According to the latest Q3 2017 data released by the Expedia group, international mobile business into the UAE has increased significantly compared to the same period last year.
Data shows travellers from the United States leading with almost 35% of room night demand made via mobile or tablet – almost a 60% year-on-year increase compared to the same period last year. This is followed by travellers from the United Kingdom at a little over 20% which is an increase of almost 25% and 5% from France which is a year-on-year increase of around 80%.
Overall Demand Trends
Demand for travel into the UAE, including non-mobile, has shown a healthy year-on-year increase in demand of over 25% for both Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Room night demand into the UAE saw growth from travellers globally, with notable growth from European countries such as Ireland (up triple digits year-on-year) and Switzerland (double demand year on year). US demand grew at a steady 5% year on year and travellers from Asia surged, notably from South Korea (up almost 35% year on year).
This growth in demand was also aided by an increase in the average length of stay. Data shows that travellers coming from Switzerland (over 5days), France (more than 4 days), Germany (over 4 days), United Kingdom (more than 4 days) and Netherlands (nearly 5 days) stayed the longest.
Package vs. Standalone Demand
When looking at package demand, the top two countries for packages (for example, hotel with flight) remain the United States and the United Kingdom. Countries that have shown the highest year-on-year growth in package demand are Switzerland with an almost 130% increase, followed by Germany which saw almost a 45% increase year-on-year.
Data shows that travellers booking packages tend to have longer booking windows and stay for longer when compared to standalone reservations. For example, travellers coming from the United Kingdom had an average booking window of 28 days and stay for over 3 days for standalone demand compared to 62 days for stays of over 6 days for packages, demonstrating power of packages and the benefits to hoteliers.
Paula De Keijzer, Senior Director Market Management Middle East, Indian Ocean, Africa, Greece & Turkey at Expedia said, “The trends we are witnessing in mobile and package demand into the UAE are looking like they’re set to grow and be more prominent and it’s great to see such strong international demand into our country. We are committed to supporting hoteliers by providing them with the technology and tools necessary to allow them to take full advantage of these trends. This will help hotels react to, pre-empt and capture international demand more effectively.”
