Dubai is proving increasingly popular with Russian tourists, thanks to open borders, political neutrality, and a selection of the world’s most luxurious hotels and shops. The country is now Dubai’s second-biggest source market for tourism, beaten only by India.

In January 2023, 115,000 Russian visitors came into the emirate, a 63 percent increase year-on-year from 2022’s 70,000. Indian travellers accounted for 186,000 visits during the month, with third-place Saudi Arabia coming in with 98,000 visitors.

In October 2022, Hotelier Middle East reported that many high-end hotels were looking for Russian-speaking staff to cater to the emerging market.

n January 2023, 1.47 million international visitors were recorded. While down on 2019’s 1.61 million, it is almost 500,000 up on 2022’s January.

ADRs are increasing, with an average of AED603 across the city’s 809 hotels. This marks a 14 percent increase on 2019’s levels but is down on 2022’s high of AED647. RevPAR reached AED484, up five percent and 11 percent on 2022 and 2019 respectively. Occupancies for the month hit 80.3 percent.

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