxury 20.4%, Midscale 14.0%, Upper Midscale 12.9% (text) / 13.1% (table), Economy 5.5%; about 152,000 rooms in about 730 properties; Upscale+UU+Luxury 67.4%
Scope: Dubai, H1 2025
Date: Sep 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
All figures match, including the internal text-versus-table discrepancy for Upper Midscale that the original claim already flags.
Open original source ↗Cavendish Maxwell H1 2025 PDF (as above) qualified
Occupancy 81.4% (+4.5); Upscale +5.5, UU +5.2, Luxury +4.5, Upper Midscale +3.4 (Upper Midscale highest level, not stated); ADR AED 754.5 (+5.5%); Upper Midscale ADR +8.5%, Luxury +4.9%, Upscale +2.7%, UU +2.5%
Scope: Dubai, H1 2025 vs H1 2024
Date: Sep 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
All values match the PDF. The report expresses occupancy changes as '%' without clarifying points versus relative change, so the '(+4.5)' in the claim should not be presented as percentage points.
Source locator as recorded: same as #3Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai hotel market expands to 158,700 rooms as luxury segment dominates) qualified
158,700 rooms in 770 establishments; +3,400 rooms (+2.2%); 10 new hotels; high-end (Upscale/UU/Luxury) nearly 70%; occupancy 81% (+3.8); Upper Midscale 84.4% (highest); ADR AED 746 (+8.7%); Upper Midscale ADR +10.4%; 4,600 rooms due 2026, nearly 90% upper tiers
Scope: Dubai, full year 2025
Date: Early 2026 (undated; sister article refers to week three of the conflict)
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
All figures match. Two precision caveats: the article states occupancy 'up 3.8%' without specifying percentage points, and the 'nearly 90%' upper-tier share refers to hotel openings, not rooms. Publication date not shown on the page.
Open original source ↗Cavendish Maxwell (as #5) qualified
Abu Dhabi city hotels 82.8% occupancy, ADR +21.3%; Abu Dhabi resorts 78.6%; RAK 75% (+4.6); Fujairah about 75%, ADR +12.8%
Scope: Other emirates, full year 2025
Date: Early 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Page opens and every figure matches. Caveat: the page carries no publication date and does not explicitly state the period for the other-emirate figures; 'full year 2025' is inferred from the Dubai statement that occupancy averaged 81% in 2025. Also note RAK's '+4.6%' is written as a percent increase, not clearly as percentage points.
Source locator as recorded: same as #5Khaleej Times citing Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai hotel occupancy to recover in H2 2026 after sharp first-half decline) qualified
H1 2026 occupancy by segment: Luxury 51.2%, Upper Upscale 51.8%, Upscale 58.7%, Upper Midscale 65.7%, Midscale 63.7%; ADR change: Luxury -6.2%, UU -2%, Upscale -3.1%, Upper Midscale -4.4%, Midscale -2.4%; citywide ADR Dh701 (-7%); 727 hotels, about 152,139 rooms; FY2026 forecast occupancy 60.4 to 66.2%, ADR Dh600 to 675
Scope: Dubai, H1 2026
Date: 18 Aug 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
H1 2026 segment occupancy values are reported observations; the 60.4–66.2% full-year occupancy range is a forecast. Keep the two separate.
Open original source ↗Gulf News citing DET and musafir.com (UAE National Day: new hotels, high airfares spike staycation demand) qualified
Year-to-date occupancy: five-star 77%, four- and three-star 79%, hotel apartments 81 to 82%; 152,342 rooms
Scope: Dubai, Jan to Sep 2025 (DET report)
Date: 13 Nov 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (via press)
Official statistics transmitted by secondary reporting, or an official page available only in search extracts. Where a primary full page was unavailable, retain with an attribution and a qualification, not as fully re-verified original-source evidence. Preserve each metric’s period and definition.
Open original source ↗Gulf News citing DET (Will UAE residents turn to staycations as Iran-Israel conflict disrupts summer travel plans?) qualified
Year-to-date occupancy 83%; five-star 83%, four-star 85%; 153,500+ rooms in 831 establishments; Q1 2025 ADR Dh647 (+2%), RevPAR Dh528, 11.19m room nights
Scope: Dubai, Jan to Apr 2025 / Q1 2025
Date: 22 Jun 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (via press)
Official statistics transmitted by secondary reporting, or an official page available only in search extracts. Where a primary full page was unavailable, retain with an attribution and a qualification, not as fully re-verified original-source evidence. Preserve each metric’s period and definition.
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times citing DET (Dubai records 7% growth in tourist arrivals in first four months) qualified
Occupancy by area 2025 YTD: Dubai Marina 86%, Palm Jumeirah 85%, Oud Metha 85%, Al Barsha 84%, Bur Dubai 83%, Jumeirah 82%, DWTC 82%, Deira 80%, Jebel Ali 80%, Downtown 77%; 43.03m occupied room nights 2024
Scope: Dubai, 2025 YTD and 2024
Date: 10 Jun 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (via press)
Official statistics transmitted by secondary reporting, or an official page available only in search extracts. Where a primary full page was unavailable, retain with an attribution and a qualification, not as fully re-verified original-source evidence. Preserve each metric’s period and definition.
Open original source ↗Dubai Media Office (DET City Briefing) qualified
Jan to Oct 2025: 15.70m visitors (+5%); occupancy 79.4% (77% prior); ADR AED 531 (+6%); RevPAR AED 421 (+9%); 152,875 rooms in 820 establishments at end Oct
Scope: Dubai, Jan to Oct 2025
Date: 10 Dec 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
Official statistics transmitted by secondary reporting, or an official page available only in search extracts. Where a primary full page was unavailable, retain with an attribution and a qualification, not as fully re-verified original-source evidence. Preserve each metric’s period and definition.
