• RESILIENCE
Left: Fitness events and pursuits are a growing segment of the Dubai visitor and resident experience
From Michelin-starred restaurants to old Dubai’s cultural food offering, gastronomy has emerged as a powerful draw for visitors
Progress with purpose 42.7mn+ Single-use plastic bottles eliminated through Dubai Can 13,000+ Tourism employees trained in autism and sensory awareness 237 hotels Currently recognised with the Dubai Sustainable Tourism Stamp 60% Of the emirate reserved for nature under the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan towards higher-value, longer-stay, and repeat engagement; and further enhancing our global appeal as a multifaceted destination that attracts travellers, talent, investors, and businesses. History reinforces our confidence. After both the global financial crisis and the pandemic, Dubai emerged faster and stronger through each cycle. That consistency reflects durable fundamentals: visionary leadership, a clear strategy, an agile public-private ecosystem, and a clear belief in what this city is capable of. The question ahead is not whether recovery will come, but how effectively we use this moment to build a tourism sector that is more diversified, more digitally enabled, and more sustainability-driven. While continued visitation growth is of course important, a vital consideration is the quality and long-term impact of that growth. Over the next few years, success will mean attracting visitors who stay longer, explore more of the city and return again and again. It will mean continuing to broaden Dubai's appeal, not only as a leisure destination, but as a place for business, culture, gastronomy, wellness, sport and innovation. It will also mean ensuring tourism continues to make a meaningful contribution to the ambitions of D33, supporting investment, creating opportunities for businesses and strengthening Dubai's position as one of the world's leading cities to visit, live and work. Ultimately, our ambition is clear cut: that every time someone visits Dubai, they discover something new. That is what drives repeat visitation, sustained economic value and long- term competitiveness, and it is what will define success for us in the years ahead.
powerful draw: The 2025 MICHELIN Guide Dubai recognised 119 restaurants across 35 cuisines, including the city's first three-star establishments, while old Dubai's cultural food tours featured among Lonely Planet's top global experiences for 2026. Business and MICE tourism remains strong with Dubai World Trade Centre hosting 401 events in 2025, attracting 2.97 million attendees. Summer travel is growing as the Dubai Summer Surprises programme broadens its reach, and live concerts, sport, and major exhibitions continue to extend stays and spend. Wellness and active lifestyle tourism is accelerating: the Dubai Fitness Challenge, entering its milestone 10th edition in October, directly supports Dubai’s positioning as a health and wellbeing destination. Together, these segments form a resilient, diversified portfolio. Q: How is Dubai leveraging technology to enhance the visitor journey? Technology is most valuable when it creates the conditions for better human experiences, and that philosophy guides every investment in our digital infrastructure. Our partnership with Amadeus is creating a citywide platform for rapid travel technology prototyping, supporting a seamless visitor journey that begins before arrival through to departure. Our collaboration with Visa uses global payments data to understand exactly which markets are travelling, how they are spending, and where the strongest opportunities lie. The Visit Dubai app continues to deliver personalised itineraries to a growing traveller base. Looking towards 2040 and beyond, the central question is not how much technology
we deploy, but how intelligently it amplifies the warmth and generosity that define Dubai as a destination. Those qualities cannot, and should not, be automated. Q: Sustainability, accessibility, and inclusivity are key tourism priorities; how is Dubai embedding these into its long-term development plans? Responsible tourism is a steadfast commitment and the foundation of Dubai's long-term appeal. In 2025, Dubai became the first Certified Autism Destination™ in the Eastern Hemisphere, with more than 13,000 members of the tourism workforce trained in autism and sensory awareness. The Dubai Can movement has eliminated over 42.7 million single-use plastic bottles, and the Dubai Reef project is progressing towards delivering one of the world's largest marine reef developments. In addition, 237 hotels were recently recognised with the Dubai Sustainable Tourism Stamp in the third cycle of the awards, a 55% year-on-year increase on the previous cycle. The Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan reserves 60% of the emirate for nature, underscoring that sustainability is embedded in urban planning as well as tourism policy. As travellers increasingly choose destinations that align with their values, Dubai's leadership on sustainability and accessibility represents a genuine, long-term advantage. Q: What will define success for Dubai as a tourism destination in the future? Success is clearly defined: sustained economic growth that keeps Dubai on track to double its economy by 2033, aligned with the Dubai Economic Agenda, D33; a visitor profile shifting
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