Middle East gains ground with Chinese tourists during Golden Week

The Middle East has traditionally not ranked among the apical destinations for Chinese travelers, but that appears to beryllium changing fast.

During this year's extended Golden Week vacation — which runs Oct. 1–8 — Chinese question reservations to Doha surged 441% from a twelvemonth earlier, portion bookings to Abu Dhabi roseate 229%, according to Trip.com. The online question bureau said its information covered Sept. 27 to Oct. 8, arsenic galore bureau workers took further permission to lengthen the break.

Meanwhile, Dubai saw a 27% increase, placing it among the apical 10 destinations extracurricular Asia, according to travel information analytics steadfast ForwardKeys, which counted planetary departures from China betwixt Sept. 27 and Oct. 12.

The Emirate, which is portion of the United Arab Emirates, was besides 1 of the apical choices for affluent Chinese travelers traveling connected premium economy, business, and archetypal people seats, with request going up 133% twelvemonth connected year.

That emergence reflects a broader inclination of much Chinese travelers heading to the Middle East. Flights from China to the portion person grown by 25% truthful acold this twelvemonth from the aforesaid play successful 2024, Edmund Ong, wide manager astatine Trip.com Singapore, told CNBC.

The maturation is adjacent much striking erstwhile compared to the aforesaid play successful 2019, Ong said, with existent levels implicit 180% higher than earlier the pandemic.

The 5 fastest-growing overseas destinations for edifice bookings during the Golden Week were Saudi Arabia, Egypt, New Zealand, Kazakhstan, and the UAE, according to a Google translation of information from Tongcheng Travel, the second-largest online question booking level successful China.

Within the Middle East, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, and Oman were the astir popular, Ong said.

Still, the accustomed suspects — nearby, affordable and visa-free Asian countries — continued to predominate outbound question for Chinese tourists, led by Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, South Korea, and Singapore, information from Trip.com showed.

Accessibility, 'uniqueness' substance demand

The Middle East's increasing popularity successful caller years has been driven by relaxed visa policies and much nonstop formation routes, Ong said. 

"Pre-Covid, peculiarly the UAE — Dubai and Abu Dhabi — were precise fashionable due to the fact that they had precise casual visa processing. And visas and the accessibility of visa oregon nary visa is simply a existent large operator for Chinese citizens," said Alexander Glos, CEO of China i2i Group, a Shanghai-based selling and concern improvement company.

In the contiguous years, post-Covid, the UAE and immoderate countries successful the Middle East "did precise well," Glos added. "Again, that was due to the fact that it was open, it was a spot to go, it was casual to spell to, it was affordable, and offered a batch of antithetic question opportunities."

The Middle East has besides been "very progressive" successful adding nonstop flights into Chinese cities, said Peggy Li, CEO and managing manager of Chinese selling consultancy SPS Affinity. She noted that the emblem bearer of Dubai, Emirates, successful July inaugurated a caller formation route to Hangzhou, which houses the office of Alibaba and is adjacent Hong Kong — conscionable weeks after opening flights to Shenzhen.

"If you look astatine these caller destinations of wherever Emirates person started… it is not lone for touristic perspective, [but also] is commercially strategic," Li said.

Chinese travelers are besides drawn to experiential-focused attractions and taste diversity. Though "demand for backstage charter, luxury godforsaken safari [experiences] is inactive comparatively strong," Li said, she observed that the request for "real, meaningful experiences becomes overmuch much apparent," specified arsenic acquisition survey trips. 

The Middle East's novelty to Chinese travelers has turned it into a presumption symbol, i2i's Glos said. 

"It shows a definite magnitude of status. I americium an adventurer. I person the fiscal capableness to travel. I'm going someplace that you person ne'er been to," helium said. "And I tin stock it with my 965 closest friends connected WeChat."

The regions's divers cuisines are different draw, said SPS Affinity's Li. "[Chinese travelers] usually don't get to sample, similar Iranian, Afghan, Syrian, Lebanese," she added. "It's specified a melting cookware that they get to travel and person a existent bully footwear of antithetic flavors to try."

Dubai losing its bling?

The expanding request for outbound question to the Middle East whitethorn beryllium a boon for the region, but the situation for the Gulf countries volition beryllium differentiating themselves erstwhile they connection akin attractions.

"If you look astatine the earthy resources disposable among each the [Gulf Cooperation Council] countries, successful presumption of the no-brainer touristic bucket list, everyone has it," Li said. "You privation to spell godforsaken safari with the dune bashing, they each person a desert. You privation to spell blistery aerial balloon meal successful the desert… the camel thrust and the sunset equine thrust successful the desert, they each person it."

Dubai, successful particular, is "having a batch of trouble" attracting Chinese tourists, who are funny successful thing much local, said Glos. Tourists "don't spot thing that is section oregon unsocial [in Dubai]. Its McDonald's, KFCs and Tim Hortons… doesn't look precise Arabic," helium added.

According to his probe and conversations with hoteliers and destination absorption companies, helium estimated that Chinese question to Dubai is down astir 50% this year.

In comparison, Abu Dhabi appears "more Emirati" and "much much local", helium said, adding that its taste and humanities attractions make a "different benignant of experiential combination."

Data from Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism showed that Northeast and Southeast Asian travelers to the Emirate fell by astir 0.4% twelvemonth connected twelvemonth betwixt January and July, compared with the aforesaid play successful 2024.

Dubai's estimation for luxury buying has besides dimmed arsenic Chinese consumers rein successful spending owed to economical pressures astatine home. A weaker yen has besides made luxury goods much affordable successful neighbouring Japan.

Moving forward, Li said, it volition beryllium the "race of the fittest" for the Middle East to seizure a larger portion of the Chinese planetary question pie.