Open original source ↗CoStar News (Iran war takes Middle East hotel performance down to lowest levels since pandemic) verified
2025 occupancy 81.1%; Jan to Feb 2026 84.8%; Feb 2025 90%; week ending 14 Mar 2026 22.8% (lowest since w/e 11 Apr 2020 at 22.6%); Eid al-Fitr week (w/e 21 Mar 2026) 28.2%; Eid weekend peak about 42%. Abu Dhabi Eid four-day average 47.7%, peak 55.7%, down 45% YoY; w/e 14 Mar 39.5%
Scope: Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Mar 2026
Date: Late Mar 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
All figures match the CoStar News article. Industry grade (STR/CoStar data).
Open original source ↗Zawya/TradeArabia citing S&P Global Ratings and CoStar (Gulf hospitality sector recovery to begin in Q4 but likely gradual) verified
Dubai occupancy about 33% in March 2026 from 84.7% in February; UAE 36.2%; about 5,400 rooms left the Dubai market in April 2026, expected back through late 2026 and 2027; recovery to pre-war levels unlikely until end 2027
Scope: Dubai/UAE, Mar to Apr 2026
Date: 22 Jul 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
All values match the page. Secondary reporting of S&P Global Ratings and CoStar; grade Industry as recorded.
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times citing DET (Dubai hotels record 66% occupancy in August) qualified
August 2026 occupancy 66% (89% of Aug 2025 level); March 2026 36%; about 149,000 rooms at end Aug; 21.61m occupied room nights Jan to Aug; 869,000 visitors Aug; 6.97m Jan to Aug; source mix W Europe 20%, South Asia 17%, GCC 16%, CIS/E Europe 14%; Dh2.5bn government support package; "A Dubai Invite" 90,000+ applications
Scope: Dubai, Aug 2026 and Jan to Aug 2026
Date: 13 Sep 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (via press)
Official statistics transmitted by secondary reporting, or an official page available only in search extracts. Where a primary full page was unavailable, retain with an attribution and a qualification, not as fully re-verified original-source evidence. Preserve each metric’s period and definition.
Open original source ↗Dubai Pulse (DTCM hotel establishment performance, open) qualified
DET open dataset "Hotel establishment performance": monthly fields for total hotels and rooms split by 5-star, 4-star, 1 to 3 star, deluxe and standard (hotel apartments), occupancy, ADR, RevPAR, occupied room nights, length of stay; CSV and API (key required); last updated 17 Dec 2025
Scope: Dubai, monthly
Date: 17 Dec 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (dataset exists; values not visible on page)
Page opens and supports fields, formats, monthly frequency, API-key requirement and the 17 Dec 2025 update date. Two caveats: the page does not carry the title 'Hotel establishment performance' as a formal dataset name (that is the resource filename), and it labels deluxe/standard simply as hotel categories rather than stating they are hotel apartment grades. Reword to avoid asserting the hotel-apartment definition unless confirmed from DET classification rules.
Open original source ↗Gulf News citing Cavendish Maxwell (Dubai's luxury hotel boom: over 11,000 new rooms by 2027) qualified
End 2024: 724 hotels, 151,245 rooms; 2024 occupancy 78%, ADR Dh690 (+0.2%), RevPAR +1.3%; Luxury occupancy +3 pts (largest gain), Upper Midscale +2.4 pts; about 70% of supply high-end; 2027 projection 162,600 rooms in 769 hotels
Scope: Dubai, 2024
Date: 17 Mar 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Advisory sample and forecast, not DET’s all-establishment series. The publisher’s historical/year wording is inconsistent; do not combine this ADR or inventory with DET to derive growth.
Open original source ↗AGBI citing Cavendish Maxwell (Demand for luxury keeps Dubai hotel openings upscale) not re-verified
2024 openings: five-star added 1,933 rooms in 7 hotels; four-star new rooms +17% (9 hotels); three-star new rooms -48% vs 2023; serviced apartment additions -17% vs 2023; nearly two-thirds of 2024 additions luxury/upper upscale
Scope: Dubai, 2024
Date: Mar 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Knight Frank (UAE Hospitality Market Review, Autumn 2025) qualified
UAE 213,928 rooms; 217,853 by end 2025 (+3%); 235,674 rooms in 1,184 hotels by 2030; Dubai 165,339 existing+upcoming keys (55.9% of UAE pipeline); Abu Dhabi 37,016; Sharjah 14,478; RAK 11,902; Dubai pipeline 12,861 rooms: luxury 47%, UU 21%, upscale 24%; UAE upcoming supply 43% luxury; Dubai luxury aparthotels and aparthotels 82% occupancy
Scope: UAE, year to Aug 2025
Date: 20 Oct 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Knight Frank forecasts and stock classifications were checked in publisher narrative. Inferred chart-order brand shares were not verified against the chart and are excluded.
Open original source ↗Knight Frank newsroom; Aletihad (Abu Dhabi leads UAE hospitality growth) not re-verified
UAE existing room mix: Knight Frank page says upscale 26%, luxury 22%, upper upscale 21%; Aletihad's report of the same study says luxury 26%, upscale 22%, upper upscale 21% (conflict recorded)
Scope: UAE, Aug 2025
Date: 20 Oct 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Knight Frank (UAE Hospitality Market Review 2024, PDF) not re-verified
UAE 211,580 rooms trading (Jul 2024); Dubai 151,417 keys; Abu Dhabi 37,148; 82% of upcoming UAE supply internationally branded; 42% of upcoming UAE supply luxury/upper upscale; 64% of upcoming supply in Dubai; 60% of Dubai upcoming supply luxury/UU
Scope: UAE, Jan to Jul 2024
Date: 2024 (older)
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Abu Dhabi Media Office (Abu Dhabi's culture and tourism sectors delivered strong growth in 2025) verified
Abu Dhabi 2025: 26.6m visitors; 5.9m hotel guests (+2.2%); holiday homes and glamping guests 338,000; occupancy 81% (+3 pts); ADR +19%; RevPAR +23%; average stay 2.9 nights (+3%); hotel revenue AED 9.1bn (+19.5%); India 436,124 guests (13%), Russia 257,200, UK 250,906, China 248,494, Saudi 200,652; Al Ain 473,100 guests, Al Dhafra 147,900
Scope: Abu Dhabi, 2025
Date: 6 Apr 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
Primary Abu Dhabi Media Office release re-fetched. Total visitors, hotel guests, holiday-home/glamping guests, event attendees and delegates are separate measures; do not sum them into unique tourists.
