Boost for tourism industry as residents flock to UAE's east coast

Hotels cash in on long weekend and school break

Ruba Haza

FUJAIRAH // The east coast tourism industry enjoyed a boost as residents and holidaymakers flocked to enjoy its beaches, water sports and dive sites this Eid.

Thousands escaped the cities to enjoy a long weekend against the backdrop of the Hajjar Mountains.

Patrick Antaki, general manager of Le Meridien Al Aqah Resort, said it is almost 100 per cent full.

“The Eid holidays have historically been a busy period for Le Meridien Al Aqah Beach Resort and the east coast resorts as well, and this year it falls on a long weekend, along with the school summer break,” he said.

“Most of our bookings are online with several repeat guests who come and stay with us year after year. The majority of the guests are from the UAE, with a fair share from GCC and international markets such as Russia and Germany.”

Michela Colella, manager of Divers Down, said the centre handled three times the usual number of customers in recent days.

“People are on holiday and want to try something new and thrilling on the east coast. The majority of requests were for ‘discover scuba diving’, the first experience underwater for uncertified divers,” she said.

“We received lots of last minute phone calls, which unfortunately was hard to accommodate without pre-booking, and we expect to stay like this until tomorrow.” ​

But with a temperature reaching mid-forties in recent days, many visitors had preferred to stay away from the heat and not use the water sports activities from 11am to 4pm.

“The hot weather has prevented many people from using the water sports activities this year, compared to last year, which was a bit cooler,” said Simon Tambling, manager of Al Boom Diving in Al Aqah.

“100 per cent of our water sports activities were booked last year during Eid and it reached only 60 percent this year due to the weather.

“But 178 experienced and first time divers used our diving services during the Eid break. People started to come on Friday and we have been quite busy since then, most of the bookings were pre-arranged while the rest were walk-ins."