Dubai Reinforces Its Position As Favoured Winter Cruise Destination at Seatrade Cruise Global 2019

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) highlighted the city’s growing popularity as a global cruise destination during the 2019 edition of Seatrade Cruise Global, a leading event for the global cruise industry that took place from 8 to 11 April in Florida, USA. The event reinforced Dubai’s suitability for home porting for international cruise lines and showcased the emirate as a viable destination for pre and post cruise stopovers.

Dubai Tourism participated in the leading annual cruise industry event, exhibiting once again under the Cruise Arabia banner to bring together the tourism authorities of Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Oman and Bahrain. The unified stand promoted the region’s cruising capabilities as a whole, improving business sustainability and development following successful networking and business opportunities with leading brands in the global cruise industry.

The event also welcomed world-class international cruise lines, providing a valuable platform to host discussions on deployments and homeporting opportunities in Dubai. Crucial leads were generated as a result, reaffirming Dubai’s position as the “cruise hub of the region” with ten international cruise lines confirming they would make Dubai their winter home port during the 2020/21 season. This will result in over ten cruise ships sailing out of Dubai every week on a round trip international itinerary, offering diversified choices across all budgets and demographics – including boutique, ultra-luxury and mega-ships.

Speaking about Dubai Tourism’s presence at this year’s Seatrade Cruise Global, Hamad Bin Mejren, Senior Vice President, Dubai Tourism, said: “Dubai is primed as a year-round ‘must-visit’ destination for cruise tourists, welcoming multiple international cruise lines to operate regular international itineraries out of the city. We are committed to actively working with our robust network of local, regional and global partners to continue to highlight Dubai’s ease of accessibility – be it with the introduction of a six month multi-entry UAE visa exclusively for the crew of cruise ships free of cost, a low cost multi-entry UAE visit visa exclusively for cruise tourists, visa on arrival for over 50 nationalities, and simplified immigration and cruise-specific visa procedures on our online portals. This works in conjunction with Dubai’s efficient cruise terminal operations and continual enhancements, reinforcing the emirate’s reputation as one of the world’s leading cruise destinations.”