UAE hospitality sector on growth track

Sajjad Ahmad, Deputy Business Editor

The UAE hospitality sector on track for a significant growth as the country has witnessed strong growth in tourist arrivals. A recent data showed that Emirati hotels welcomed nearly six million visitors who spent 25 million hotel nights in the first quarter of 2022, an increase of 10% compared with the same period of 2019.

Hotels achieved earnings totaling Dhs11 billion in the Q1 of 2022, an increase of 20 % compared to the same period in 2019. 

“The travel and tourism sectors in UAE have seen great and speedy recovery ever since the COVID-19 restrictions were lifted gradually. The growth in Dubai has been greater than in Abu Dhabi due to Expo 2020 and DTCM initiatives,” said Firas Sharrouf, General Manager at Sofitel Abu Dhabi.

He added, “On the same note, Abu Dhabi has seen better occupancy as of May 2022, immediately after lifting the quarantine in the city and the activities that have been implemented by DCT. Occupancy growth in Dubai YOY was around 15% and in Abu Dhabi was slightly less, around 7%.”

About the company’s results, he said, “Accor’s 2022 half year results show strong recovery across all our brands and regions, with our activity back to the 2019 numbers. With a positive EBITDA of 205 million euro and a Q2 RevPAR above 2019 levels, our optimism for the near future continues to be strong.”

About the group’s future growth outlook, he added, “we expect to reach the per-pandemic level by 2023 from international demand in the Middle East. The outlook for quarter four is expected to be very healthy, with an occupancy touching 85%, representing a growth of around 15%.”

He concluded, “similar to the market, we have certainly observed a fair rebound at Sofitel Abu Dhabi Corniche, especially within our corporate segment, as companies resumed, to a certain extent, pre-pandemic business practices. Mainly in Q2 2022, we hosted many corporate groups that visited the city for business and conferences.”