Middle East travel and hospitality stakeholders expect Chinese outbound numbers to improve in 2024 and fully recover by 2025.
Amanda Elder, Chief Commercial Officer and Executive Committee Member, Kempinski Hotels, said: TTG Asia Although the number of Chinese guests at her Middle East properties is lower than at sister properties in Bangkok, Bali and Singapore, she said business has increased significantly this year.
“We expect visitor numbers from China to return to pre-COVID-19 levels within the next 18 months,” Elder said.
According to HBX Group, one of the leading B2B players in the travel tech space, Chinese outbound to the Middle East increased by 10% year-on-year in fiscal year 2024 (October 2023 to September 2024). The most popular Middle East destination among Chinese outbound travelers in 2024 was Dubai, followed by Doha, Medina and Kuwait.
Paul Anthony, director of digital commercialization at HBX Group, said: “Among Chinese nationals departing to destinations in the Middle East, around 30 per cent of arrivals stay between four and six nights; stay for 7 nights or more.'' Chinese people seek culture, shopping, and luxury experiences while in the Middle East. ”
The DMC of the area said: TTG Asia China's incentive travel movement was found to be stronger than that of leisure travelers.
Sameer Mehta, chief operating officer of Desert Adventures Tourism, said strengthening air links between China and the Middle East was a factor.
“Recently, we managed a large group of approximately 1,400 Chinese incentive recipients,” he said.