Open original source ↗Travel Trade Journal citing RAKTDA VP Iyad Rasbey qualified
RAK: confirmed Indian weddings +40% in H1 2025; MICE +36% H1 2025; 8,200+ rooms, more than half five-star; 7,500 more keys by 2027; India roadshow engaged 300+ travel trade
Scope: Ras Al Khaimah, H1 2025
Date: 8 Sep 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (via trade press)
Official statistics transmitted by secondary reporting, or an official page available only in search extracts. Where a primary full page was unavailable, retain with an attribution and a qualification, not as fully re-verified original-source evidence. Preserve each metric’s period and definition.
Open original source ↗Cavendish Maxwell / Gulf News (Sharjah hotels draw 2.1 million guests) qualified
Sharjah 2025: 2.1m hotel guests (+22%); 102 establishments; 10,700 rooms; occupancy 78%; ADR Dh305; revenue Dh780m (+20%); average stay 2 nights; stock mostly mid-tier; three luxury/upscale hotels with 476 keys planned by 2030; Sharjah airport 19.5m passengers (+14%)
Scope: Sharjah, 2025
Date: After Mar 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY/OFFICIAL
Matched the re-fetched Cavendish Maxwell release in Breaking Travel News. Industry advisory figures, not an official all-emirate census. Occupancy described as current should not be silently relabelled an annual average.
Open original source ↗AGBI citing Valustrat (Holiday homes fend off competition from Dubai's hotels) qualified
Dubai holiday homes (Valustrat): 18,000 listings in Aug 2024 (+38% YoY); occupancy 56% (-1 pt); ADR AED 762 (+4%); RevPAR AED 434 (+2%); average stay 5 days (+6%)
Scope: Dubai, Aug 2024
Date: 9 Oct 2024
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
All values match the page. Caveat: only the 18,000 listings figure is explicitly tied to August; the occupancy, ADR, RevPAR and stay figures are given for the same Valustrat report without an explicit month, so 'Aug 2024' for those should read 'latest period reported, Oct 2024 article'.
Open original source ↗Travelling for Business; Royale Stays not re-verified
"More than 22,000 fully licensed" holiday-home apartments and villas; licensed STR growth over 35% YoY (no source named); Royale Stays attributes "over 22,000 licensed holiday homes at end 2024" to DET and "about 50% growth since 2022"
Scope: Dubai, 2024-25
Date: 3 Sep 2025; 21 Oct 2025
Evidence grade: ESTIMATE (secondary, DET figure not verified at source)
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Airbtics (UAE Short-Term Rental Market Review 2025) not re-verified
Airbtics model 2025: Dubai occupancy 73.0%, ADR AED 620, +8,030 listings (+52.6%), about 6.2m booked nights, 75% international guests, top origin US, best type 4+ bedrooms, revenue per listing AED 167,256 (+2.75%); UAE occupancy 66.33%, ADR AED 475, supply +95.46%
Scope: Dubai/UAE, 2025
Date: 22 Jan 2026
Evidence grade: ESTIMATE (scraped-model data)
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times citing Bayut and dubizzle (Dubai's short-term rentals surge) qualified
Bayut/dubizzle H1 2025 daily STR rates: luxury apartments (Downtown, JBR, Marina) Dh516 to 762; mid-tier (JVC, Business Bay, Al Barsha) Dh384 to 472; budget (Bur Dubai, Deira, DSO) Dh206 to 269; Palm villas up to Dh6,960; Palm villas +14.6% YoY
Scope: Dubai, H1 2025
Date: 13 Jul 2025
Evidence grade: PLATFORM (portal listings)
Property-portal asking/listing rates, not realised hotel ADR. Retain district, property type and H1 2025 period.
Open original source ↗Rental Scale-Up (Dubai Short-Term Rental Market 2026) qualified
Dubai STR April 2026 (PriceLabs data): active listings 35,316 (31,265 in Apr 2025); booked nights 183,410 (426,992); occupancy 17% first nine days of April vs 85%; ADR $153 Mar 2026 ($142 Mar 2025), $132 April; RevPAR $132 to $22; 29+ night stays tripled, about one-third of booked nights; median booking window 3 days (6 in 2025); revenue per listing $1,615 Mar 2026 ($2,668)
Scope: Dubai, Mar to Apr 2026
Date: 17 Apr 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY (internal arithmetic inconsistencies noted on page)
Source has inconsistent early-April occupancy/booking-pace comparisons. Keep counts with exact date scope; derive change from those counts rather than copying inconsistent rates.
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times citing First Class Property Management UAE STR Index qualified
Dubai STR Q2 2026: 33,795 active listings (+10.2% YoY); peak 36,500 in Jan 2026; average stay 6 nights (5 a year earlier); Palm Jumeirah ADR AED 682 (highest); Downtown occupancy 59%, Creek Harbour 66%; operator portfolio 87% with about 70% of nights from 29+ night stays; gross yield STR 7.2% vs long-term 5.2% (1BR)
Scope: Dubai, Q2 2026
Date: 29 Jul 2026
Evidence grade: ESTIMATE (operator index)
Operator index, Q2 2026, methodology not fully disclosed. Listing counts and district outcomes are Estimates, not DET licence totals or a like-for-like AirDNA comparison.
