Dubai strengthens its global leadership in tourism with over 5 million international visitors in the first quarter of 2025
Dubai recorded a 3% year-on-year growth in international visitor arrivals, reaching 5.31 million in the first quarter of 2025. This follows a strong 2024 performance with 18.7 million international tourists—a 9% increase from the previous year.
This diverse tourism base reflects Dubai's resilient global appeal and its strategic positioning as a cross-continental hub.
These figures underscore the vitality of Dubai’s hospitality sector, reinforcing investor confidence in hotel assets, branded residences, and short-term rental opportunities.
Dubai is advancing a $35 billion expansion of Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC), aiming for a capacity of 260 million passengers annually. Meanwhile, Dubai International Airport (DXB) set a record with 92.3 million passengers in 2024.
Aligned with its Economic Agenda 2033, Dubai targets to double its economy by bolstering non-oil sectors—tourism, aviation, technology, and trade—thereby attracting global capital and talent.
Dubai’s diversified tourism strategy, pro-business reforms, and infrastructure scale-up make it a magnet for sustainable real estate investment. As global mobility continues to rebound, the emirate's ability to adapt and attract across sectors places it firmly on the radar of long-term investors.
