Air Travel for the UAE residents to the popular Visa-Free Destinations will see a massive surge ahead of the next public holiday which falls in December.
The surge is as high as 300 % in some cases and the travel industry experts attribute this hike in fares to high demand and low availability of seats to the popular destinations as the residents are busy planning their travel.
As per the available data popular visa-free destinations such as Georgia, Azerbaijan, Thailand, Armenia, and the Maldives have witnessed a significant increase in flight prices during that period. Fares for the round-trip tickets that usually cost around Dh800 have spiked to over Dh 2,800 for some destinations.
Founder and Managing Director of Smart Travel LLC & Air Kerala
Speaking in detail about this subject was Afi Ahmed, the owner of Smart Travels, a travel operator based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the man behind recently launched Air Kerala who enthused, “UAE residents look forward to National Day extended weekend which comes after a long gap of months without holidays. Cooler weather conditions after going through simmering heat, people enjoy much needed getaway during this period. There are several affordable destinations for UAE residents to choose from. Visa free countries within 3 to 4 hours of flight like Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Uzbekistan are popular ones for their affordability.”
Speaking about the other popular destinations Afi elaborated, “Far East destinations like Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia are gaining popularity too. Srilanka, Nepal, Vietnam, Cambodia are yet another affordable options.”
But he cautioned that the holiday spirits may dampen due to demand being higher than supply elaborating on this he adds, “Historical data shows the air fares soar during such extended weekends. Apart from Holiday goers, there is additional demand from residents visiting their home countries to visit family & friends. Resulting manyfold increases in Air fare.”
Adding to the festive spirits Afi has also roped in luxury Resort World Cruises to start their Dubai operations from November 1, elaborating more on this he said, “Smart Travel has yet another option for those who wish to avoid long queues at the airport, hassle of Travel documents, Visa’s and Jet lag. Resort World Cruises, world’s renowned luxury cruise company based in Singapore is to launch its operations in Dubai effective 01st November. All-inclusive sail is filled with Fun, Entertainment, Activities, On shore excursions for its guests on board the ship.”
