In this chapter
Chapter 02
This chapter sets out how large the UAE hotel market is, how Dubai's visitor numbers and hotel performance changed from 2015 to the record year of 2025, and how each emirate performed before the 2026 disruption. The UAE received more than 32 million hotel guests in 2025 and hotels earned AED 49.21bn at approximately 79% occupancy; the Ministry of Economy's April 2026 release gives 32.34 million guests and 79.3%, and the May 2026 release gives more than 32 million and 79.5% (Ministry of Economy, via Gulf News; Government of Dubai Media Office). Dubai alone recorded 19.59 million international overnight visitors, 80.7% occupancy and an ADR of AED 579 across 154,264 rooms (DET, via Dubai Media Office, 2025).
In brief
- UAE hotels hosted a record number of guests in 2025 and produced AED 49.21bn of revenue (+9.7%) across 217,000 rooms. Two official releases differ slightly and are not merged: the Ministry of Economy release of 15 April 2026 gives 32.34m guests (+5.2%), 110.62m guest nights and 79.3% occupancy; the release of 25 May 2026 gives more than 32m guests (+5.1%), 79.5% occupancy and 1,240+ establishments (Ministry of Economy, via Gulf News, 2025; Government of Dubai Media Office, 2025).
- Travel and tourism contributed AED 257.3bn to UAE GDP in 2024, with AED 267.5bn forecast for 2025 (almost 13% of GDP) and 898,600 jobs in 2024 (WTTC press release).
- Dubai's international overnight visitors grew from 15.79m in 2017 to 16.73m in 2019, fell to 5.51m in 2020 and then set records of 17.15m (2023), 18.72m (2024) and 19.59m (2025) (DET press release "2017 tourism performance"; Gulf News citing Dubai Tourism).
- Dubai room supply rose from 126,120 at end-2019 to 154,264 at end-2025, while occupancy moved from 75% to 80.7% and the DET all-inventory ADR from AED 415 to AED 579.
- Two Dubai ADR series exist: DET covers all establishments (AED 538 in 2024), while the advisory samples published by Cavendish Maxwell and Deloitte show AED 690 for 2024 and AED 746 for 2025 because they give greater weight to branded upper-tier hotels.
- Abu Dhabi recorded 26.6m total visitors, 5.9m hotel guests, 81% occupancy and AED 9.1bn of hotel revenue (+19.5%) in 2025 (TTN Worldwide citing DCT Abu Dhabi); Cavendish Maxwell reports 2.1m Sharjah hotel guests, ADR AED 305 and occupancy of 78% described as current; Ras Al Khaimah 1.35m overnight visitors and, in Cavendish Maxwell's sample, 75% occupancy.
- Fujairah had 34 hotels, more than 5,000 rooms and nearly 802,000 guests across hotels and hotel apartments in 2025. Ajman and Umm Al Quwain publish growth rates but not absolute guest, room or revenue totals; Knight Frank's Jan to Aug 2025 occupancy chart (Ajman 86.1%, Fujairah 71.3%, read from chart order) is the only cross-emirate benchmark found.
- The 40 million hotel guest target for 2031 belongs to the UAE Tourism Strategy 2031, not to Dubai; Abu Dhabi targets 39.3m visitors and 52,000 keys by 2030 and RAK 3.5m overnight visitors (UAE Cabinet, 2031; Abu Dhabi Media Office, 2023).
- Knight Frank's October 2025 forecast put UAE supply at 235,674 rooms in 1,184 hotels by 2030, with Dubai's 12,861-room pipeline making up 55.9% of upcoming UAE supply; these are dated forecasts, not completed stock.
- DXB handled 95.2m passengers in 2025 (+3.1%), Emirates carried 55.6m, flydubai 15.7m, Air Arabia Group 21.8m and Etihad passed 20m in twelve months.
UAE-wide totals
Two official full-year releases give slightly different figures. Both are presented separately. The Ministry of Economy and Emirates Tourism Council release of 15 April 2026 put UAE hotel guests at a record 32.34 million in 2025, up 5.2% from 30.75 million, with 110.62 million guest nights (+5.9%), hotel revenue of AED 49.21bn (+9.7%), occupancy of 79.3% and 217,000 rooms at end-2025 (Ministry of Economy, via Gulf News). The release of 25 May 2026, carried by the Dubai Media Office, put guests at more than 32 million, up 5.1%, with the same AED 49.21bn of revenue (+9.7%), occupancy of 79.5% and 217,000 rooms in more than 1,240 establishments (Government of Dubai Media Office, 2025). Narrative in this book uses "approximately 79%" for 2025 UAE occupancy. The nine-month release that preceded it gives the only UAE-wide ADR found in the sources reviewed: for January to September 2025 the UAE recorded 23.27m hotel guests (+4.9%), 79.3m hotel nights, revenue of AED 35.9bn (+7.2%), occupancy of 79.2%, 46.17m occupied rooms (+3.5%) and an ADR of AED 557 (+4.2%) across 216,248 rooms in 1,246 establishments (Khaleej Times / WAM, Jan-Sep 2025).
On the economic contribution, the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) estimated UAE travel and tourism GDP at AED 257.3bn in 2024, forecast AED 267.5bn for 2025 (almost 13% of GDP), counted 898,600 jobs in 2024 rising to more than 925,000 in 2025, and put international visitor spend at AED 217.3bn (2024) and AED 228.5bn (2025 forecast, 37% above 2019), with domestic spend of AED 57.6bn (2024) and AED 60bn (2025). Its 2035 projection is AED 287.8bn, or 10.4% of GDP, with more than one million jobs (WTTC press release, 2024). The 2023 baseline from the same data was AED 219bn (USD 59.8bn), 11.7% of GDP and 809,000 jobs, one in nine in the country (Khaleej Times citing Knight Frank report). The UAE Ministry release of December 2025 restated the AED 257.3bn figure as "about 13% of the economy" without naming a year; the value matches WTTC's 2024 estimate (Khaleej Times / WAM, Jan-Sep 2025).
WTTC's figures are modelled estimates of the sector's broader economic footprint, not hotel revenue, and the 2024 estimates are kept separate from the 2025 and 2035 forecasts. WTTC's August 2026 Middle East report described the UAE sector as 11.9% of GDP and 13.6% of employment, with international visitor spending of nearly USD 57bn, on a different year basis from the May 2025 release. A lower 2024 GDP contribution printed in a March 2025 press report on Dubai supply conflicts with the WTTC series and is not used in this edition (Gulf News). For Dubai specifically, WTTC put tourism's contribution to the city economy at USD 29.4bn in 2022 (Government of Dubai Media Office, Q1 2023).
| Measure | Value | Geography, period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hotel guests (15 Apr 2026 release) | 32.34m (+5.2%) | UAE, 2025 | Gulf News (UAE hotel revenue hits Dh49.2 billion in 2025, guest numbers reach 32.3 million), data Ministry of EconomyOfficial via press |
| Hotel guests (25 May 2026 release) | 32m+ (+5.1%) | UAE, 2025 | Government of Dubai Media OfficeOfficial |
| Hotel revenue | AED 49.21bn (+9.7%) | UAE, 2025 | Gulf News (UAE hotel revenue hits Dh49.2 billion in 2025, guest numbers reach 32.3 million), data Ministry of Economy; Government of Dubai Media OfficeOfficial |
| Occupancy (15 Apr 2026 release) | 79.3% | UAE, 2025 | Gulf News (UAE hotel revenue hits Dh49.2 billion in 2025, guest numbers reach 32.3 million), data Ministry of EconomyOfficial via press |
| Occupancy (25 May 2026 release) | 79.5% | UAE, 2025 | Government of Dubai Media OfficeOfficial |
| Guest nights | 110.62m (+5.9%) | UAE, 2025 | Gulf News (UAE hotel revenue hits Dh49.2 billion in 2025, guest numbers reach 32.3 million), data Ministry of EconomyOfficial via press |
| Rooms / establishments | 217,000 / 1,240+ | UAE, end-2025 | Gulf News (UAE hotel revenue hits Dh49.2 billion in 2025, guest numbers reach 32.3 million), data Ministry of Economy; Government of Dubai Media OfficeOfficial |
| Hotel guests | 23.27m (+4.9%) | UAE, Jan to Sep 2025 | Khaleej Times / WAM (Ministry of Economy and Tourism)Official |
| Hotel revenue | AED 35.9bn (+7.2%) | UAE, Jan to Sep 2025 | Khaleej Times / WAM (Ministry of Economy and Tourism)Official |
| ADR | AED 557 (+4.2%) | UAE, Jan to Sep 2025 | Khaleej Times / WAM (Ministry of Economy and Tourism)Official |
| Occupancy (STR sample) | 78.5% (+4 pts); ADR and RevPAR +11.9% | UAE, Jan to Aug 2025 | Knight Frank newsroom and PDFIndustry |
| Occupancy, ADR, RevPAR (STR sample) | 76%, USD 172, USD 131 | UAE, Jan to Jul 2024 | Khaleej Times citing Knight Frank (STR data)Industry |
| Travel and tourism GDP | AED 257.3bn (2024); AED 267.5bn (2025F) | UAE | WTTC press releaseIndustry |
| Travel and tourism jobs | 898,600 (2024); 925,000+ (2025F) | UAE | WTTC press releaseIndustry |
| International visitor spend | AED 217.3bn (2024); AED 228.5bn (2025F) | UAE | WTTC press releaseIndustry |
For a UAE hotel marketer the practical point is scale: a 217,000-room market running at approximately 79% occupancy and earning AED 49.21bn a year is the pool every campaign competes in (Ministry of Economy, via Gulf News, 2025; Government of Dubai Media Office, 2025). On WTTC's 2024 estimates, domestic spending of AED 57.6bn was about one fifth (21%) of combined domestic and international visitor spending of AED 274.9bn (AED 57.6bn plus AED 217.3bn), or 26.5% of international spending taken alone; the share depends on the denominator chosen.
