MIDDLE EAST AFFORDABLE DUBAI DESTINATIONS
scale Economies of
You can see Dubai without stretching the budget, says Jeannine Williamson
H
igh living doesn’t have to cost the earth. Despite its
reputation for gold taps and glitzy hotels, a recent consumer survey found Dubai was the only destination to top the polls in both the luxury and affordable luxury sections. It certainly isn’t ceding any
territory at the top end of the market, with plenty to keep the uber-rich coming back time and again. But as the overall number of holidaymakers edges upwards – there were 845,000 UK visitors
PICTURE: VIDA DOWNTOWN DUBAI 15 October 2015
travelweekly.co.uk 77
in 2014, up 11% on the previous year – it seems people are starting to realise there’s a world beyond the designer shopping malls and headline-grabbing seven-star hotels. That’s a promising shift, if Dubai Tourism wants to achieve its five-year target to more than double its UK and Ireland visitors numbers to two million a year. So with that in mind, is it
possible to enjoy this exciting and ever-changing emirate without having to break the bank?
w STAY: KEEP IT SIMPLE A new initiative is seeing a rise in midmarket properties and self- catering accommodation as part of the Vision for 2020 strategy, which aims to attract 20 million annual worldwide visitors by 2020. Ian Scott, UK and Ireland
Director of Dubai Tourism, explains: “We launched an incentive to hotel developers to increase our offering of three and four-star accommodation as well as a new decree regarding the regulation of self-catering
apartments, townhouses and villas, which will open up the emirate to a broader market.” In the meantime, there are budget-friendly options if you know where to look. Slightly outside the city centre are value- driven properties such as the three-star Ibis Deira City Centre. It is only a 15-minute drive to the old town and just a stone’s throw from Deira City Centre metro station, yet is more competitively priced than its more central counterparts. Three nights
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