Open original source ↗Skift citing AirDNA (For UAE Short-Term Rentals, Occupancy Is Recovering) not re-verified
AirDNA UAE: Q3 2026 occupancy up about 4%; booked nights about 13% behind last year; available listings fell nearly 5% in July 2026; early Q4 ADR +17% YoY; July villa ADR +12.2%, apartment ADR -7%; rise in 28+ day rentals; Homevy 88% occupancy, Q4 rates near AED 1,000, 6.5-day stay; Frank Porter rates 15% above 2025, 8-day stay
Scope: UAE, Q3 2026
Date: 2 Sep 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗TradeArabia citing DCT Abu Dhabi (Abu Dhabi updates holiday home regulations); The National verified
Abu Dhabi holiday homes 2025: 4,771 eligible units (+77%, 2,000+ added); 335,000+ guests (+77%); domestic 82,900 (+114%); international 252,500 (+68%); average daily revenue AED 1,887 (+28%); rules: licence number must appear on listing, max three people per room, whole-unit rental only
Scope: Abu Dhabi, 2025
Date: 17 Sep 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (via press)
All figures and rules are supported across the two cited pages: TradeArabia carries the ADR figure and licence-number rule; The National carries the three-per-room and whole-unit rules. Both are press reports of a DCT Abu Dhabi announcement; cite DCT Abu Dhabi/Abu Dhabi Media Office directly for Official grade if available.
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times (Dubai's branded residences boom) not re-verified
Branded residences H1 2025: 48,474 units across 144 developments; 12 new projects adding 5,500+ units in six months; 140+ projects slated by 2031; premium 40 to 60% (Bugatti up to 160%); sales value +37% YoY; standalone (non-hotel) one-third of completed, 80% of pipeline (GBR)
Scope: Dubai, H1 2025
Date: 4 Nov 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY (via press)
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times citing Knight Frank (Dubai remains world's branded residence capital) qualified
Knight Frank Residence Report 2026-27: Dubai 175 branded schemes (68 live, 107 pipeline) vs Miami 73, London 30; UAE 19% of global pipeline; Abu Dhabi 24 schemes (8th globally); RAK Al Marjan Island 23 (9th); non-hotel brands: Dubai 42%, Abu Dhabi 38%, Al Marjan 52%; Middle East 20% of all live+pipeline, 25% of pipeline
Scope: UAE, 2026
Date: 28 Sep 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Knight Frank scheme counts include completed and pipeline developments: 68+107=175. Pipeline is not operational supply. 175/73=2.40 and 175/30=5.83.
Open original source ↗IMARC Group (UAE Glamping Market) not re-verified
UAE glamping market USD 20.0m (2025), USD 52.1m (2034), CAGR 10.79%
Scope: UAE, 2025
Date: Updated 8 May 2026
Evidence grade: ESTIMATE (market research model)
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Hospitality Technology citing eRevMax (State of Hotel Online Distribution in Middle East) verified
Middle East hotels' booking mix (survey of 108+ hoteliers in UAE, Egypt, Qatar, Oman, Saudi): OTAs about 48%, wholesalers about 23%, online direct about 18%; 64% use a channel manager
Scope: Middle East (not UAE-only), undated
Date: Undated (believed pre-2020; flag as old)
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY (old)
Page opens and supports every figure and the five-country scope. No publication date on the page; keep the 'undated, not UAE-only' limitation.
Open original source ↗SiteMinder (Hotel Booking Trends 2026) not re-verified
SiteMinder 2026 (130m+ bookings, 2025 data): direct revenue share stayed within 1.5 pts of prior year in 95% of markets; hotel website highest value per booking US$516; Agoda rose in 40% of Top 12 lists; Expedia led North America; no Middle East market listed
Scope: Global, 2025
Date: 3 Feb 2026
Evidence grade: PLATFORM (global)
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗D-EDGE (2025 Hotel Direct Distribution Report landing page) not re-verified
D-EDGE: direct distribution cost 3.5% for its clients vs OTA commissions 12 to 28% (Europe and APAC data; no booking-share figures on page)
Scope: Europe/APAC (not UAE)
Date: 24 Feb 2025
Evidence grade: PLATFORM (not UAE)
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Arabian Business reporting DET City Briefing not re-verified
Jan-Oct 2025: 15.7m visitors (+5%), occupancy 79.4% (77% prior year), ADR AED531 (+6%), RevPAR AED421 (+9%), 152,875 rooms in 820 establishments at end-Oct; Hotel Incentive Programme (Oct 2025) reimburses 100% Municipality fee and Tourism Dirham for 2 years for new hotels in Dubai South, Palm Jebel Ali, Dubai Parks, Dubai Islands
Scope: Dubai, Jan-Oct 2025
Date: Dec 2025 (n/d on page)
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Cavendish Maxwell qualified
H1 2025 (STR basis): occupancy above 81% (+4.5%), ADR AED 745 (+5.5%); 157,144 keys across 748 properties; 19 hotels / 5,000+ rooms due by end-2025; ~6,000 rooms 2026-2027 combined; 61% of 2026 pipeline luxury
Scope: Dubai, H1 2025
Date: 2025 (n/d)
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Page opens and all figures match. The page does not state an STR data basis; drop '(STR basis)' unless it is in the full report PDF.