The Dubai series, 2015 to 2025
Dubai is the only emirate with a published annual series long enough to show a full cycle. The Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) reported 15.79 million international overnight visitors in 2017, up 6.2%, and 16.73 million in 2019, up 5.1%, with India close to 2 million and the UK 1.2 million (DET press release "2017 tourism performance"; Gulf News citing Dubai Tourism). The pandemic cut arrivals to 5.51 million in 2020 and 7.28 million in 2021 (Wikipedia "Tourism in Dubai" table, 2015 to 2020; DET press release, 2022). Recovery was fast: 14.36 million in 2022 (+97%), a record 17.15 million in 2023 (+19.4%), 18.72 million in 2024 (+9%) and 19.59 million in 2025 (+5%) (DET press release; Breaking Travel News citing DET). A compiled Wikipedia table also lists values for 2015, 2016 and 2018, but it carries no source for those years; they are graded and are left out of the chart below, which shows only the years with a DET or press-reported DET figure. The 2020 value is the one entry in that table with a named source (Reuters) and is shown with an Estimate grade. December 2025 was the first month in which Dubai received more than 2 million international visitors (Khaleej Times citing DET).
Dubai's international overnight visitors reached 19.59m in 2025, up from 16.73m in 2019
International overnight visitors, millions, Dubai, calendar years 2017 to 2025. 2018 is left empty because no DET-attributed figure was captured; 2020 is a compiled-table value citing Reuters, graded Estimate; all other years are DET figures.
View accessible chart data
| Measure | International overnight visitors (m) |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 15.79 |
| 2018 | Not published |
| 2019 | 16.73 |
| 2020 | 5.51 |
| 2021 | 7.28 |
| 2022 | 14.36 |
| 2023 | 17.15 |
| 2024 | 18.72 |
| 2025 | 19.59 |
Two targets framed this growth. The National reported that Dubai's long-standing goal of 20 million visitors a year was widely expected to be reached in 2026 before the conflict, and a government forecast quoted by Knight Frank had put 2025 at 22 million, which was not met against the actual 19.59 million. A separate city-ranking count gave Dubai 18.2 million tourists for 2024, which differs from DET's 18.72 million because the two use different definitions (Knight Frank via Hospitality Net; Romania Insider citing DET).
Room supply
Hotel room stock grew through every year for which a DET-attributed figure exists, including the pandemic years. DET-attributed values give 126,120 rooms and 741 establishments for 2019, 137,950 rooms and 755 establishments for 2021, 146,496 rooms and 804 establishments at end-2022, 150,291 rooms and 821 establishments for 2023, 154,016 rooms and 832 establishments for 2024, and 154,264 rooms across 827 establishments at end-December 2025. A compiled Wikipedia table also lists room counts and occupancy for 2015 to 2018 and 2020; its 2019 and 2021 values match DET figures, but the table carries no source, is graded, and its uncorroborated years are not used in the charts or tables of this chapter. Note that a Dubai Media Office release of May 2023 described the 2019 stock as 118,039 rooms in 717 establishments, which conflicts with the 126,120 and 741 figures reported by Gulf News from DET for the same year; both are recorded (Government of Dubai Media Office, Q1 2023; Gulf News citing DET, 2021).
Dubai hotel rooms rose from 126,120 at end-2019 to 154,264 at end-2025
Hotel rooms at year-end, Dubai, 2019 and 2021 to 2025, DET figures as reported. 2020 is left empty because no DET-attributed count was captured.
View accessible chart data
| Measure | Rooms at year-end |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 126120 |
| 2020 | Not published |
| 2021 | 137950 |
| 2022 | 146496 |
| 2023 | 150291 |
| 2024 | 154016 |
| 2025 | 154264 |
The counts published by advisory firms are higher than DET's and differ from each other. Cavendish Maxwell reported 157,144 keys across 748 properties in H1 2025 and 158,700 rooms in 770 properties for full-year 2025, with 3,400 rooms added across 10 hotels, while JLL's H1 2026 report described Dubai supply as about 159,300 keys with about 4,900 due to open. Yet the same Cavendish Maxwell series elsewhere gave about 152,300 rooms in 818 hotels for January to August 2025 and about 152,000 rooms in about 730 properties for H1 2025, and the firm counted 727 hotels and about 152,139 rooms at H1 2026. These counts conflict with each other and with DET's 154,264; the chapter uses the DET figure as the reference for Dubai and flags the others where they appear. The breakdown of this stock by class and star rating is covered in Chapter 6; in short, Cavendish Maxwell puts Upscale, Upper Upscale and Luxury rooms at 67.4% of Dubai's stock in H1 2025.
Occupancy
Occupancy on the DET all-inventory basis was 75% in 2019 and 67% in 2021; the compiled table's 54% for 2020 and its 2015 to 2018 values are uncorroborated figures and are not charted (Gulf News citing DET; Wikipedia "Tourism in Dubai", end 2015 to 2021). Occupancy then rose to 73% in 2022, 77.4% in 2023, 78% in 2024 and 80.7% in 2025, the highest in the series (Gulf News citing DET; Breaking Travel News citing DET). The Dubai Media Office stated 2024 occupancy as 78.2% when reporting the 2025 result, against the 78% reported by AGBI from DET a year earlier; the difference is rounding. The 2019 occupancy of 75% on 126,120 rooms and the 2025 occupancy of 80.7% on 154,264 rooms mean that Dubai absorbed 28,144 more rooms over six years while occupancy rose by 5.7 points, which is the clearest single indicator of demand growth outpacing supply (Gulf News citing DET, 2021; DET, via Dubai Media Office).
Dubai occupancy climbed from 67% in 2021 to a series high of 80.7% in 2025
Hotel occupancy, %, Dubai, all establishments (DET basis), 2019 and 2021 to 2025. 2020 is left empty because no DET-attributed value was captured.
View accessible chart data
| Measure | Occupancy % |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 75 |
| 2020 | Not published |
| 2021 | 67 |
| 2022 | 73 |
| 2023 | 77.4 |
| 2024 | 78 |
| 2025 | 80.7 |
In the advisory samples, occupancy was 78% in 2024 according to Cavendish Maxwell and Deloitte, 81.4% in H1 2025 (up 4.5% as reported, basis not stated), 81% for full-year 2025 according to Cavendish Maxwell and 81.1% according to CoStar. The advisory and DET occupancy figures are close (81% against 80.7% for 2025), so the gap between the two series sits almost entirely in rate.
ADR and RevPAR
DET's all-inventory ADR was AED 415 in 2019 with RevPAR of AED 312 and 32.11m occupied room nights (Gulf News citing DET, 2021). ADR rose to AED 451 in 2021 (RevPAR AED 301, 31.47m room nights), AED 536 in 2022 (+19% (Gulf News citing DET); RevPAR AED 391, +30%; 37.43m room nights), was flat at AED 536 in 2023 (RevPAR AED 415, +6%; 41.70m room nights, +11%; average stay 3.8 nights), and reached AED 538 in 2024 with RevPAR of AED 421 (Gulf News citing DET, 2022; Breaking Travel News citing DET). In 2025 ADR jumped 8% to AED 579 (DET, via Dubai Media Office). No full-year 2025 RevPAR on the DET basis was found in the sources reviewed; the latest published values are AED 421 for January to October 2025 (occupancy 79.4%, ADR AED 531) and AED 401 for January to September 2025 (occupancy 78.7%, ADR AED 509, average stay 3.6 nights) (Arabian Business reporting DET City Briefing, Jan-Oct 2025; Gulf News, Jan to Sep 2025). The chart therefore leaves 2025 RevPAR empty rather than computing it.
Dubai's all-inventory ADR rose from AED 415 in 2019 to AED 579 in 2025
ADR and RevPAR, AED, Dubai, DET all-establishment basis, 2019 and 2021 to 2025. No full-year 2025 RevPAR was published in the sources used; the value is left empty. 2020 is omitted because no DET rate was found.
View accessible chart data
| Measure | ADR (AED) | RevPAR (AED) |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 415 | 312 |
| 2021 | 451 | 301 |
| 2022 | 536 | 391 |
| 2023 | 536 | 415 |
| 2024 | 538 | 421 |
| 2025 | 579 | Not published |
The advisory samples tell a different rate story. Cavendish Maxwell's 2024 figures were ADR AED 690 (+0.2%) and RevPAR up 1.3%, and Deloitte's were ADR AED 690 (AED 689 in 2023) and RevPAR AED 539 (AED 532). For 2025 Cavendish Maxwell gave ADR AED 745 (+5.5%) in H1 and AED 746 (+8.7%) for the full year; CoStar recorded December 2025 at 84.3% occupancy, ADR AED 1,042.11 and RevPAR AED 878.19, the highest December RevPAR since 2007, with New Year's Eve at 94.1% occupancy and ADR AED 2,286.60 (figures as released; the CoStar page could not be re-opened in full). The DET and advisory rate series must not be mixed in one chart or one comparison, and the advisory inventory and ADR are not combined with DET room counts to derive growth: DET's 2025 ADR is AED 579 while Cavendish Maxwell's is AED 746.
