Skift Take
Chinese travelers are gradually returning to Dubai. Numbers are good, but if the tourism authority wants them be great, it needs to shift away from 'one-hit wonder' strategies.
Pre-pandemic, the cash-rich, travel-hungry Chinese tourist was a principal focus for Dubai, so much so that an entire "China Readiness" strategy was created. It included rolling out marketing campaigns on local social media app WeChat; the creation of a "Chinese Travelers Standards" training program for workers; a raft of signings with Chinese tour operators, and much more.
In 2016, the emirate announced visas-on-arrival for Chinese nationals. By 2019, China was Dubai’s fifth-largest source market with 989,000 visitors, a doubling in just three years.
The pandemic decimated these numbers, but they are gradually creeping back up. It started with 23,000 travelers from China in January, making it the 17th largest source market. By April, China broke into the top 10.
Visitor numbers through July put China as the eighth-largest source market with 328,000 visitors, a 311% increase.
Can this rebound keep going?
Peggy Li, CEO of sps:affinity, a Dubai-based consultancy, discussed the demands of modern Chinese travelers with Skift, and the ways in which Dubai must adjust its strategy.
For a while, Dubai was a prime location for status-seeking Chinese tourists. Home to the world’s largest mall, it is a shopping mecca, with a string of five-star hotels