Open original source ↗Cavendish Maxwell qualified
2025 (STR basis): 158,700 rooms, 770 properties; occupancy 81% (+3.8%); ADR AED 746 (+8.7%); Upper Midscale occupancy 84.4%; 3,400 rooms added across 10 hotels in 2025; 4,600 rooms due in 2026 (pre-conflict plan); ~70% of properties upscale or above. Abu Dhabi 2025: city hotels 82.8% occ, resorts 78.6%, ADR +21.3%. RAK 2025: occupancy 75% (+4.6%), ADR AED 618 (+6.6%). Fujairah 2025: occupancy ~75%, ADR AED 433 (+12.8%)
Scope: Dubai, Abu Dhabi, RAK, Fujairah, Jan-Dec 2025
Date: early 2026 (n/d)
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
All figures match the Cavendish Maxwell news page. The page does not name STR as the data basis, so '(STR basis)' should be removed unless the full report states it. Page is undated but references week three of the conflict (approx. March 2026).
Open original source ↗Government of Dubai Media Office qualified
UAE 2025: 32m+ hotel guests (+5.1%), hotel revenue AED 49.21bn (+9.7%), occupancy 79.5%, 1,240+ establishments, 217,000 rooms, 100m hotel nights
Scope: UAE, 2025
Date: 25 May 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
May 2026 WAM official release re-fetched. It reports >32m guests, +5.1%, AED49.21bn revenue, +9.7%, 79.5% occupancy, 217,000 rooms and >1,240 establishments. Earlier April release differs slightly (32.34m, +5.2%, 79.3%); do not merge. The May text does not support the original 100m hotel-night assertion, which is excluded.
Open original source ↗SCTDA press release verified
Sharjah 2024: ~1.6m hotel guests (+11%); Russia 270,000+ (+18%), India 170,000+ (+6%), Europe 100,000+ (+16%), China 60,000+ (+828%); Oman 6%, Saudi 5%, Egypt 4%
Scope: Sharjah, 2024
Date: 30 Apr 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
Primary SCTDA release re-fetched; 2024 hotel guest counts and market figures retained with publisher rounding.
Open original source ↗Gulf Business interview with RAKTDA CEO Raki Phillips qualified
RAK 2024: 1.28m international visitors (record); RAK airport 670,000 passengers 2024, target 2m by end of decade; 2030 target 3.5m overnight tourists, hotel capacity more than doubled; Marjan Island 8,000 keys, to more than double by 2030; Wynn 1,500 keys; MICE +40% YoY; top markets UK, India, Germany, Kazakhstan, Czech Republic, CIS
Scope: RAK, 2024 and 2030 target
Date: 27 May 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
RAK 1.28m is total overnight visitors, including domestic, not exclusively international. The 8,000-room discussion refers to emirate inventory rather than establishing 8,000 on Marjan Island.
Open original source ↗AGBI citing RAKTDA, STR, WTTC qualified
RAK H1 2026: hotel occupancy down 19 points YoY, low-30s to mid-40s% from March to June; European guests down nearly 90% Feb-Apr; airport arrivals down more than two-thirds Jan-Mar; length of stay down nearly a third; RAK airport passed 1m passengers in 2025 (+51%), pre-war target 1.5m by 2027; 91% of pipeline five-star or ultra-luxury; RAK 1.35m overnight visitors 2025, AED 39bn FDI
Scope: RAK, H1 2026
Date: Aug 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
RAKTDA H1 2026 primary infographic supplies comparable 2025/2026 totals and shows that arrivals growth did not imply revenue growth.
Open original source ↗TradeArabia / TTN citing Fujairah Department of Tourism and Antiquities not re-verified
Fujairah hotels at record 95% to 100% occupancy at start of 2026 (dates not specified)
Scope: Fujairah, early 2026
Date: 20 Apr 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Knight Frank UAE Hospitality Market Review 2025 (PDF) qualified
Occupancy Aug YTD 2024 vs 2025 (chart order inferred): UAE 75.5% / 78.5%; Dubai 75.9% / 79.1%; Abu Dhabi 77.1% / 79.6%; RAK 69.3% / 71.6%; Sharjah 74.5% / 77.0%; Fujairah 71.6% / 71.3%; Ajman 81.8% / 86.1%
Scope: UAE emirates, Jan-Aug 2025 vs 2024
Date: Oct 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY (mapping by chart order)
PDF opens. UAE 78.5% (4% y/y growth) and Dubai 79.1% (Jan to Aug 2025) are stated in the text. The other five emirates' values exist as chart data but are not labelled in the extractable text; the mapping to emirates relies on chart order, as the original 'chart order inferred' flag already said. Keep with that stated limitation or verify visually against the chart.
Open original source ↗Knight Frank 2025 PDF not re-verified
Hotel keys by emirate (likely existing plus upcoming to 2030): Dubai 165,339; Abu Dhabi 37,016; Sharjah 14,478; RAK 11,902; Fujairah 5,057; Ajman 2,450; UAQ 592. UAE existing 213,928 rooms, upcoming 23,008, 235,674 by 2030 (components do not reconcile exactly); 212,291 rooms trading Aug 2025
Scope: UAE by emirate, Aug 2025 and 2030
Date: Oct 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Emirates 24 not re-verified
Dubai Jan-Aug 2026 hotel revenue above Dh6bn; ADR Dh470; mid-range hotel apartments 73% occupancy (highest category)
Scope: Dubai, Jan-Aug 2026
Date: https://www.emirates247.com/business/dubai-hotel-revenues-hit-dh6-billion-in-eight-months-as-697-million-visitors-arrive-in-2026/6251
Evidence grade: 2 Oct 2026
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Source locator as recorded: 7 citing DETGulf News citing Cavendish Maxwell (STR and Data.Dubai) not re-verified
Dubai H1 2026: occupancy 56.4%; ADR Dh701 (-7%); pipeline ~39 hotels / ~9,520 rooms 2026-2029, ~3,150 rooms by end-2026; Emirates ~85% of pre-conflict capacity
Scope: Dubai, H1 2026
Date: 18 Aug 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗The National citing JLL qualified
JLL H1 2026: Abu Dhabi occ 66.8%, ADR Dh668.30 (-4.3%), RevPAR Dh446.60 (down >20%); Dubai occ 56.4%, ADR Dh701.10 (-7%), RevPAR Dh395.70 (down >35%); RAK occ 49.6%, ADR Dh705.60 (+5.2%), RevPAR Dh347.70 (-28.6%); UAE occ 58%, ADR Dh680.60, RevPAR Dh394.20 (down ~one third). June 2026: Dubai occ 51.6%, ADR Dh375.60 (-17.1%), RevPAR Dh193.90 (-39%); Abu Dhabi occ 65.2%, ADR Dh486.80, RevPAR Dh317.60 (-12.1%); UAE occ ~53%, ADR Dh396.90, RevPAR Dh209.40
Scope: UAE, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, RAK; H1 and June 2026
Date: 11 Aug 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Dubai and Abu Dhabi values are advisory/CoStar samples, separate from DET inventory. RAK occupancy corrected to official 49.3%, not 49.6%. Difference in occupancy is measured in percentage points.
