The United Arab Emirates enjoys an increased popularity as a tourist destination, with Dubai being one of the most visited cities in the world. And now new data shows the country is among the top 10 holiday spots for Britons, ahead of Greece, India, or Egypt.
Spain remains the most popular destination for air travelers from the UK, beating France and the US in the latest statistics, released by UK Civil Aviation Authority. The data for 2014 shows that of the 238 million passengers who passed though British airports, most fly to Europe – 144 million people. Greece turns out to be rising most in popularity among Britons – the increase from 2013 is by 13.2 percent, or roughly 5.6 million passengers. Another notable growth is seen in the UAE, with a passenger increase of 7.4 percent, or 430,000 travelers. In fact, the country is indeed the favorite Middle Eastern destination for air travelers from the UK and the only from the region that makes it to the top 10.
Spain is the most visited country in the statistic for 2014 – more than 34 million people fly to various destinations there. The leader is followed by the USA, which however, attracted twice as little, or less than 18 million. Germany beats popular holiday destinations such as Italy (4th) and France (5th), while the Irish Republic (6th) turns out to be more desirable than the Netherlands (7th). Although the obvious preference for Europe, the UAE comes as the eight most visited country on the list with 6.2 million travelers. This is a quite surprising revelation, especially considering the US and the UAE are the only non-European spots in the top 10. Portugal and Switzerland come in ninth and tenth place, respectively. In fact, there aren’t many other destinations in the top 20, except for India (17th) and Egypt (20th).
Another list, complied by foreign exchange Caxton FX, shows the cheapest destinations for city break in the world. Researchers calculated the cost of visiting some of the most popular cities and found that due to the falling value of the euro, certain places in Europe are getting cheaper to visit. Istanbul turns out to be most affordable, followed by Budapest, Marrakesh, Prague, Dublin, and to a huge surprise, Prague, Dublin, Brussels, and even seemingly expensive cities such as Rome, London, Paris, and Berlin. And travelers, who are on a thin budget, should avoid Oslo, Venice, Madrid, Stockholm, and New York.