Room revenue and occupied nights
Dubai hotel room revenue, as reported by Al Bayan from DET, was AED 17.3bn in 2023 and AED 18.11bn in 2024 (+4.68%), on 41.7m and 43.03m occupied room nights respectively. The nine-month 2025 figure exceeded AED 13bn (+12%) on 32.7m room nights (+5%) (Gulf News, Jan to Sep 2025). No full-year 2025 revenue figure was found; see the gaps section.
| Year | Visitors (m) | Rooms | Establishments | Occupancy | ADR (AED) | RevPAR (AED) | Room nights (m) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 15.79 | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | DET press release "2017 tourism performance"Official |
| 2019 | 16.73 | 126,120 | 741 | 75% | 415 | 312 | 32.11 | Gulf News citing Dubai Tourism; Gulf News citing DETIndustry citing DET |
| 2020 | 5.51 (compiled table citing Reuters) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | Wikipedia "Tourism in Dubai" table (most years uncited)Estimate |
| 2021 | 7.28 | 137,950 | 755 | 67% | 451 | 301 | 31.47 | DET press releaseOfficial; (Gulf News citing DET) Industry citing DET |
| 2022 | 14.36 | 146,496 | 804 | 73% | 536 | 391 | 37.43 | DET press releaseOfficial; (Gulf News citing DET) Industry citing DET |
| 2023 | 17.15 | 150,291 | 821 | 77.4% | 536 | 415 | 41.70 | Breaking Travel News citing DETIndustry citing DET |
| 2024 | 18.72 | 154,016 | 832 | 78% | 538 | 421 | 43.03 | Romania Insider citing DET; AGBI citing DET; Al Bayan citing DET (Arabic)Industry citing DET |
| 2025 | 19.59 | 154,264 | 827 | 80.7% | 579 | n/a | 32.7 (Jan to Sep) | Dubai Media Office (Dubai's tourism industry achieves third successive record-breaking year), data DET; Dubai Media Office, data DETOfficial; (Gulf News (Dubai welcomes over 51,100 international visitors per day)) |
Dubai source regions
DET publishes visitor origin by region. In 2025 Western Europe supplied 4.1m visitors (21%), the GCC 2.99m (15%), CIS and Eastern Europe 2.89m (15%), South Asia 2.89m (15%), MENA 2.17m (11%), North East and South East Asia 1.85m (9%), the Americas 1.40m (7%), Africa 897,000 (5%) and Australasia 401,000 (2%) (DET, via Dubai Media Office). Cavendish Maxwell, citing the same DET data, reports the shares to one decimal: Western Europe 21%, GCC 15.3%, CIS and Eastern Europe 14.8%, South Asia 14.7%, MENA 11.1%, NE and SE Asia 9.5%, Americas 7.1%, Africa 4.6%, Australasia 2%. The 2024 growth pattern shows where the increments came from: NE and SE Asia +24%, Africa +20%, CIS and Eastern Europe +16% and Western Europe +14% (Romania Insider citing DET). In 2019 India alone supplied nearly 2 million visitors and the UK 1.2 million (Gulf News citing Dubai Tourism). Average length of stay was 3.7 nights in 2025 (TravelDailyNews citing DET).
| Region | Visitors 2025 | Share 2025 | Share 2025 (one decimal) | Growth 2024 | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Europe | 4.1m | 21% | 21% | +14% | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell citing DET; Romania Insider citing DETOfficial |
| GCC | 2.99m | 15% | 15.3% | n/a | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell citing DETOfficial |
| CIS and Eastern Europe | 2.89m | 15% | 14.8% | +16% | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell citing DET; Romania Insider citing DETOfficial |
| South Asia | 2.89m | 15% | 14.7% | n/a | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell citing DETOfficial |
| MENA | 2.17m | 11% | 11.1% | n/a | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell citing DETOfficial |
| NE and SE Asia | 1.85m | 9% | 9.5% | +24% | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell citing DET; Romania Insider citing DETOfficial |
| Americas | 1.40m | 7% | 7.1% | n/a | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell citing DETOfficial |
| Africa | 897,000 | 5% | 4.6% | +20% | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell citing DET; Romania Insider citing DETOfficial |
| Australasia | 401,000 | 2% | 2% | n/a | Dubai Media Office, data DET; Cavendish Maxwell citing DETOfficial |
The emirates: a note on definitions
The emirates do not publish the same measure. Dubai's headline series counts international overnight visitors and, separately, hotel guests and occupied room nights (DET, via Dubai Media Office, 2025; Al Bayan citing DET, 2024); Abu Dhabi's headline is total visitors, with hotel guests reported separately (TTN Worldwide citing DCT Abu Dhabi, 2025); Sharjah and Fujairah report hotel guests; Ras Al Khaimah reports overnight visitors, including domestic, and guest nights (RAKTDA press release, 2025; STR, via RAKTDA, H1 2025). Because the definitions differ, this chapter does not rank the emirates on one series and labels each count with its measure.
Dubai
Beyond the headline series above, DET's area-level occupancy for 2025 year to date shows where demand concentrated: 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% (Khaleej Times citing DET). By establishment type, DET's year-to-date figures to September 2025 gave five-star hotels 77%, four- and three-star hotels 79% and hotel apartments 81 to 82% occupancy on 152,342 rooms; to April 2025 the figures were 83% overall, five-star 83% and four-star 85%, with Q1 2025 ADR of AED 647 (+2%), RevPAR AED 528 and 11.19m room nights (Gulf News citing DET and musafir.com, Jan to Sep 2025; Gulf News citing DET, Jan to Apr 2025 / Q1 2025). Chapter 6 takes the class split further.
The resident base matters because it supplies staycation and visiting-friends demand. Dubai's population reached 4 million on 28 August 2025 according to the Dubai Data and Statistics Establishment (Gulf News). Higher 2026 population figures that appeared in press and blog commentary were unattributed and inconsistent with the official series, and are not used in this edition.
Abu Dhabi, including Al Ain and Al Dhafra
The Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT) Abu Dhabi reported 26.6 million visitors in 2025, 5.9 million hotel guests (+2.2%), international hotel guests up 10%, hotel revenue of AED 9.1bn (+19.5%), occupancy of 81% (+3 points), ADR up 19% and RevPAR up 23%, plus 338,000 guests in holiday homes and glamping (TTN Worldwide citing DCT Abu Dhabi; Abu Dhabi Media Office). The average stay was 2.9 nights (+3%) (Abu Dhabi Media Office, 2025; DCT Abu Dhabi, via Gulf News, 2025). Hotel guests by nationality were led by India with 436,124 (up 22%), followed by Russia 257,200, the UK 250,906, China 248,494 and Saudi Arabia 200,652; the release also gives India a 13% share, but the denominator of that share is unclear and it is not used here (Abu Dhabi Media Office, 2025; DCT Abu Dhabi, via Gulf News, 2025). Within the emirate, Al Ain recorded 473,100 hotel guests (+9%) and Al Dhafra 147,900 visitors (Abu Dhabi Media Office, 2025; DCT Abu Dhabi, via Gulf News, 2025). The same releases also reported the following sources of demand: 4.2 million attendees (+20%) at 252 culture and leisure events, 2.2 million MICE delegates (+40%) at 6,600 events (+37%), and 1.4 million visitors to Louvre Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi, via Gulf News, 2025; Abu Dhabi Media Office, 2025).
The first half of 2025 had already shown the pattern: 2.9m hotel guests (+2%), hotel revenue +25%, occupancy 80%, RevPAR AED 446 (+24%), an international average stay of 3.2 nights, more than 4 million visits to cultural sites (+47%), and growth from India (+29%) and the UK (+17%) (AGBI citing DCT / WAM, H1 2025). Knight Frank's review (data Knight Frank, STR Global, DET) put Abu Dhabi's January to August 2025 RevPAR growth at +24% and ADR growth at +20.2%, the strongest of any emirate, with occupancy of 79.6% against 77.1% a year earlier, the occupancy values being read from chart order and therefore approximate. Cavendish Maxwell split the 2025 market into city hotels at 82.8% occupancy with ADR up 21.3% and resorts at 78.6%. Rate growth of roughly a fifth in a single year is unusual and was not matched in Dubai, where the DET ADR rose 8%.
Supply counts for Abu Dhabi vary by source and definition: Knight Frank gave 37,148 keys in July 2024 and 37,016 keys in its 2025 review, where the figure appears to combine existing and upcoming stock; JLL counted 33,650 trading keys in H1 2026 with about 120 more due by end-2026; and the 2030 strategy used 34,000 keys as its 2023 baseline (JLL, via IndexBox; Abu Dhabi Media Office). Alongside hotels, DCT licensed 4,771 holiday-home units at end-2025 (+77%), which hosted more than 335,000 guests (82,900 domestic, 252,500 international) at an average daily revenue of AED 1,887 (TradeArabia citing DCT Abu Dhabi). The Abu Dhabi Stopover Programme run with Etihad grew from 12,000 guests in 2023 to 85,000 in 2024, with 44,000 in January to April 2025 (+76%) and a forecast of 130,000+ for 2025.
