The World Economic Forum releases an annual report that ranks countries based upon the particular features that make them appealing to tourists.
The top Arab nation in the list, coming in at 23rd place overall, was the United Arab Emirates.
This year, the UAE has also been named as the “happiest” and “least corrupt” nation in the Arab world, with the Emirati city of Dubai also earning the title of the Arab World’s most liveable city.
The competitiveness of as many as 140 nations were assessed during the preparation of the report, with the use of a series of policies and factors that have an impact on the development of a country.
The 2019 report named Spain as the world’s best country to visit, with France in second place, closely followed by Germany, Japan and the US.
These policies and factors include the likes of safety and security, how much of a priority tourism and travel is, health and hygiene, and the business environment.
The revelation of the position of the UAE on the report from the World Economic Forum came just a few months after the decision by Dubai Holding’s international luxury hotel chain Jumeirah Group to axe around 500 jobs in the wake of an apparent downward spiral in the tourism sector of Dubai, the great majority of which were in support positions.
Occupancy levels in hotels in the Emirati city also dropped to the lowest levels seen in 10 years during this year’s second quarter.
However, August 2019 figures seem to indicate that this was only a temporary setback for one of the liveliest industries in the emirates.
The Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing in Dubai published the statistics, which revealed that there was an increase of as much as 3% in the number of overnight visitors from overseas in Dubai in the first half of this year.
In comparison to the figure of 8.10 million tourists recorded last year, 8.36 million tourists have arrived in Dubai so far in 2019.
The upturn comes despite fewer people coming over from India and the UK, two of the UAE’s biggest source markets for international guests, which, according to The National,is due to the fall in value of both the rupee and the pound.
Hotel bookings are expected to continue to rise in the months that lead up to next year’s Expo 2020, which will be held in Dubai.
A number of measures intended to confront the slow rate of economic growth have been introduced by the government, including long-term visas being issued to individuals and lower business fees in particular areas.
New laws regarding alcohol purchase for tourists were also rolled out by the Gulf nation in August, allowing them to purchase alcohol in shops if they have a free-of-charge licence, are over 21, and are not Muslim.
Anyone who is intending to travel to Dubai or elsewhere in the UAE should take out travel insurance to guard against issues such as falling sick while overseas.