Open original source ↗Skift citing CBRE report using CoStar qualified
CBRE/CoStar H1 2026: UAE occupancy down nearly 28pp, RevPAR -31.8%; Dubai occupancy 56.4% from 81% (-24.6pp), RevPAR -35.2%; Abu Dhabi 66.8% from 80.3% (-13.5pp), RevPAR -20.3%; RAK 49.3% from 72.6% (-23.3pp), ADR +5.2%; Dubai March 2026 occupancy 33.1%; Premier Inn July 2026: Abu Dhabi 91% occ (revenue +2%), Dubai 73% (revenue -19%); recovery unlikely before early 2027; forecast UAE inbound arrivals -48% (forecaster not named)
Scope: UAE emirates, H1 2026
Date: 11 Aug 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Dubai and Abu Dhabi values are advisory/CoStar samples, separate from DET inventory. RAK occupancy corrected to official 49.3%, not 49.6%. Difference in occupancy is measured in percentage points.
Open original source ↗The National qualified
JLL: RevPAR -31% YTD to June 2026; no hotel launches in Dubai or Abu Dhabi in H1 2026; Dubai Aug occupancy 66%, March 36%; Arthur D Little: "The UAE is moving from resilience to recovery"; Story Hospitality CEO: not yet in line with 2025, fewer European and more Asian guests
Scope: UAE, H1 and Aug-Sep 2026
Date: 14 Sep 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Industry interpretation and observed series have separate roles. No-new-openings statement is a particular consultancy sample, not proof of no property opening in the emirates.
Open original source ↗Dubai Chronicle (secondary) not re-verified
Emaar hotel occupancy ~60% (Alabbar to Reuters, 21 Sep 2026); prime areas (Downtown, DIFC, Palm Jumeirah) above 80% (unattributed); DXB ~50 carriers, 217 destinations, 99 countries (unattributed); Dubai population +161,000 Jan-Jul 2026 to 4.74m
Scope: Dubai, Sep 2026
Date: 23 Sep 2026
Evidence grade: ESTIMATE (secondary blog; Emaar figure attributed to Reuters)
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Abu Dhabi Media Office (DCT) verified
Abu Dhabi Tourism Strategy 2030: visitors from ~24m (2023) to 39.3m by 2030 (7% CAGR); international overnight visitors 3.8m (2023) to 7.2m (2030); 178,000 new jobs; tourism GDP AED 49bn (2023) to AED 90bn (2030); hotel keys 34,000 (2023) to 52,000 (2030); cultural sites 8.7m+ visitors 2023
Scope: Abu Dhabi, 2023 baseline and 2030 target
Date: 2024 (n/d)
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
Primary publisher re-fetched; retain exact metric, geography and historical/target period. Targets are not observed results.
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times citing Knight Frank (STR data) not re-verified
Knight Frank 2024 review: 26,832 new rooms by 2030 (UAE), total 238,412; Dubai 17,750 new (two-thirds), 169,165 keys by 2030; Abu Dhabi 37,148 keys; RAK 8,764; Palm Jebel Ali and Dubai Islands plans for 160 hotels; Accor and Marriott 5,400 pipeline keys; Dubai existing 151,420 keys incl. ~52,995 luxury; Dubai Accor 17,380 rooms, Marriott 16,620; Accor+Marriott 46,000+ UAE keys; Dubai brands 67% international, 24% local (82% / 10% by 2030); Jan-Jul 2024 UAE occ 76%, ADR USD 172, RevPAR USD 131; DXB 86.9m passengers 2023
Scope: UAE and Dubai, 2024 and 2030
Date: 1 Oct 2024
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Knight Frank newsroom and PDF qualified
Knight Frank 2025: UAE supply by operator class, existing: international brand 51%, local brand 12%, unbranded 37%; upcoming: international 57%, local 6%, unbranded 37% (chart order inferred); UAE 235,674 rooms in 1,184 hotels by 2030; Dubai pipeline 12,861 rooms (47% luxury, 21% upper upscale, 24% upscale), 55.9% of UAE upcoming supply; 43% of UAE upcoming supply luxury; UAE Aug YTD 2025 RevPAR and ADR +11.9%, occupancy 78.5%; Abu Dhabi RevPAR +24%, ADR +20.2%; Dubai RevPAR +10.1%; RAK RevPAR +10%; Dubai Jan-Jul 2025 11.17m visitors (+5.2%), 25.53m room nights; DXB 92.3m passengers (2024)
Scope: UAE, Aug 2025 and 2030
Date: 20 Oct 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Knight Frank forecasts and stock classifications were checked in publisher narrative. Inferred chart-order brand shares were not verified against the chart and are excluded.