Sharjah
Sharjah's 2025 figures come from Cavendish Maxwell rather than directly from the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA): 2.1 million hotel guests (+22%), hotel revenue of AED 780m (+20%), ADR AED 305, a 2-night average stay and 10,700 rooms across 102 mostly mid-tier hotels, plus occupancy of 78% that the release describes as current rather than as a full-year average; these are advisory figures, not an official census. Sharjah airport handled 19.5 million passengers (+14%) with a target of 20 million by 2027 and an AED 4.2bn expansion, and three upscale hotels with 476 keys are planned by 2030 (Cavendish Maxwell, 2025). Air Arabia Group, based at Sharjah, carried 21.8 million passengers in 2025 (+16%) with a load factor of 85% and 30 new routes across six hubs (TradeArabia).
SCTDA's own releases cover 2024 and early 2025. The authority reported about 1.6 million hotel guests in 2024 (+11%), with Russia above 270,000 (+18%), India above 170,000 (+6%), Europe above 100,000 (+16%) and China above 60,000 (+828%); Oman supplied 6% of guests, Saudi Arabia 5% and Egypt 4% (SCTDA press release, 2024). For January to August 2024 it reported 1.057 million guests against 1.025 million a year earlier (growth of 3.07% as published; the rounded counts imply 3.12%), 66% occupancy and a mix of Russia 21%, UAE domestic 11%, India 10% and Oman 6% (SCTDA press release, Jan-Aug 2024). In Q1 2025 Sharjah received 486,000 hotel guests and launched its "Visit Sharjah" rebrand without numeric targets (Gulf News citing SCTDA chairman). Knight Frank's chart gave Sharjah 77.0% occupancy for January to August 2025 against 74.5% a year earlier (read from chart order, approximate), and the firm counted 14,478 keys existing and upcoming. The 1.6 million (2024) and 2.1 million (2025) guest counts imply a jump of a third in a year that is larger than the 22% growth Cavendish Maxwell states, which suggests the two sources count guests differently; both are recorded.
Ras Al Khaimah
The Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority (RAKTDA) reported 1.35 million overnight visitors in 2025 (+6%), tourism revenue up 12% and MICE and destination-wedding revenue up 25%, with arrivals growth from domestic +7%, Russia +20%, India +14%, China +19%, UK +10%, Romania +41%, Poland +22%, Uzbekistan +19% and Belarus +26%. Cavendish Maxwell's figures (publication undated; the 2025 period is inferred from the Dubai statement in the same release) gave RAK 75% occupancy, up 4.6% as written, and ADR AED 618 (+6.6%) for 2025, and Knight Frank's chart put January to August 2025 occupancy at 71.6% against 69.3% a year earlier (read from chart order, approximate), with RevPAR up 10%. The 2024 base was about 1.28 million overnight visitors, an emirate-wide count that includes domestic guests, with MICE up 40% and top markets of the UK, India, Germany, Kazakhstan, the Czech Republic and the CIS. H1 2025 set a record of 654,000 visitors (WAM; STR, via RAKTDA).
Supply is small but heavily weighted to the top end. RAKTDA cited 8,200+ rooms, more than half five-star, with 7,500 more keys by 2027; Knight Frank counted 11,902 keys existing and upcoming, against 8,764 in its 2024 review; AGBI reported that 91% of the pipeline is five-star or ultra-luxury. RAKTDA's chief executive described emirate-wide inventory of about 8,000 keys in 2024 with plans to more than double hotel capacity by 2030, and a 12,000-key Marjan Beach masterplan has been announced. RAK airport passed 1 million passengers in 2025 (+51%) from 670,000 in 2024, with a pre-war target of 1.5 million by 2027 and 2 million by the end of the decade, and the emirate reported AED 39bn of tourism FDI. The Wynn Al Marjan Island resort is covered under mega projects below.
Other emirates: Fujairah, Ajman and Umm Al Quwain
Fujairah is the best documented of the three. The Fujairah Statistics Centre's 29th annual statistical report, as reported by Gulf News, records 34 hotels, more than 5,000 rooms and nearly 802,000 guests across hotels and hotel apartments in 2025. Cavendish Maxwell put 2025 occupancy at nearly 75% with average rates up 12.8% and ADR AED 433, and Knight Frank's chart recorded 71.3% for January to August 2025 against 71.6% a year earlier, the only emirate in its chart to fall (values read from chart order, approximate). Knight Frank counted 5,057 keys existing and upcoming. In April 2026 the Fujairah Department of Tourism and Antiquities said hotels had recorded occupancy of 95% to 100% at the start of 2026, described as record levels, without specifying the dates. Ajman reported Q1 2024 visitor numbers up 9%, tourism revenue up 7%, occupancy up 3% and average stay up 5%, with no absolute totals; Knight Frank's chart gave it the highest occupancy of any emirate at 86.1% for January to August 2025 (81.8% a year earlier) and the firm counted 2,450 keys. Umm Al Quwain reported occupancy up 27% in 2023 against 2022 with no level stated, and Knight Frank counted 592 keys.
| Emirate | Hotel guests or visitors | Occupancy | ADR | Rooms / keys | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai | 19.59m intl overnight visitors | 80.7% | AED 579 (DET) | 154,264 (end-2025) | 2025 | Dubai Media Office (Dubai's tourism industry achieves third successive record-breaking year), data DET; Dubai Media Office, data DETOfficial |
| Abu Dhabi | 26.6m visitors; 5.9m hotel guests | 81% | +19% (level not published) | 33,650 (JLL, H1 2026); 37,016 (KF, incl. upcoming) | 2025 | TTN Worldwide citing DCT Abu Dhabi; IndexBox, data JLL; Knight Frank 2025 PDFOfficial / Industry |
| Sharjah | 2.1m hotel guests | 78% (described as current) | AED 305 | 10,700 in 102 hotels | 2025 | Cavendish Maxwell (republished Gulf News)Industry |
| Ras Al Khaimah | 1.35m overnight visitors (incl. domestic) | 75% (Cavendish Maxwell) | AED 618 | 8,200+ (RAKTDA, H1 2025); 11,902 (KF, incl. upcoming) | 2025 | RAKTDA press release; Cavendish Maxwell; Travel Trade Journal citing RAKTDA VP Iyad Rasbey; Knight Frank 2025 PDFOfficial / Industry |
| Fujairah | nearly 802,000 guests (hotels and hotel apartments) | nearly 75% (Cavendish Maxwell) | AED 433 (+12.8%) | 5,000+ in 34 hotels (Fujairah Statistics Centre); 5,057 (KF, incl. upcoming) | 2025 | Gulf News (Fujairah population reaches 328,495, GDP rises to Dh32.6 billion), data Fujairah Statistics Centre 29th annual statistical report; Cavendish Maxwell; Knight Frank 2025 PDFOfficial via press / Industry |
| Ajman | n/a (Q1 2024 +9%) | 86.1% (Jan to Aug 2025, chart order) | n/a | 2,450 (KF, incl. upcoming) | 2024 to 2025 | Dubai Eye 103.8 citing WAM / Ajman Department of Tourism Development; Knight Frank UAE Hospitality Market Review 2025 (PDF); Knight Frank 2025 PDFOfficial / Industry |
| Umm Al Quwain | n/a (occupancy +27% in 2023) | n/a | n/a | 592 (KF, incl. upcoming) | 2023 to 2025 | Aletihad citing UAQ Department of Tourism and Archaeology; Knight Frank 2025 PDFOfficial / Industry |
Every emirate except Fujairah raised occupancy in January to August 2025; Ajman led at 86.1%
Hotel occupancy, %, by emirate, January to August 2024 versus January to August 2025 (Knight Frank, data STR Global and DET). UAE and Dubai values are stated in the report text; the other emirates are read from chart order in the PDF and are 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 |
| Ras Al Khaimah | 69.3 | 71.6 |
| Sharjah | 74.5 | 77.0 |
| Fujairah | 71.6 | 71.3 |
| Ajman | 81.8 | 86.1 |
Official strategy targets
The UAE Tourism Strategy 2031, launched in November 2022, aims to raise the sector's GDP contribution to AED 450bn with an annual increase of AED 27bn, to welcome 40 million hotel guests, to attract AED 100bn of additional tourism investment and to deliver 25 initiatives and policies (UAE Cabinet; Government of Dubai Media Office). The "40 million hotel guests" figure is a national target; the Dubai D33 agenda describes tourism only as "a big contributor" to doubling the Dubai economy in ten years, and no fetched DET page states a separate Dubai hotel-guest or visitor number (Government of Dubai Media Office). Against the 2031 target, UAE hotels hosted more than 32 million guests in 2025 (Government of Dubai Media Office).
