UAE Tourism 2025: AED 228.5B Visitor Spend Powers a New Peak

UAE tourism is on track for a record-breaking 2025, with international visitor spend forecast to hit AED 228.5 billion, up 37% from the pre-pandemic peak and reinforcing the sector’s strong growth trajectory this year.

The top line

• International visitor spend is projected at AED 228.5B in 2025, setting an all-time high for the UAE’s tourism sector and surpassing 2019’s peak by a wide margin.

• Travel and tourism GDP contribution is forecast at AED 267.5B in 2025, nearly 13% of national GDP, supported by more than 925,000 jobs across the ecosystem.

• Domestic tourism remains resilient, with 2025 domestic spend projected at AED 60B, 47% above 2019, reflecting sustained local travel demand and improved infrastructure.

  
  

Growth drivers

• Strategic policy and infrastructure: National tourism strategies, smart city development, visa facilitation, and world-class infrastructure have streamlined travel and enhanced the visitor experience, underpinning record spend and sector output in 2025.

• Dubai’s momentum: Dubai welcomed 9.88M international overnight visitors in H1 2025 with hotel occupancy around 80.6% and rising ADR and RevPAR, signaling robust demand and pricing power in hospitality.

• Abu Dhabi’s upgrade: Abu Dhabi posted 1.4M overnight guests in Q1 2025, 79% occupancy, and AED 2.3B hotel revenue (+18% YoY), aligning with a target of AED 62B tourism economic contribution in 2025.

Visitor demographics

• Dubai’s H1 2025 source markets show broad diversification: Western Europe led with 22% share, followed by Eastern Europe/CIS (15%), South Asia (15%), GCC (15%), MENA (11%), NE/SE Asia (9%), the Americas (7%), Africa (4%), and Australasia (2%).

• India remains a top feeder market for Dubai and DXB, supported by high-frequency air connectivity and steady VFR and leisure flows, reinforcing regional travel resilience in 2025.

  
  

Economic impact

• Sector scale: With AED 267.5B in direct GDP contribution projected for 2025, tourism accounts for nearly one in eight jobs and cements its role as a core pillar of diversification and non-oil growth.

• Spillovers: Elevated occupancy, higher ADR/RevPAR in Dubai and rising hotel revenues in Abu Dhabi reflect strong multiplier effects across airlines, retail, F&B, events, and real estate tied to visitor flows.

Air connectivity and capacity

• Passenger throughput: UAE airports handled approximately 102.9M passengers in the first eight months of 2025, up 5.3% YoY, supporting tourism’s scale-up and smoothing peak-season flows.

• DXB performance: Dubai International processed 46M passengers in H1 2025 and expects ~96M for the year, reinforcing its status as the world’s busiest international hub and a driver of tourism arrivals.

Outlook

• With diversified source markets, heavy investment in experience and infrastructure, and powerful aviation hubs, UAE tourism shows no signs of slowing, with 2025 on pace to be a new high-water mark for spend and sector GDP.

• Ongoing campaigns, cultural assets, MICE growth, and streamlined entry systems suggest further upside into 2026, building on record 2025 performance across Dubai and Abu Dhabi.