Dubai is cashing on on the 2022 Qatar World Cup

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates– Qatar isn’t the only nation getting an enormous boom in tourist thanks to its hosting of the 2022 WorldCup

The surrounding United Arab Emirates is set to take advantage of the wave too, with its flashy business capital of Dubai set to see an approximated 1 million extra visitors throughout the course of the soccer competition, according to the Dubai Sports Council.

Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports, in August called Dubai “the major gateway” to the World Cup and forecasted it would see more travelers than Qatar itself.

And the city is taking out all the stops, leveraging its track record as a hyper-modern city more liberal and built-out than Qatar and promoting the lavish traveler destinations it’s established a track record for.

Dubai is understood for excessive and over-the-top experiences– like its indoor ski slope complex in the desert, the world’s inmost manufactured plunge swimming pool, the world’s highest structure and biggest Ferris wheel. It’s now included particular World Cup- themed experiences, concurrently making the most of the reality that Qatar, a small nation of 3 million individuals, is having a hard time to accommodate all its anticipated travelers and much of them will decide to lodge in Dubai for the matches rather.

This has actually been enabled by “match day air shuttles” being run by Qatar Airlines and Dubai- based inexpensive provider FlyDubai– enabling tourists to book same-day round-trip flights from Dubai or close-by Oman to go to a match in Qatar and return in less than 24 hours.

“Only an hour away from Qatar by flight, Dubai is a familiar destination for global travelers,” Taufiq Rahim, a research study fellow at the Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government, informed CNBC. “Its tourism infrastructure and straightforward entry requirements make it a convenient base for World Cup fans.”

Qatar is anticipated to have actually provided 45,000 hotel spaces in overall by the start of November, according to Cushman & & Wakefield Qatar, with competition lodging “bolstered by cruise ships, camping facilities, apartments and villas.” Dubai, on the other hand, as a city has more than 140,000 hotel spaces, according to hotel information company STR.

Around the UAE’s various emirates, 43 fan zones for seeing matches have actually been established, with a few of the most significant– like Budweiser’s main BudX fan zone in Dubai Harbor– huge sufficient to host 10,000 fans daily with matches aired on massive 3,552 square-foot screens. There’s even a soccer-themed hotel on Dubai’s manufactured Palm island chain, where the most devoted fans can remain while being shuttled in and out of Doha for everyday matches.

Dubai’s profits will not simply be originating from hotel stays and dining establishments. Visitors to the emirate can lease superyachts running in the 10s of countless dollars per night to enjoy matches while cruising through the Persian Gulf.

Xclusive Yachts, the UAE’s biggest personal charter luxury yacht business, provides its most extravagant seaborne experience at $20,000 per night on a tri-deck superyacht total with a skydeck, onboard bar, skylounge, 5 cabins and a Michelin- starred chef serving premium meals.

“We are anticipating a more than 300% [rise] in luxury yacht reservations in November and December generally due to visitors for the World Cup and Qatar who are likewise trying to find recreation in Dubai,” Managing Director Amit Patel informed Doha News in October.

Flight traffic is likewise soaring– Dubai Airports in mid-November revealed that a massive 120 shuttle bus flights will fly in and out of the Dubai World Central airport every day in between the competition’s start and end dates ofNov 20 andDec 18.

And on Monday, the CEO of Flydubai, Ghaith Al Ghaith, stated that almost all of the airline company’s match-day shuttle bus flights to Doha were at complete capability.

“This is a pattern that looks set to continue over the next couple of days and weeks,” Al Ghaith stated.

Flydubai and Qatar Airways will be collectively running the match day shuttle bus flights in between DWC andDoha With the addition of flights from Dubai’s primary airport, Dubai International (DXB), tourists can capture a flight every 30 to 50 minutes.

But like whatever in Dubai, there’s a high-end alternative if you have the money to invest: Private jet charter business have actually seen a boom in service, with some fans happy to pay eye-watering amounts to get to matches.

“We certainly see a great increase in traffic between Dubai and Doha over the coming month,” Oleg Kafarov, portfolio advancement and interactions director at Dubai- based personal charter jet business Jetex, informed CNBC.

Jetex provides 2 bundles: a complete personal jet service priced at 240,000 UAE dirhams ($65,340) for approximately 10 guests, or private seats priced that run for 29,000 dirhams ($ 7,895) each. The flight time in between Dubai and Doha is approximately an hour.

The business even dressed up its VIP terminal at DWC airport as a World Cup fan zone, with a small soccer pitch and other themed decors.

Despite the high rates, need for personal flights is considerably greater than this time in 2015, charter operators are reporting, though the figures differ from business to business.

Ian Moore, primary business officer for personal charter business VistaJet, states more than 70 of its executive jet flights to Qatar for matches are currently reserved.

“There’s obviously some people that are waiting to see if their favorite team gets past the qualifying rounds,” Moore informed GulfNews

“We strongly encourage our clientele to book with us as early as possible, even with a private jet, given the restrictions, and the amount of volume of flights that Doha is expecting, you need to be well organized and well-structured.”