Abu Dhabi Tourism Strategy 2030 sets out to grow visitors from about 24 million in 2023 to 39.3 million by 2030 (a 7% CAGR), international overnight visitors from 3.8 million to 7.2 million, tourism GDP from AED 49bn to AED 90bn, hotel keys from 34,000 to 52,000, and to add 178,000 jobs; cultural sites drew more than 8.7 million visitors in the 2023 baseline year (Abu Dhabi Media Office). The 2025 actuals of 26.6 million visitors and 5.9 million hotel guests sit against those baselines (TTN Worldwide citing DCT Abu Dhabi). Ras Al Khaimah targets 3.5 million overnight visitors by 2030 and a more than doubling of hotel capacity (Gulf Business interview with RAKTDA CEO Raki Phillips, 2024; RAKTDA press release, 2025). For Sharjah no numeric 2030 tourism target was found; the only forward figures are the airport's 20 million passengers by 2027 and 476 upscale keys by 2030 (Cavendish Maxwell, 2025).
| Strategy | Target | Baseline | Latest actual in notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UAE Tourism Strategy 2031 | 40m hotel guests; AED 450bn tourism GDP; AED 100bn investment | Launched Nov 2022 | 32m+ guests (2025); AED 257.3bn T&T GDP (2024, WTTC) | UAE Cabinet; Government of Dubai Media Office; WTTC press releaseOfficial |
| Dubai D33 | Tourism "a big contributor" to doubling the economy; no hotel-guest figure found | n/a | 19.59m visitors (2025) | Government of Dubai Media Office; Dubai Media Office (Dubai's tourism industry achieves third successive record-breaking year), data DETOfficial |
| Abu Dhabi Tourism Strategy 2030 | 39.3m visitors; 7.2m intl overnight; 52,000 keys; AED 90bn tourism GDP; 178,000 jobs | ~24m visitors; 3.8m intl overnight; 34,000 keys; AED 49bn (2023) | 26.6m visitors; 5.9m hotel guests (2025) | Abu Dhabi Media Office (DCT); TTN Worldwide citing DCT Abu DhabiOfficial |
| RAK 2030 | 3.5m overnight visitors; hotel capacity more than doubled | about 1.28m overnight visitors incl. domestic (2024) | 1.35m overnight visitors (2025) | Gulf Business interview with RAKTDA CEO Raki Phillips; RAKTDA press releaseOfficial |
| Sharjah | No numeric tourism target found; airport 20m passengers by 2027; 476 upscale keys by 2030 | 19.5m airport passengers (2025) | 2.1m hotel guests (2025) | Cavendish Maxwell (republished Gulf News); Gulf News citing SCTDA chairmanIndustry |
Supply pipeline and mega projects
This section distinguishes three types of room count: operating (trading) rooms, planned or pipeline rooms that are announced or under construction, and forecast totals that add the two. Knight Frank's October 2025 review counted 213,928 existing UAE rooms, 23,008 upcoming and a forecast 2030 total of 235,674 rooms in 1,184 hotels, noting that 212,291 rooms were trading in August 2025 and that the components do not reconcile exactly. Dubai's pipeline of 12,861 rooms made up 55.9% of UAE upcoming supply, with 47% luxury, 21% upper upscale and 24% upscale, and 43% of all UAE upcoming supply was luxury; these are dated forecasts, not completed stock (Knight Frank newsroom and PDF, 2025). The October 2024 edition had projected 26,832 new UAE rooms to 2030 for a total of 238,412, with Dubai adding 17,750 (two-thirds) to reach 169,165 keys, Abu Dhabi at 37,148 and RAK at 8,764; it also counted 211,580 UAE rooms trading in July 2024 and expected 218,669 by end-2024 (Khaleej Times citing Knight Frank; Knight Frank UAE Hospitality Market Review 2024, Jul 2024).
Other pipeline counts are lower. Lodging Econometrics' Q2 2026 construction pipeline, a count of projects in planning or under construction rather than of operating rooms, recorded 103 UAE projects with 24,985 rooms (+3% in projects), of which Dubai accounted for 60 projects and 13,828 rooms, within a Middle East pipeline of 724 projects and 178,003 rooms in which Saudi Arabia held 387 projects and 105,648 rooms; it expected 83 Middle East openings with 15,149 rooms in 2026, 91 with 22,875 rooms in 2027 and 102 with 24,284 rooms in 2028. Cavendish Maxwell's pre-conflict Dubai outlook (H1 2025 report) expected 19 hotels and 5,000+ rooms by end-2025, about 6,000 rooms across 2026 and 2027 with 61% of the 2026 pipeline luxury, then (early 2026 report) 4,600 rooms scheduled for 2026 with nearly 90% of the upcoming hotel openings in higher-end categories, and (March 2025) a projection of 162,600 rooms in 769 hotels by 2027. After the shock the firm revised this in August 2026 to about 39 hotels and 9,520 rooms across 2026 to 2029, with about 3,150 rooms by end-2026 (Gulf News citing Cavendish Maxwell, H1 2026). Operator and brand structure, including Accor's 23,965 and Marriott's 22,402 UAE rooms and the 51% international, 12% local and 37% unbranded split of existing supply, is treated in Chapter 6 (Knight Frank UAE Hospitality Market Review 2024, Jul 2024; Knight Frank newsroom and PDF, 2025).
| Project | Scale | Status and timing (as reported on the source date) | Geography | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wynn Al Marjan Island | 1,530 rooms and suites; budget USD 5.7bn (raised from USD 5.2bn) | Under construction; opening scheduled for September 2027, moved from Q1 2027 (Fitch, Oct 2026) | RAK | Khaleej Times; EnterpriseAM citing Fitch RatingsIndustry |
| Al Maktoum International expansion | USD 35bn; 260m+ passengers a year; 5 runways, 2 terminals, 430 stands | Announced; contracts executing; phase one scheduled 2032 (Jun 2026) | Dubai | AGBIIndustry |
| Etihad Rail passenger service | 200 km/h; up to 400 passengers per train; ~10m annual riders expected; fares from AED 55 | Scheduled (timetable as announced Jun 2026): Abu Dhabi to Fujairah 30 Jun 2026; Dubai and Al Dhaid 30 Sep 2026; Al Dhafra 30 Dec 2026; Sharjah 30 Mar 2027 | UAE | MEEDIndustry |
| Disney theme park resort, Yas Island | Size and investment not disclosed | Announced 8 May 2025; no timeline | Abu Dhabi | Aletihad / WAMOfficial |
| Palm Jebel Ali | 13.4 sq km; 16 fronds; 91 km beachfront; 80 hotels planned; ~2,000 villas | Under development; completion target 2028; inspections point to Oct 2027 to Oct 2028 (Jan 2026) | Dubai | AGBIIndustry |
| Dubai Islands (Nakheel) | 5 islands; 17 sq km; 20 km beachfront; 80+ hotels | Announced masterplan (2023); no timing stated | Dubai | Government of Dubai Media OfficeOfficial |
| Dubai Creek Harbour | 6 sq km | Announced; over the next decade (from 2023) | Dubai | Government of Dubai Media OfficeOfficial |
| Deira Waterfront (Accor, ICD, Valor) | 6 hotels / 999 keys | Announced (Apr 2025); no timing stated | Dubai | TTG AsiaIndustry |
Wynn Al Marjan Island was reported in February 2026 as a USD 5.1bn (AED 18.7bn) project due to open in Q1 2027, with a UAE gross gaming revenue estimate of USD 3bn to 5bn (Khaleej Times). By October 2026 Fitch reported the budget raised to USD 5.7bn from USD 5.2bn and the opening moved to September 2027 because of shipping and supply-chain disruption, with gaming taxes and tourism fees not expected before 2028. The USD 5.1bn and USD 5.2bn base figures conflict slightly and both are shown (Khaleej Times, 2026; EnterpriseAM citing Fitch Ratings, 2026). Etihad Rail's announced journey times are 57 minutes Abu Dhabi to Dubai, 105 minutes Abu Dhabi to Fujairah and 69 minutes Dubai to Fujairah; the timetable in this book is the one announced in June 2026 and has not been verified against operations (MEED).
Airline and airport capacity
Dubai International (DXB) handled 95.2 million passengers in 2025 (+3.1%), with 25.1 million in Q4 (+5.9%) and a pre-conflict 2026 forecast of 99.5 million; India was the largest country market at 11.9 million, followed by Saudi Arabia 7.5 million, the UK 6.3 million, Pakistan 4.3 million and the US 3.3 million, and London the top city at 3.9 million (Gulf News citing Dubai Airports, 2025; CAPA citing Dubai Airports, 2025). DXB had grown from 86.9 million in 2023 to 92.3 million in 2024 (Khaleej Times citing Knight Frank; Knight Frank newsroom and PDF, 2025). Emirates carried 55.6 million passengers in 2025 on nearly 180,580 flights, placed orders for 73 aircraft, opened Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Da Nang and Siem Reap, and fitted Premium Economy on more than 100 aircraft (about 40% of its fleet). flydubai carried 15.7 million passengers in 2025, earned AED 13.6bn of revenue (+6%) and AED 1.9bn of profit after tax, operated 97 aircraft with an average age of 5.5 years to 140 destinations in 58 countries, and added 9 destinations (Gulf Business; Government of Dubai Media Office). Etihad passed 20 million passengers in the twelve months to July 2025 for the first time, operated more than 100 aircraft to about 90 destinations by end-2025 with 27 new routes, and targets 38 million passengers, 170+ aircraft and 125+ destinations by 2030. Air Arabia Group carried 21.8 million passengers (+16%) with a net profit of AED 1.8bn (+14%) and turnover above AED 7.8bn (TradeArabia, 2025). Sharjah airport handled 19.5 million passengers (+14%) and RAK airport passed 1 million (+51%) (Cavendish Maxwell, 2025; AGBI citing RAKTDA, STR, WTTC, H1 2026).
