Dubai's tourism sector is primed to bounce back as a US-Iran peace plan takes shape.
Interest from British tourists in travelling to Dubai has already spiked after the UK government scrapped its warning against travelling to the UAE, a tour operator has said.
UK visitors are greatly important to the UAE travel market, with Brits as one of the largest tourist markets for the country.
Tourism in the UAE is also expected to rise following the US and Iran signing a memorandum of understanding to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and to continue negotiations towards a peace deal.
Since the US-Israeli conflict with Iran began in late February, leading to attacks on Gulf states, some airlines have ceased operations to the UAE. Some governments have also advised against travel to the country, making it difficult for tourists to obtain insurance.
managing director, Travel Dubai
Canada's government travel advisory urges citizens to avoid all travel to the country, while the US Department of State has placed the UAE under its level 3 - reconsider travel advisory. France also continues to advise against all but essential travel.
However, the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is no longer advising against all but essential travel to the UAE. The Australian government this week also ended its “do not travel” recommendation.
Vishal Patel, managing director of Travel Dubai, a UK company that offers trips to the UAE, said it had been “busy, busy, busy” since the travel advice changed.
“We’ve actually got people wanting to book immediately to travel,” he said. “The only stumbling block was the FCDO advice. There’s a real intent – people ready to go and understanding what they need to go.”
He said that even before the travel advice changed, people had booked trips for July and August on the understanding that they could cancel at short notice.
Mr Patel said UAE hotel operators, while not necessarily offering huge discounts, had been flexible about allowing customers to cancel, even as late as three days before travel.
Chasing winter sun
Bookings for this winter – when the modest temperatures attract many tourists – are likely to be stronger as a result of the change in advice, Mr Patel said. Dubai, he added, was “one of the best winter sun destinations”.
“It’s one of those destinations that will remain popular,” he said. Holidaymakers “have short memories” and so the recent security situation was unlikely to have a long-term effect on the emirate’s reputation, he added.
Dubai has established itself as one of the world’s biggest tourism draws, attracting almost 19.6 million international overnight visitors last year, according to the emirate's Department of Economy and Tourism.
Visitor numbers in 2025 were five per cent up on the previous year and represented the third successive year of increases. December last year was the first month in which more than two million overnight international visitors travelled to Dubai.
Over 1.4 million travellers from the UK visited Dubai alone in 2025.
Abu Dhabi includes the UK as one of its key target markets in addition to India and Russia, with over 250 thousand British citizens staying in Abu Dhabi hotel rooms last year.
Dubai’s tourist sector is poised for a resurgence in travellers, according to Nicholas Nahas, a Dubai-based partner in the transport and travel practice at the consultancy Arthur D Little.
“Emirates [airline] and its partners will reintroduce routes and utilise larger aircraft to increase seat capacity connecting to key source markets,” he said.
“The hospitality sector is also prepared to ramp up operations. Accommodation operators will shift their focus from local markets and domestic travel, where they have maintained operations through staycations, to the international market.”
A wide range of related businesses – tour operators, entertainment and cultural attractions, food and drinks outlets and shops – will also, he said, “benefit and rebound”.
Taking flight
More than 1.4 million Britons visited Dubai in 2025 and about 240,000 Britons live in the city, according to reports.
Emirates and Etihad Airways have continued flights between the UAE and UK in recent months, although British carriers have yet to restart operations.
British Airways has indicated that it will begin flying to the UAE again in October, while Virgin Atlantic is not scheduled to recommence operations until winter 2026.
John Strickland, a former airline executive who runs JLS Consulting, said that if tourism organisations “communicate that there’s normal life, that there’s safety, people will be back” to the UAE.
“I would be very optimistic that there will be quite a rapid recovery,” he said. “People’s memories are remarkably short.”
He cautioned that the tourism sector in Dubai and the UAE “won’t be back to full strength” immediately, but would recover over time, just as it did after the financial crisis and the Covid-19 pandemic.
The US-Iran agreement and other moves towards a more permanent peace mean that “tourist confidence will begin to rise about travel to the region”, said Dr James Kennell, who heads hospitality and tourism management at the University of Surrey in the UK.
He described the changed in the FCDO advice as “an important signal for tourists” from the UK, who will now find it easier to obtain travel insurance.
“Although it will take a while for full confidence to return, the traditional winter market for UK tourists to the UAE should recover this year, assuming that a sustainable peace is achieved,” he said.
“The pent-up demand for travel to the region from western markets should eventually drive a surge in bookings, as we saw after the removal of restrictions after the pandemic.”
Mr Nahas cautioned that the travel resurgence in Dubai “won’t be automatic”, but will instead require organisations to be proactive in encouraging it.
“Travel marketing, promotion programmes and events organised by both the public and private sectors targeting key source markets will be essential to accelerate the tourism recovery,” he said.
To promote recovery, airlines and hotels can highlight their measures to ensure traveller safety, such as enhanced security protocols, said Yvonne Ziegler, professor of business administration at Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences who researches the airline industry.
They may also want to invite travel influencers, journalists and bloggers, as first-hand accounts “often carry more weight” than official statements.
“Pricing strategies also play a critical role in attracting customers back. Offering early-bird discounts, bundled packages, or special promotions for flights and accommodation can help offset travellers’ initial hesitation,” Prof Ziegler said.
“Flexible booking policies and loyalty programme incentives further reduce perceived risks and encourage people to plan trips sooner rather than later.”
Bonus offerings, such as free tours, excursions or wellness services, can make returning particularly attractive, she added.
