June 9th, 2023, Bhawna Singh
Latest data from YouGov reveals that Global Village was the most visited domestic attraction in the UAE in the last 12 months.
Magic Planet (Dubai), Dubai Aquarium and Underwater Zoo, Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, and Dubai Parks & Resorts are some of the other destinations that were most frequented by UAE residents in the past 12 months.
A comparison of the proportion of UAE residents who visited each domestic tourist venue in the past 12 months and who intend to visit or re-visit them in the next 12 months shows that Global Village is likely to remain the top attraction in the future as well. Three in ten UAE residents (31%) are likely to visit or revisit Global Village in the next 12 months, even though there is a -8% decrease in intent to visit this place compared to the past 12 months.
On the other hand, the Museum of the Future Abu Dhabi recorded the biggest increase (of +9%) in intent to visit, making it one of the most anticipated tourist destinations of the year.
Similarly, Magic Planet Dubai saw an uplift of +7%, from 11% who said they visited it in the last 12 months to 18% who claim they are likely to visit in the coming 12 months.
Other venues that recorded an increase in future visitation intent were Dubai Ice Rink, Dubai Mall (of +4%), and Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi (of +3%).
YouGov also deep-dived into the summer travel habits of UAE & KSA consumers. Data from the survey showed that a large majority of residents in UAE & KSA (71%) intend to spend more time in their country of residence this summer (June to September) as compared to the last season.
Slightly under two-thirds (64%) acknowledge the positive developments in the leisure & entertainment sector in their country of residence and think it is becoming a year-round destination, including during the summer. With the recent developments in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s L&E sector, it is not surprising to see KSA residents feel this more strongly (at 68%).
From the various tourist attractions, residents plan to beat the summer heat by spending more time in theme parks (31%), theatres (27%), and museums (20%). Art galleries (17%), Exhibitions (15%), Comedy shows (13%), and concerts or live music events (11%) are also likely to expect crowds during this time.
As the data shows, while there is intent to visit various domestic tourist attractions, consumers expect them to do much more to improve the customer experience during the heat of the summer (with 62% in UAE & KSA saying this). Additionally, our data reveals that a large majority of residents in both countries (68%) claim they will definitely buy annual passes to local attractions if they are at an attractive price, with a higher number of KSA residents saying this as compared to UAE residents (72% vs 65%).
Furthermore, a majority (55%) claim their spending stays the same or increases during the summer season, presenting an opportunity at a time potentially believed to be off-season for leisure activities. With UAE & KSA becoming increasingly year-round destinations, L&E venues may benefit from understanding the changing travel habits of residents and designing packages that guarantee value for money for a wide variety of entertainment.
To learn more about seasonal consumer travel habits, please download the full report here.
*Results based on YouGov Survey: Serviced on a sample of 2005 residents in UAE & KSA in May 2023