Open original source ↗Lodging Econometrics qualified
Middle East construction pipeline Q2 2026: 724 projects / 178,003 rooms (+11% / +10% YoY); under construction 330 / 82,353; Saudi Arabia 387 / 105,648; Egypt 167 / 35,185; UAE 103 / 24,985 (+3% projects); Oman 27 / 4,624; Dubai 60 / 13,828; Riyadh 106 / 21,666; Jeddah 62 / 14,435; Makkah 34 / 21,689; openings 2026 83 hotels / 15,149 rooms; 2027 91 / 22,875; 2028 102 / 24,284
Scope: Middle East by country and city, Q2 2026
Date: 13 Aug 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Lodging Econometrics construction pipeline, not completed operational hotel stock. Stages sum: 330+173+221=724 projects and 82,353+52,678+42,972=178,003 rooms.
Open original source ↗EnterpriseAM citing Fitch Ratings not re-verified
Fitch: Wynn Al Marjan budget raised to USD 5.7bn from USD 5.2bn; opening moved from 1Q 2027 to September 2027 (shipping and supply-chain disruption); gaming taxes and tourism fees now not expected until 2028; RAK real GDP 6% (2025), 1.5% (2026F), 5% (2027F), 4.5% (2028F); pre-conflict 2026-27 average expected 7.5%; Fitch assumes Strait of Hormuz restrictions ease in 1H 2027; S&P forecasts RAK 1.8% growth 2026
Scope: RAK, Oct 2026
Date: 5 Oct 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗AGBI not re-verified
Palm Jebel Ali: 13.4 sq km, 16 fronds, 91 km beachfront; 80 hotels planned (no operators named); ~2,000 villas; completion target 2028; DLD inspections point to Oct 2027 to Oct 2028
Scope: Dubai, Jan 2026
Date: 12 Jan 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Government of Dubai Media Office qualified
Dubai fee relief: from 1 Apr 2026 for three months hotels, hotel apartments and holiday homes may postpone 100% of sales fees on room and F&B revenue and the Tourism Dirham; part of AED 1bn economic incentive package
Scope: Dubai, Apr 2026
Date: 2 Apr 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
Temporary fee deferral and later fee-waiver reporting have different dates and instruments. Current application and expiry not established; remove precise current fee treatment and blanket exemption claims.
Open original source ↗TTG Asia not re-verified
Accor: 350 hotels across Middle East, Africa and Turkey; 290+ properties in Middle East; 45 hotels in Saudi Arabia (to double in five years); Dubai pipeline 9 hotels; Deira Waterfront 6 hotels / 999 keys (ICD, Valor Hospitality)
Scope: MEA / UAE, Apr 2025
Date: 30 Apr 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing company
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Breaking Travel News qualified
Rotana UAE openings announced May 2025: Reem Island Arjaan (280 keys), Bloom Arjaan Saadiyat (217), Mangrove Rotana RAK (240); Saudi target 20 hotels by 2027
Scope: UAE / Saudi, 2025
Date: 1 May 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing company
Dated source retrieved and core result matched. Retain with explicit publisher attribution, period and metric; a secondary report does not constitute independent verification of an underlying unpublished dataset. Forecasts and target figures remain labelled.
Open original source ↗Dubai Media Office, data DET verified
Hotel occupancy 80.7%, up from 78.2% in 2024; ADR AED 579, up 8% from AED 538
Scope: Dubai, full year 2025
Date: 9 Feb 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
Core 2025 DET figures checked against the original official release carried by WAM. The DET website itself returned a page shell. International overnight visitors, available rooms, occupancy, ADR, RevPAR and occupied room nights are distinct measures; rounded growth rates are publisher values.
Source locator as recorded: same as #1Dubai Media Office, data DET verified
154,264 hotel rooms across 827 establishments
Scope: Dubai, end December 2025
Date: 9 Feb 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
Core 2025 DET figures checked against the original official release carried by WAM. The DET website itself returned a page shell. International overnight visitors, available rooms, occupancy, ADR, RevPAR and occupied room nights are distinct measures; rounded growth rates are publisher values.
Source locator as recorded: same as #1The National, data Dubai Media Office qualified
Hotel occupancy 66% in August 2026; city average 36% in March 2026, with some hotels in single digits
Scope: Dubai, Aug 2026 and Mar 2026
Date: 13 Sep 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL via press
Official DET figures via re-fetched secondary reports, with original-page fetch unsuccessful. Qualify provenance while retaining period and definitions. Do not combine monthly occupancy with year-to-date visitors.
Source locator as recorded: same as #5Skift, data CoStar qualified
UAE hotel occupancy 67.6% in September 2026, down 12.3 percentage points year on year
Scope: UAE, Sep 2026
Date: 23 Oct 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Industry reporting checked. Operator-specific outcomes and forward bookings are not market-wide realised results. Keep the October 2026 observation date and distinguish outlook from actual performance.
Source locator as recorded: same as #10Skift, data Cavendish Maxwell qualified
Luxury and upper-upscale hotels had the steepest occupancy declines; midscale held up better on domestic, regional and corporate demand
Scope: UAE, 2026
Date: 23 Oct 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Industry reporting checked. Operator-specific outcomes and forward bookings are not market-wide realised results. Keep the October 2026 observation date and distinguish outlook from actual performance.
Source locator as recorded: same as #10Skift, quoting Saurabh Tiwari, VP Middle East, IHCL qualified
IHCL cut rates by up to 40% at the peak of the crisis; India its most reliable source market; targets short-haul markets India, China, Russia, five to six flight hours away; long-haul recovery "wishful thinking" while jet fuel costs are high
Scope: UAE, 2026
Date: 23 Oct 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Industry reporting checked. Operator-specific outcomes and forward bookings are not market-wide realised results. Keep the October 2026 observation date and distinguish outlook from actual performance.
Source locator as recorded: same as #10Skift, quoting Majestic Hotels qualified
Majestic Hotels expects Q4 2026 rates 15 to 20% below last year; long stays are 25 to 30% of its business
Scope: Dubai, Q4 2026 outlook
Date: 23 Oct 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Industry reporting checked. Operator-specific outcomes and forward bookings are not market-wide realised results. Keep the October 2026 observation date and distinguish outlook from actual performance.
