The number of passengers on cruise tours in Dubai has doubled over the season.
Cruise tourism is one of the fastest growing segments of the tourism industry in Dubai, according to a new report by the Chamber of Commerce. The city is one of the leading winter cruise destinations in the world.
The cruise season in Dubai runs from November to March every year.
According to Cruise Arabia and Africa, the number of liner passengers in Dubai increased from 320 thousand in the 2013/2014 season to 625 thousand in the 2016/2017 season, which corresponds to a 95 percent increase.
According to the report, the number of cruise ship flights to Dubai via the Hamdan Bin Mohammad terminal in Port Rashid increased by 68%.
During the next cruise season (2018/2019), the Dubai Tourism Council expects to receive 725 thousand passengers, and 825 thousand in a year.
“Dubai has the most modern and largest specialized port in the Middle East,” the report said.
In the upcoming cruise season, 83 cruise ships are expected to pass through Dubai in transit, and 30 will stop at the port.
According to the CCI, the government is increasingly focusing on cruise tourism in its strategy to attract an increasing number of visitors to the city. As part of this plan, a number of measures have been implemented to support the cruise tourism industry in Dubai, including the issuance of specialized visas.
Port operator DP World said it will cut port charges at Dubai Cruise Terminal by 50 percent in the coming season.
The government also announced plans to turn Dubai into a fully integrated maritime tourism center and build new terminals.
The new Dubai Cruise Terminal is expected to begin operations in October 2020. He will be able to take six cruise ships at once.
Between 2011 and 2016, American, Chinese and German tourists were leaders in the top three countries in the number of sea cruise tours. The CCI report states that Dubai, as a cruise center, may also be of interest to India, Russia and China.
