KHALEEJ TIMES, Saturday, Jan 2, 2021 | Jamadi Al Awwal 19, 1442
UAE hospitality sector to set record recovery in 2021
Emirates:
The UAE will be among some of the top destinations globally that will
benefit the most from a swift upswing in their tourism industry in the new
year, experts have said.
Nicolas Mayer, global industry leader for Tourism & Hospitality at PwC, said
that the recovery of the tourism and hospitality industries will be dependent on
how fast tourism destinations and tourism source markets rebuild trust in each
other. “That trust would of course be strengthened by positive results in
vaccination campaigns, but it also depends on the ability of national
authorities to align with agility, and on the private sector to work together
positively and transparently towards rebuilding trust in commercial relations.”
“I am encouraged to see that in the GCC region both the authorities and the
private sector have been amongst the most agile and proactive globally, and that
therefore our region should be amongst those destinations benefitting the
fastest from the expected upswing,” he added.
However, Mayer noted that many of the important source markets of UAE tourism
are in regions where the vaccine response is not as far progressed, such as
Europe, and that therefore the UAE visitor numbers from these origin markets may
continue to experience a lag in 2021. “There will probably be sporadic and
regional setbacks, but luckily the UAE is to some extent naturally hedged from
those, as it has one of the most diverse visitor origins globally.”
Recovery already on
the cards
Tim Cordon, area senior vice president for the Middle East & Africa region at
Radisson, said that the recovery speed of the hospitality industry and
international travel will be determined by the Covid-19 vaccine, and will be
different based on the countries and areas around the world.
“Until then we need to remain optimistic and positive, listen to our team, be
flexible, and make quick decisions,” he said. “That said, we have been fortunate
that many countries in Middle East have already started to see a recovery in the
fourth quarter of 2020, be it from the domestic or international market.”
Recent research has shown that the UAE has been named as the most popular
tourist destination for 2021. It topped the list of a study conducted by global
travel company, Kuoni, who revealed that the country has emerged as ‘the world’s
most searched destination for 2021’ for tourism, in 11 countries. In addition,
new research conducted by Hilton in the UAE, revealed that UAE residents are
already gearing up for a busy year of travel in 2021. More than 50 per cent of
survey respondents, which included UAE Nationals, said that they are planning
three or more holidays in 2021 if global travel advice allows, with the main
reasons being missed holidays due to the pandemic and the desire to revisit
treasured destinations with their families.
Prior to the pandemic, the direct contribution of travel and tourism to the
Middle East’s GDP was predicted by the World Travel and Tourism Council, to
reach $133.6 billion by 2028.
“Whilst the behaviour or priorities might have changed, people will want to
reunite with their families and friends and for that to happen, we believe many
will consider pursuing international travel once the circumstances allow so,”
Cordon said. “Looking at the future of the travel and hospitality industry in
general, I believe we will see much more technology, and it will be a key tool
in the revival of our sector. Almost every aspect of the hospitality experience
will have a digital component.”
Key trends to monitor
“I believe one of the positive effects of an otherwise very tragic 2020
situation is that citizens and residents across the world have discovered or
rediscovered their own home country as a tourist destination,” said Nicolas
Mayer. “This has happened globally, and in the GCC this development was
particularly strong in UAE and KSA. Tourism providers have done an excellent job
at creating new offers, targeted towards local resident visitors, and I believe
that staycations will remain an important, larger segment of overall tourism,
even once the situation goes back to a totally normal one.”
Similarly, Tim Cordon revealed that, over the past few months, many residents
have been opting for mini getaways and staycations, preferring to stay within
their country, due to international travel restrictions. Google searches related
to staycations in the Middle East and North Africa have risen more than 400 per
cent since March.
“This shows us how much the consumers’ attitude towards travel has altered. We
believe this trend is expected to further strengthen in the coming months,” he
said. “We can already see that the unique selling points of a hotel no longer
focus solely on location – it focuses on the flexibility the guest has in terms
of bookings and cancelations, the type of experience the guest will receive when
staying at the hotel and of course their safety.”
One type of international visitor arrivals that may still not recover
substantially in 2021 is business travel, Mayer pointed out. “Currently, the
hurdles to business travel are often still quite cumbersome, either in the
destination, or more often, upon return to the home country, in the form of
extended quarantines or testing regimes. Many companies are also looking at
sources of savings, and business travel expenses is one area where many global
players have decided to realise some of these savings. We may see in the long
run that some types of business travel never recover to pre-covid levels.”
“We will however see a sustained increase of long term visits, from visitors
that chose a certain region as a temporary home from where to work and play,” he
added. “They will choose locations in which they trust, and where they believe
that they will be able to experience the most optimal mix of professional
opportunities and leisure offerings. The new remote worker visa options offered
in Dubai will accelerate that trend, and we will see significant growth in the
“workation” segment. Lastly, we will of course see a gradual and accelerating
return of more classical patterns of tourism, with individual tourism arrivals
recovering first, and MICE tourism perhaps lagging a little longer.”
|