NEWS
The lifting of advice for travel to the UAE and elsewhere ‘is a vital and welcome step back towards normality’
Trade predicts long-haul revival after FCDO changes Gulf advice
Juliet Dennis
The travel trade is predicting a bounce-back in long-haul summer sales as consumer confidence returns following the relaxation in Foreign Office travel advice to the Gulf. The FCDO dropped advice
against all-but-essential travel to the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, as well as Oman, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, on June 18 after a memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran. Agents and operators welcomed
the news, which they said would boost consumer confidence, particularly to transit via the UAE to long-haul destinations. Blue Bay Travel chief executive
Alistair Rowland said: “Going forward, we won’t have to cancel hundreds of bookings every month.” He predicted a rise in bookings to
travelweekly.co.uk
the Indian Ocean this summer thanks to “good capacity and value”, noting: “You might even find you can go to the Maldives cheaper than Greece.” But he stressed the update had
STORY TOP
yet to translate into a booking spike for the operator, blaming news of “political shenanigans” for “almost drowning out” media coverage of the advice change. Others reported an immediate surge in long-haul sales via the UAE. “We saw bookings
bounce back straight away, with particularly
strong interest in destinations
such as the Maldives,” said Kuoni managing director Mark Duguid. Tracy Clenshaw, head of
commercial at Fred Olsen Travel, said Asia had returned to the group’s top-three trading destinations for the first time in several weeks. Gary King, head of trade sales
at Wendy Wu Tours, said: “The combination of the Middle East peace
agreement and the lifting of FCDO advice for the UAE has provided an extra layer of reassurance, particularly for those considering long-haul holidays to Asia and beyond.” Specialist Holidays Group
chief executive Andy Freeth said the lifting of advice was the news the industry had been waiting for, hailing it as “a vital and welcome step back towards normality”. Premier Holidays head of
trade sales Dom Carrick said: “We expect this to act as a strong catalyst for demand as we move into peak booking periods.” The trade predicted the recovery
would take longer for bookings to Middle East destinations. Protected Trust Services
managing director Emma Collis said: “Customers are still cautious. Members have seen some new UAE enquiries, but not a mass influx for UAE, Middle East or long-haul bookings.” John Sullivan, commercial
director at Advantage Travel Partnership, said: “Bookings are now starting to come in for later this year and early 2027 for travel to the UAE. We’re ready to quickly support the expected pent-up demand for destinations in the Middle East.” The Travel Network Group
commercial director Katharina Peck noted: “We’ve seen the UAE re-enter our top-20 destinations for the first time in several weeks.” Natasha Towey, managing
director at Carrier, said the low-season timing gave hotels time to become fully operational ahead of October’s peak, but stressed clients wanted “certainty, reassurance, flexibility and protection”. Ian Gilder, managing director
at Adore Holidays, said: “I’ve had a couple of Dubai enquiries since [the news] even though it is not one of my main markets.” But he added: “I will still err on the
side of caution when I speak to people; something might change again.”
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PICTURE: Shutterstock/frank_peters
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