Chapter 3 covers what happened to this capacity in 2026, when DXB's first-half traffic fell 31.3% to 31.5 million (Khaleej Times citing Dubai Airports, H1 2026).
Visas
The UAE five-year multiple-entry tourist visa, approved by Cabinet in 2021 and open to all nationalities, costs AED 3,775 through ICP including an AED 3,025 deposit, allows 90 days per entry extendable by 90 days to a maximum of 180 days a year, and requires a USD 4,000 bank balance over six months (Khaleej Times, Jul 2026). The GCC unified tourist visa was approved by GCC tourism ministers in October 2023 and interior ministers in November 2023 but had not launched by September 2026, when the GCC Secretary-General said it would "see the light soon" without giving a date (Khaleej Times). Abu Dhabi's DCT describes visa on arrival as available to more than 50 nationalities (Khaleej Times, 2025). For marketers, the GCC visa remains a future event, not a 2026 campaign hook (Khaleej Times).
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.
TradeArabia 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 (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 #5Gulf 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 ↗Gulf News (Dubai welcomes over 51,100 international visitors per day) qualified
13.95m visitors; 32.7m room nights (+5%); occupancy 78.7%; hotel revenue over Dh13bn (+12%); ADR Dh509; RevPAR Dh401; average length of stay 3.6 nights
Scope: Dubai, Jan to Sep 2025
Date: 11 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 ↗TravelDailyNews citing DET (Dubai records 19.59m international visitors in 2025) verified
Average length of stay 3.7 nights; source shares: W Europe 21%, CIS/E Europe 15%, South Asia 15%, GCC 15%, MENA 11%, NE/SE Asia 9%, Americas 7%, Africa 5%, Australasia 2%
Scope: Dubai, full year 2025
Date: 12 Feb 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (via press)
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.
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times citing DET (Dubai tourism hits record 19.59m visitors in 2025) qualified
December 2025 was the first month to exceed 2m international visitors
Scope: Dubai, Dec 2025
Date: 9 Feb 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (via press)
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.
Open original source ↗CoStar/STR press release (Dubai hotel industry posts best December performance in nearly two decades) qualified
December 2025 occupancy 84.3% (+3.4%), ADR AED 1,042.11 (+11.1%), RevPAR AED 878.19 (+15.0%); highest December RevPAR since 2007; NYE occupancy 94.1%, ADR AED 2,286.60, RevPAR AED 2,151.40; nine consecutive nights above 80% occupancy and AED 1,000 ADR from 23 Dec
Scope: Dubai, Dec 2025
Date: 14 Jan 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
CoStar original result is visible in search extraction but full-page re-fetch returned 403. Do not label as a successful original-page re-verification. Retain only qualified historical release data.
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 ↗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 ↗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 ↗Abu Dhabi Media Office (as #27) verified
Abu Dhabi MICE 2025: 6,600 events (+37%), 2.2m delegates (+40%); Advantage Abu Dhabi 175 events, 464,000 delegates (+28%)
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.
Source locator as recorded: same as #27CAPA citing Dubai Airports (DXB handles record pax in 2025) not re-verified
DXB 2025: 95.2m passengers (+3.1%); Dec 2025 8.7m; Q4 25.1m; 2026 expected to approach 99.5m; top destinations London, Riyadh, Mumbai, Jeddah, Delhi
Scope: Dubai airport, 2025
Date: 13 Feb 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY (company data)
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Etihad Airways press release (Etihad and DCT Abu Dhabi celebrate record success of Abu Dhabi Stopover Programme) qualified
Abu Dhabi Stopover Programme: 12,000 guests (2023), 85,000 (2024), forecast 130,000+ (2025); Jan to Apr 2025 44,000 visitors (+76% from 25,000), 25,000 bookings (+47%); up to two free hotel nights; markets named: US, Canada, UK, Germany, France, India, Japan, South Korea
Scope: Abu Dhabi, 2023 to Apr 2025
Date: 2 May 2025
Evidence grade: PLATFORM/OFFICIAL
Etihad primary release distinguishes actual guests from bookings and from a 2025 forecast. 44,000/25,000−1 = 76%. Do not present the 130,000 target as the realised 2025 result.
Open original source ↗Gulf News (UAE population hits 11.3 million in 2024); Khaleej Times (Dubai population 4 million) verified
UAE population 11,294,243 at end 2024 (FCSC); Dubai population reached 4 million on 28 Aug 2025 (Dubai Data and Statistics Establishment)
Scope: UAE / Dubai
Date: Sep 2025; 28 Aug 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (via press)
Both figures match. Official statistics reported via press; grade Official via secondary press.
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times (UAE wedding destination) not re-verified
Weddings: Dubai 3rd most popular wedding destination on social media and 6th globally (Bounce research); Ikigaii handles 12 to 15 weddings/yr with budgets above Dh2m, clients mainly UK/US then Germany, India, Australia; luxury weddings Dh350,000 to Dh10m+; five-star hotels report 20 to 50 destination weddings a year; Abu Dhabi civil marriage: 40,000 couples from 200 nationalities since 2022 reform (period unclear); DCTCM: 830+ hotels, visa on arrival 50+ nationalities
Scope: UAE, 2025
Date: 23 May 2025
Evidence grade: ESTIMATE (industry quotes; Bounce ranking INDUSTRY)
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
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 ↗Gulf News citing RAKTDA (RAK tourism records highest visitor numbers) verified
RAK 2025: 1.35m overnight visitors (+6%); tourism revenue +12%; MICE and destination weddings revenue +25% (combined); arrivals growth China +19%, Russia +20%, India +14%, UK +10%; plan to double hotel keys by 2030
Scope: Ras Al Khaimah, 2025
Date: 19 Jan 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (via press)
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 ↗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 ↗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 ↗Gulf News (as #21) qualified
Dubai 2025 tourism contribution context: 2024 overnight visitors 18.72m (+9.1%); tourism Dh236bn, about 12% of UAE GDP (2024)
Scope: UAE/Dubai, 2024
Date: 17 Mar 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL (via press)
The original mixes Dubai international visitors with UAE tourism GDP. The AED236bn GDP figure conflicts with the specified WTTC 2024 series and is excluded.
Source locator as recorded: same as #21Deloitte (Middle East Real Estate Predictions 2025, PDF) not re-verified
Deloitte: Dubai 2024 occupancy 78% (77% in 2023), ADR AED 690 (689), RevPAR AED 539 (532); 18.7m visitors
Scope: Dubai, 2024
Date: 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗DET press release "2017 tourism performance" verified
15.79 million international overnight visitors, +6.2% YoY
Scope: Dubai, 2017
Date: 7 Feb 2018
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
Primary publisher re-fetched; retain exact metric, geography and historical/target period. Targets are not observed results.
Open original source ↗Gulf News citing Dubai Tourism qualified
16.73 million international overnight visitors, +5.1% YoY; India nearly 2m, UK 1.2m
Scope: Dubai, 2019
Date: 21 Jan 2020
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
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 ↗Wikipedia "Tourism in Dubai" table (most years uncited) qualified
Visitors by year: 2015 14.20m; 2016 14.87m; 2018 15.92m; 2020 5.51m (Reuters cited)
Scope: Dubai, 2015 to 2020
Date: n/d
Evidence grade: ESTIMATE (compiled; 2020 cites Reuters)
Historical secondary compilation with uneven sourcing; do not elevate it to Official or use it alone for headline/chart data. Retain only individually corroborated series points in charts.
Open original source ↗Wikipedia "Tourism in Dubai" (no source given for table) qualified
Hotel supply table: 2015 677 establishments / 98,333 rooms / 77% occ; 2016 681 / 102,845 / 78%; 2017 681 / 107,431 / 78%; 2018 716 / 115,967 / 76%; 2019 741 / 126,120 / 75%; 2020 711 / 126,947 / 54%; 2021 755 / 137,950 / 67%
Scope: Dubai, year-end 2015 to 2021
Date: n/d
Evidence grade: ESTIMATE (2019, 2021, 2022 values match DET figures in rows 6 and 7)
Historical secondary compilation with uneven sourcing; do not elevate it to Official or use it alone for headline/chart data. Retain only individually corroborated series points in charts.
Open original source ↗DET press release verified
14.36 million international overnight visitors, +97% YoY; 7.28 million in 2021
Scope: Dubai, 2022 and 2021
Date: 5 Feb 2023
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
Primary publisher re-fetched; retain exact metric, geography and historical/target period. Targets are not observed results.
