Dubai offers a diverse, multicultural setting and abundance of hotels and attractions that continue to make it the top travel choice for Indian travellers who see it as a tourist destination for exploration and sightseeing. Earlier this year, Dubai introduced a five-year multiple-entry visa to boost travel between India and the Gulf nation where the visa is issued within 2-5 working days upon receiving and accepting the service request and allows its holder to stay in the country for 90 days, extendable once for a similar period, with a total stay not exceeding 180 days in one year.
In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Aneta Zajac of Fly4free, shared, “Dubai is a great example of how a city that was more of a curiosity and a place to visit while changing flights can become a full-fledged and desirable holiday destination. A multitude of various attractions – both for children and adults, for those desiring adrenaline and for beach lovers, restaurants from all over the world, great weather most of the year, and, above all, the huge availability of direct flights from most countries make Dubai attract millions of tourists. The futuristic metropolis is an interesting, safe, clean and very attractive destination where no one will be bored.”
Deniz Rymkiewicz, Group PR and Community Manager at eSky, revealed, “Tourism in the UAE has been experiencing an impressive boom in recent years, and Dubai is one of the main magnets for travelers. The city stands out as a dynamic cultural, commercial and entertainment place in the Middle East. Its iconic towers, luxury hotels, world-famous shopping malls and futuristic architectural designs attract tourists from all over the world. A visit to Dubai is a chance to experience unique experiences, such as skiing on water slides inside shopping malls, admiring the world’s tallest building Burj Khalifa, or exploring traditional markets and monuments. Dubai combines modernity with history, offering unforgettable experiences for travelers looking for unique attractions.”
According to Marzena German, Travel Market Expert at Wakacje.pl, Dubai has been a rising star in the rankings of the most popular destinations among travel agents’ clients over the past few years. She highlighted, “The success of this destination is due to several factors – apart from promotional campaigns, the main reason is accessibility. Dubai is a rather exotic destination, which is always interesting, but it is also relatively close. It is therefore possible to quite simply visit a place with an interesting culture and impressive architecture.”
Robert Blaszczyk, Head of Strategic Clients Department at Conotoxia, explained, “The dirham (AED), the official currency of the United Arab Emirates, has a much higher exchange rate to the Indian rupee. For 1 AED, you will pay approximately 22.73 INR. In the currency world, the dirham, divided into 100 fils, is among the newcomers. It entered circulation in 1973, replacing the riyal. The AED banknotes, renowned for their advanced anti-counterfeiting protection, feature symbolic buildings, plants and animals. However, compared to exchanging cash, e.g. at an airport exchange office, it seems much more convenient and beneficial to use a multi-currency card.”
He elaborated, “A night in a budget hostel in Dubai can be found for under 100 AED, i.e. about 2 272 rupees. In the hotels, the prices increase with the number of stars, but they are not out of reach. You can expect to pay around 9,000 INR per night for two people in a room at a five-star hotel. However, you can rent a 170-square-metre apartment for a staggering 363,000 INR if you want something exclusive. The cost of living in Dubai is much higher than, for example, in New Delhi. Some examples of prices converted into INR: a meal in a restaurant for one person – 2,200-3,500 INR; a fast food snack – from 690 INR; a small loaf of bread – 136 INR; a litre of milk – 160 INR; 1 kg of yellow cheese – from 900 INR; 10 eggs – about 295 INR, and a 1km taxi ride – about 80 INR.”
Robert Blaszczyk suggested, “Before leaving for the United Arab Emirates, we must take care of our passports. The next step is to complete an online visa application at uaevisa.ae. Then we have to pay for it. How much? 150 USD (12,500 INR) for a single entry permit for up to 30 days. Alternatively, there is an option to stay in Dubai for 48 hours for 95 USD (approx. 8,000 INR). 90-day visas are also available for USD 450 (37,500 INR). Once you have paid, you will receive an email confirming that you have been granted entry to the UAE. You will need to print out the visa for yourself and present it to customs when you land in Dubai. This is important for both tourist and business visitors. Dubai is becoming an increasingly popular destination for trade fairs, conferences and other events, bringing together business people from diverse industries worldwide.”
He concluded, “Two people will pay around 50,000 rupees for round-trip airfares on the New Delhi-Dubai route, for instance. A four-night stay costs around 20,000 INR. Renting a car – from 100 AED per day, but the whim of renting a Ferrari, for example, would be 10 times more expensive, meaning around 10,000 INR. Food and tickets to museums, mosques and specialities in traditional markets will cost about 30,000 INR. Some attractions are free of charge, but, for example, to enter the Burj Khalifa, the world’s highest building (828 m), you have to pay about 3,600 INR when converted from the local currency. Shopping malls, local markets and amusement parks are full of temptations that can quickly drain the budget for a day out. However, it seems that a sum of around 200,000 INR will allow two people to experience four days of incredible excitement.”