Source locator as recorded: same as #10Skift, data AirDNA qualified
AirDNA booked nights for Dubai short-term rentals: November 2026 down 36% year on year, December down 8%, January 2027 down 6%
Scope: Dubai short-term rentals, forward bookings
Date: 23 Oct 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Industry reporting checked. Operator-specific outcomes and forward bookings are not market-wide realised results. Keep the October 2026 observation date and distinguish outlook from actual performance.
Source locator as recorded: same as #10IndexBox (UAE Hospitality Report H1 2026), data JLL qualified
Dubai H1 2026: occupancy 56.4%, ADR AED 701.10 (down 7%), RevPAR AED 395.70 (down more than 35%); June 2026: occupancy 51.6%, ADR AED 375.60 (down 17.1%), RevPAR AED 193.90 (down nearly 39%); supply about 159,300 keys with about 4,900 due to open
Scope: Dubai, H1 and June 2026
Date: 11 Aug 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Dubai and Abu Dhabi values are advisory/CoStar samples, separate from DET inventory. RAK occupancy corrected to official 49.3%, not 49.6%. Difference in occupancy is measured in percentage points.
Open original source ↗IndexBox, data JLL not re-verified
Abu Dhabi H1 2026: occupancy 66.8%, ADR AED 668.30 (down 4.3%), RevPAR AED 446.60 (down more than 20%); June: occupancy 65.2%, ADR AED 486.80 (down 2.1%), RevPAR AED 317.60 (down 12.1%); supply 33,650 keys, flat, about 120 more due by end 2026
Scope: Abu Dhabi, H1 and June 2026
Date: 11 Aug 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Source locator as recorded: same as #17RAKTDA press release verified
Ras Al Khaimah 2025: 1.35 million overnight visitors (up 6%); tourism revenue up 12%; MICE and weddings revenue up 25%; arrivals growth domestic +7%, Russia +20%, India +14%, China +19%, UK +10%, Romania +41%, Poland +22%, Uzbekistan +19%, Belarus +26%; targets 3.5 million visitors and double hotel keys by 2030; Wynn Al Marjan Island 1,530 rooms, Marjan Beach masterplan 12,000 keys
Scope: RAK, 2025
Date: 19 Jan 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
RAKTDA 2025 source confirms 1.35m overnight visitors and reported growth rates. MICE and weddings revenue growth is combined; it is not a count of weddings alone.
Open original source ↗Foundry CRO (Travel and Hospitality Marketing Benchmarks 2026) qualified
Google Ads travel conversion rate 5.8% (PPC Chief); hotel Google Ads conversion 3.55% (Prostay); chain hotel website conversion 1.9%, boutique 0.73 to 2.25%, optimised chain up to 4.72% (Dialed Labs); Google Hotel Ads CPC USD 0.50 to 3.00; Google Search travel CTR 8.24%; Meta carousel CTR 0.49%; YouTube travel CPM USD 4.70 and CTR 0.78%; travel traffic 70.5% mobile and 60% of hotel reservations on mobile (Statista); revenue per direct booking 60% higher than OTA and 18% of OTA starters book direct (ZuZu); OTAs 63.4% of independent hotel bookings (Heads on Pillows); Booking.com commission 10 to 25%, Expedia 15 to 30%, Google Hotel Ads CPA 8 to 14% of booking value (The Percentage); Meta travel ROAS 12.9x vs 2.79x platform average (Triple Whale)
Scope: Global and US compilations
Date: 2026
Evidence grade: ESTIMATE (compilation)
Vendor or compiled benchmark with limited or heterogeneous methodology. Retain as Estimate with the stated geography, period, platform and objective. Separately aggregated CPC, CTR, CVR, CPM and CPA are not a coherent synthetic campaign; do not combine them to forecast spend, bookings or ROAS.
Open original source ↗RAKTDA (H1 2026 infographic), data STR verified
Ras Al Khaimah H1 2025 vs H1 2026 (STR data): visitor arrivals 654K vs 670K (+2.7% as stated); guest nights 2.27 million vs 1.61 million (-29.0%); occupancy 72.6% vs 49.3%; ADR AED 670.7 vs AED 705.6 (+5.2%); room revenue AED 506.3 million vs AED 384.9 million (-23.9%); total revenue AED 822.0 million vs AED 606.5 million (-26.2%); RevPAR AED 487.0 vs AED 347.7 (-28.6%); average length of stay 3.47 vs 2.40 days (-30.8%)
Scope: Ras Al Khaimah, H1 2025 and H1 2026
Date: Aug 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
Gulf News (Fujairah population reaches 328,495, GDP rises to Dh32.6 billion), data Fujairah Statistics Centre 29th annual statistical report verified
Fujairah 2025: 34 hotels, more than 5,000 rooms, nearly 802,000 guests across hotels and hotel apartments
Scope: Fujairah, 2025
Date: 12 May 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL via press
TradeArabia (Fujairah hotels start 2026 strong), data Fujairah Department of Tourism and Antiquities verified
Fujairah hotels recorded occupancy of 95% to 100% at the start of 2026, described as record levels
Scope: Fujairah, early 2026
Date: 20 Apr 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL via press
Gulf News (UAE hotel revenue hits Dh49.2 billion in 2025, guest numbers reach 32.3 million), data Ministry of Economy verified
UAE 2025 (Ministry of Economy, Emirates Tourism Council, 15 Apr 2026): hotel guests 32.34 million, a record, up 5.2% from 30.75 million; guest nights 110.62 million (+5.9%); hotel revenue AED 49.21 billion (+9.7%); occupancy 79.3%; 217,000 rooms at end 2025
Scope: UAE, 2025
Date: 15 Apr 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL via press
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