Open original source ↗Gulf News citing DET qualified
2022: occupancy 73%, ADR Dh536 (+19%), RevPAR Dh391 (+30%), occupied room nights 37.43m, 146,496 rooms, 804 establishments at end-Dec
Scope: Dubai, 2022
Date: 5 Feb 2023
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
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 ↗Gulf News citing DET qualified
2021: occupancy 67%, ADR Dh451, RevPAR Dh301, 31.47m occupied room nights. 2019: occupancy 75%, ADR Dh415, RevPAR Dh312, 32.11m room nights, 126,120 rooms, 741 establishments
Scope: Dubai, 2021 and 2019
Date: 5 Feb 2023
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
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 ↗Breaking Travel News citing DET qualified
2023: 17.15m visitors (+19.4%), occupancy 77.4%, ADR Dhs536 (flat), RevPAR Dhs415 (+6%), 41.70m occupied room nights (+11%), 150,291 rooms, 821 establishments, average stay 3.8 nights
Scope: Dubai, 2023
Date: 8 Feb 2024
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
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 ↗Romania Insider citing DET qualified
2024: 18.72m international overnight visitors (+9%), 154,016 rooms, 832 establishments; growth NE/SE Asia +24%, Africa +20%, CIS/E Europe +16%, W Europe +14%
Scope: Dubai, 2024
Date: 13 Feb 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
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 ↗AGBI citing DET verified
2024: occupancy 78% (77% in 2023), ADR AED538 (AED536 in 2023), RevPAR AED421 (AED415 in 2023)
Scope: Dubai, 2024 vs 2023
Date: Feb 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing 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.
Open original source ↗Al Bayan citing DET (Arabic) not re-verified
Hotel room revenue AED 18.11bn in 2024 (+4.68%), AED 17.3bn in 2023; occupied room nights 43.03m (2024) vs 41.7m (2023)
Scope: Dubai, 2024
Date: 18 Feb 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Government of Dubai Media Office qualified
Q1 2023: 4.67m visitors (+17% vs 3.97m Q1 2022); occupancy 83%; ADR AED607; RevPAR AED504; 148,877 rooms in 814 establishments; 2019 stock 118,037 rooms in 717 establishments; WTTC: tourism contributed USD 29.4bn to Dubai economy in 2022
Scope: Dubai, Q1 2023 and 2022
Date: May 2023
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
All figures match except one digit: the release gives the 2019 room stock as 118,039, not 118,037. Correct the figure.
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 ↗Khaleej Times / WAM (Ministry of Economy and Tourism) qualified
UAE Jan-Sep 2025: 23.27m hotel guests (+4.9%), 79.3m hotel nights, revenue Dh35.9bn (+7.2%), occupancy 79.2%, occupied rooms 46.17m (+3.5%), ADR Dh557 (+4.2%), 216,248 rooms in 1,246 establishments; tourism GDP Dh257.3bn (~13% of economy, year not stated, matches WTTC 2024 figure); "World's Coolest Winter" Feb 2025: hotel revenue ~Dh1.9bn (+86.9%), 4.4m guests (+62%), 224.7m reach
Scope: UAE, Jan-Sep 2025
Date: 18 Dec 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL via WAM
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 ↗WTTC press release qualified
WTTC UAE: T&T GDP AED 257.3bn (2024), AED 267.5bn forecast 2025 (almost 13% of GDP); jobs 898,600 (2024), 925,000+ (2025); international visitor spend AED 217.3bn (2024), AED 228.5bn (2025, 37% above 2019); domestic spend AED 57.6bn (2024), AED 60bn (2025); 2035: AED 287.8bn (10.4% of GDP), 1m+ jobs
Scope: UAE, 2024, 2025F, 2035F
Date: 20 May 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
WTTC modelled travel-and-tourism contribution includes a broader economic footprint than hotel revenues or direct tourism GDP. Preserve 2024 estimates separately from forecasts for 2025/2035.
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times citing Knight Frank report (WTTC data) not re-verified
UAE T&T 2023: Dh219bn (USD 59.8bn), 11.7% of GDP; 809,000 jobs (+5.3%), one in nine jobs
Scope: UAE, 2023
Date: 1 Oct 2024
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗TTN Worldwide citing DCT Abu Dhabi verified
Abu Dhabi 2025: 26.6m visitors; 5.9m hotel guests (+2.2%); international hotel guests +10%; hotel revenue AED 9.1bn (+19.5%); occupancy 81% (+3pp); ADR +19%; RevPAR +23%; holiday homes and glamping 338,000 guests
Scope: Abu Dhabi, 2025
Date: 6 Apr 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
Core figures corroborated by the re-fetched primary Abu Dhabi Media Office release F27/F28. Remove ambiguous India percentage denominator (A23); visitors, hotel guests and event attendees must not be added.
Open original source ↗AGBI citing DCT / WAM not re-verified
Abu Dhabi H1 2025: 2.9m hotel guests (+2%); hotel revenue +25%; occupancy 80%; RevPAR AED 446 (+24%); international average stay 3.2 nights; cultural sites 4m+ visitors (+47%); India +29%, UK +17%
Scope: Abu Dhabi, H1 2025
Date: Nov 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Cavendish Maxwell (republished Gulf News) qualified
Sharjah 2025: 2.1m hotel guests (+22%); hotel revenue Dh780m (+20%); occupancy 78%; ADR Dh305; average stay 2 nights; 10,700 rooms across 102 hotels; Sharjah airport 19.5m passengers (+14%), target 20m by 2027, Dh4.2bn expansion; 3 upscale hotels / 476 keys by 2030
Scope: Sharjah, 2025
Date: 2026 (n/d)
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
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 ↗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 ↗SCTDA press release qualified
Sharjah Jan-Aug 2024: 1.057m hotel guests (+3.07% vs 1.025m); occupancy 66%; Russia 21%, UAE domestic 11%, India 10%, Oman 6%
Scope: Sharjah, Jan-Aug 2024
Date: 27 Sep 2024
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
WAM original-agency release re-fetched: Jan–Aug 2024 1.057m versus 1.025m guests and 66% occupancy. Rounded counts yield +3.12%, while publisher reports +3.07%; retain source growth with a rounding note rather than claiming exact recomputation.
Open original source ↗Gulf News citing SCTDA chairman not re-verified
Sharjah Q1 2025: 486,000 hotel guests; "Visit Sharjah" rebrand; no numeric targets
Scope: Sharjah, Q1 2025
Date: 30 Apr 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
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 ↗Khaleej Times citing RAKTDA not re-verified
RAK H1 2026: 670,000+ visitors (record H1, +~2.5%); domestic arrivals +47% YoY; Q2 domestic +67.1%; Q2 campaign delivered 224,000 room nights, Dh104.4m hotel revenue, 127,817 additional visitors; ADR in line with 2025; 2030 target 3.5m visitors; 12,000 hotel keys planned at Marjan Beach; Wynn on track for 2027
Scope: RAK, H1 2026
Date: 23 Jul 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
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 ↗WAM (title/snippet) qualified
RAK H1 2025: record 654,000 visitors
Scope: RAK, H1 2025
Date: Jul 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
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 ↗Dubai Eye 103.8 citing WAM / Ajman Department of Tourism Development verified
Ajman Q1 2024: visitor numbers +9%, tourism revenue +7%, occupancy +3%, average stay +5% (no absolute totals)
Scope: Ajman, Q1 2024
Date: 5 May 2024
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL via WAM
All values match. Minor naming correction: the article calls the body the Ajman Tourism Development Department.
Open original source ↗Aletihad citing UAQ Department of Tourism and Archaeology verified
Umm Al Quwain hotel occupancy rates +27% in 2023 vs 2022 (no absolute level)
Scope: UAQ, 2023
Date: 7 Mar 2024
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL via Aletihad
Page opened; claim matches, including the absence of an absolute level. Official figure reported via WAM/Aletihad.
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 ↗Khaleej Times citing Cavendish Maxwell qualified
Dubai H1 2026: citywide ADR Dh701 (-7%); 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%, Midscale -2.4%, UM -4.4%; 727 hotels, ~152,139 rooms (hotels -1%, rooms -0.3% vs end-2025); DXB Jan-May ~26.6m passengers (-31.7%); 2026 forecast occupancy 60.4% to 66.2%, ADR Dh600 to Dh675, DXB 67.6m to 79.3m passengers; "momentum is expected to pick up from Q4"
Scope: Dubai, H1 2026 and FY2026 forecast
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 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 ↗UAE Cabinet verified
UAE Tourism Strategy 2031: raise tourism GDP contribution to AED 450bn with annual increase of AED 27bn; welcome 40 million hotel guests; attract AED 100bn additional tourism investment; 25 initiatives and policies
Scope: UAE, target 2031
Date: n/d (strategy launched Nov 2022 per Dubai Media Office)
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
Primary publisher re-fetched; retain exact metric, geography and historical/target period. Targets are not observed results.
Open original source ↗Government of Dubai Media Office qualified
National strategy launched November 2022: AED 100bn additional investment, 40m hotel guests in 2031; D33: tourism "a big contributor" to doubling Dubai economy in 10 years (no separate Dubai hotel-guest figure on page)
Scope: Dubai / UAE
Date: May 2023
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
The national 40m hotel-guest and AED100bn investment targets are corroborated by the original UAE Cabinet strategy H47. They are not Dubai-only targets.
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 UAE Hospitality Market Review 2024 (PDF) not re-verified
Knight Frank 2024 PDF: top UAE operators by rooms (values 23,965; 22,402; 11,591; 9,276; 8,810; 8,031 listed with Accor, Marriott, Hilton, IHG, Rotana, Millennium in that order, mapping inferred); 82% of UAE upcoming supply internationally branded; UAE 211,580 rooms trading Jul 2024, 218,669 expected end-2024
Scope: UAE, Jul 2024
Date: 2024
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY (operator mapping inferred from chart order)
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 ↗Khaleej Times not re-verified
Wynn Al Marjan Island: 1,530 rooms and suites; USD 5.1bn (Dh18.7bn); opening Q1 2027; tower topped out Dec 2025; Wynn cumulative cash contributions USD 914.2m; UAE gross gaming revenue estimate USD 3-5bn
Scope: RAK, Feb 2026
Date: 15 Feb 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
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
Al Maktoum International expansion: USD 35bn; 260m+ passengers per year capacity; 12m tonnes cargo; 70 sq km; 5 runways, 2 terminals, 7 concourses, 430 stands; phase one completion 2032; AED 13bn contracts executing; AED 55bn+ contracts to be awarded
Scope: Dubai, Jun 2026
Date: Jun 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Gulf News citing Dubai Airports qualified
DXB 2025: 95.2m passengers (+3.1%); Q4 2025 25.1m (+5.9%); 2026 forecast 99.5m (pre-conflict); India 11.9m, Saudi Arabia 7.5m, UK 6.3m, Pakistan 4.3m, US 3.3m; London top city 3.9m
Scope: Dubai, 2025
Date: 11 Feb 2026
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 ↗Khaleej Times citing Dubai Airports qualified
DXB H1 2026: 31.5m passengers (-31.3%); Q2 13m; April 3.5m, May 4.5m, June 5m; "stronger momentum in the second half"
Scope: Dubai, H1 2026
Date: 26 Aug 2026
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 ↗Gulf Business qualified
Emirates 2025: 55.6m passengers; nearly 180,580 flights; orders for 73 aircraft; new routes Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Da Nang, Siem Reap; Premium Economy on 100+ aircraft (~40% of fleet)
Scope: Emirates, 2025
Date: 1 Jan 2026
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 ↗Etihad Airways press release qualified
Etihad: 20m+ passengers in 12 months (first time); 100+ aircraft; ~90 destinations by end-2025; 27 new routes in 2025; 2030 targets 38m passengers, 170+ aircraft, 125+ destinations
Scope: Abu Dhabi, Jul 2025
Date: 18 Jul 2025
Evidence grade: PLATFORM (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 ↗Government of Dubai Media Office verified
flydubai 2025: 15.7m passengers; revenue AED 13.6bn (+6%); profit after tax AED 1.9bn; fleet 97 aircraft (avg age 5.5 years); 140 destinations in 58 countries; 9 new destinations; 126,604 flights
Scope: Dubai, 2025
Date: 26 Feb 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
All values match the official release.
Open original source ↗TradeArabia verified
Air Arabia Group 2025: 21.8m passengers (+16%); net profit AED 1.8bn (+14%); turnover AED 7.8bn+ (+15%); load factor 85%; 30 new routes across six hubs; capacity +10%
Scope: Sharjah, 2025
Date: 12 Feb 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing company
All figures match. Press report of company results; Air Arabia's own results release would give Platform/primary grade.
Open original source ↗MEED not re-verified
Etihad Rail passenger service: tickets on sale 23 Jun 2026; Abu Dhabi to Fujairah from 30 Jun 2026; formal launch 30 Sep 2026 adding Dubai (Al Yalayis) and Al Dhaid; Al Dhafra stations 30 Dec 2026; Sharjah 30 Mar 2027; Abu Dhabi to Dubai 57 min, Abu Dhabi to Fujairah 105 min, Dubai to Fujairah 69 min; 200 km/h; up to 400 passengers per train; ~10m annual riders expected; fares from AED 55
Scope: UAE, 2026-2027
Date: 26 Jun 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Aletihad / WAM verified
Disney theme park resort on Yas Island announced; Miral to build, Disney leads creative design; timeline, size, investment not disclosed
Scope: Abu Dhabi, May 2025
Date: 8 May 2025
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL via WAM
The page opens despite the malformed URL suffix and supports every element. Recommend replacing the URL with the article's canonical address (https://en.aletihad.ae/news/uae/4572963/) in the bibliography. Grade: Official announcement via national press.
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 verified
Dubai Islands (Nakheel): 5 islands, 17 sq km, 20 km beachfront, 80+ hotels; Dubai Creek Harbour: 6 sq km over next decade
Scope: Dubai, 2023
Date: May 2023
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL
All figures match the official Media Office release (dated 2 May 2023 per URL; Q1 2023 context).
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times not re-verified
GCC unified tourist visa: approved by GCC tourism ministers Oct 2023 and interior ministers Nov 2023; not yet launched; GCC Secretary-General said on 6 Sep 2026 it will "see the light soon"; no date given
Scope: GCC, Sep 2026
Date: 8 Sep 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Khaleej Times not re-verified
UAE 5-year multiple-entry tourist visa: Dh3,775 via ICP (incl. Dh3,025 deposit); 90 days per entry, extendable 90 days, max 180 days per year; USD 4,000 bank balance over 6 months; approved by Cabinet 2021; open to all nationalities
Scope: UAE, Jul 2026
Date: 22 Jul 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
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 ↗Knight Frank via Hospitality Net not re-verified
DXB 2024: 92.3m passengers; Dubai 18.2m tourists 2024 (Euromonitor-style city ranking, differs from DET 18.72m); forecast 22m tourists by end-2025 (government forecast as quoted by Knight Frank; not met, actual 19.59m)
Scope: Dubai, 2024-2025
Date: 20 Oct 2025
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Cavendish Maxwell citing DET not re-verified
Dubai 2025 source-market shares: Western Europe 21%, GCC 15.3%, CIS and Eastern Europe 14.8%, South Asia 14.7%, MENA 11.1%, NE and SE Asia 9.5%, Americas 7.1%, Africa 4.6%, Australasia 2%
Scope: Dubai, 2025
Date: early 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY citing OFFICIAL
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Open original source ↗Dubai Media Office (Dubai's tourism industry achieves third successive record-breaking year), data DET verified
19.59 million international overnight visitors, up 5% from 18.72 million in 2024
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.
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 #1Dubai Media Office, data DET verified
Source regions 2025: Western Europe 4.1m (21%), GCC 2.99m (15%), CIS and Eastern Europe 2.89m (15%), South Asia 2.89m (15%), MENA 2.17m (11%), North East and South East Asia 1.85m (9%), Americas 1.40m (7%), Africa 897,000 (5%), Australasia 401,000 (2%)
Scope: Dubai international overnight visitors by region, 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 not re-verified
Dubai's long-standing goal of 20 million visitors a year was widely expected to be reached in 2026 before the conflict
Scope: Dubai target
Date: 13 Sep 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
Source locator as recorded: same as #5IndexBox (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 #17Gulf News (Abu Dhabi records 26.6m visitors in 2025), data DCT Abu Dhabi verified
Abu Dhabi 2025: 26.6 million total visitors; 5.9 million hotel guests plus 338,000 in holiday homes and glamping; hotel occupancy 81%; average stay 2.9 nights; hotel revenue AED 9.1 billion, up 19.5%; international arrivals up 10%
Scope: Abu Dhabi, full year 2025
Date: 6 Apr 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL via press
Core figures corroborated by the re-fetched primary Abu Dhabi Media Office release F27/F28. Remove ambiguous India percentage denominator (A23); visitors, hotel guests and event attendees must not be added.
Open original source ↗Gulf News, data DCT Abu Dhabi verified
Abu Dhabi 2025: India largest source market with over 436,000 hotel guests, up 22%; Russia and the UK named as key markets; culture and leisure event attendance 4.2 million (up 20%) at 252 events; MICE delegates 2.2 million (up 40%) at 6,600 events (up 37%); Louvre Abu Dhabi 1.4 million visitors; Al Ain over 473,000 guests (up 9%); Al Dhafra nearly 148,000 visitors
Scope: Abu Dhabi, 2025
Date: 6 Apr 2026
Evidence grade: OFFICIAL via press
Core figures corroborated by the re-fetched primary Abu Dhabi Media Office release F27/F28. Remove ambiguous India percentage denominator (A23); visitors, hotel guests and event attendees must not be added.
Source locator as recorded: same as #20Breaking Travel News (Sharjah hotel guests surge 22%), data Cavendish Maxwell qualified
Sharjah 2025: 2.1 million hotel guests (up 22%); 102 hotels, 10,700 keys, mostly mid-tier; hotel revenue AED 780 million (up 20%); average stay 2 nights; occupancy 78% (described as current); ADR AED 305; airport passengers 19.5 million (up 14%), target 20 million by 2027; three upscale hotels with 476 keys planned through 2030
Scope: Sharjah, 2025
Date: 17 Jun 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
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 ↗RAKTDA 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 ↗WTTC (Middle East Travel and Tourism Faces Temporary Headwinds) not re-verified
Middle East travel and tourism GDP USD 386 billion in 2025, forecast USD 330 billion in 2026 (down 14.5%), the only region forecast to decline; forecast growth 6.3% a year 2026 to 2036 to USD 605 billion; UAE sector 11.9% of GDP and 13.6% of employment; UAE international visitor spending nearly USD 57 billion
Scope: Middle East and UAE
Date: 6 Aug 2026
Evidence grade: INDUSTRY
Outside the tiered re-fetch scope; reproduced as recorded with its grade.
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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