A Detailed Comparison of Tourism in London and Dubai: A Report

This report provides a comparative analysis of tourism in London and Dubai, examining key aspects such as tourist attractions, spending patterns, and economic impact. The introduction highlights the significance of tourism in economic growth, emphasizing infrastructure and cultural factors. The report then details the major tourist attractions in both cities, including Buckingham Palace, the British Museum, and the Tower of London for London, and Burj Khalifa and smart tourism initiatives for Dubai. The report explores the reasons for choosing each destination, discussing London's historical sites, cultural offerings, and visitor spending, while Dubai's focus on smart tourism, infrastructure development, and the upcoming World Expo 2020 are also discussed. Data from various sources, including VisitBritain and Dubai Chamber of Commerce, are used to compare tourist numbers, spending, and growth rates. The report concludes with a synthesis of the findings, providing insights into the strengths and weaknesses of each destination and their overall performance in the tourism sector.

Tourism Destination

Table of Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................2
Tourism Attractions at London....................................................................................................................2
Tourist Attractions of Dubai.........................................................................................................................3
Reasons to choose London for Tourist Destination.....................................................................................4
Reasons for choosing Dubai as a Tourist Destination..................................................................................5
London with Dubai Compared on basis of Data..........................................................................................7
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................................9
References:................................................................................................................................................11
Introduction

Tourism depends on the growth of the place, and the economy is the factor which directly
influences the promotion of tourism. The success of tourism sector depends on the number of
tourists who visit the place per year. The factors such as economy help in building amazing
infrastructure design and the best infrastructure like transport networks and hotels etc. decide the
number of visitors. The society and culture are other two factors which attract tourists. So, a
place with marvelous infrastructure to support the tourism industry and supportive culture will
attract more tourists. In this paper we will compare the tourism in London with that in Dubai,
using the statistics of the tourists in last few years and the other information available from
various sources.
Tourism Attractions at London
London tourism accounts for ten percent of the revenue generation of the city and at an average
the tourists in the city spend fifteen million pounds per year. The spending by tourists include
stay, transportation and food, along with the recreation fee at the various sights. The people in
tourism industry of London have grown to a significant thirteen percent, which shows that the
city has focused on the development of this sector. The most visited destination is the
Buckingham palace, and it attracts fifteen million tourists every year. The main charm of the
people to visit this place is change of the guard ceremony. The timing for the event is 11:15 in
the afternoon. The palace holds a royal legacy and it is still the official royal residence. However,
some rooms of the palace are open for the visitors, during the summer season. The St James Park
and Green Park in the palace offer a natural treat to the tourists. In London the Victoria and
Albert Museum, in Kensington, is the popular place for the travelers to visit. The museum holds
four million objects for display. (London’s Economic Plan and Major Industries, 2018)

The British Museum is another captivating spot, which has six million visitors each year. The
entrance to the museum is free of cost, so lot many people come to see it. Another reason for the
large footfall is that the museum is open throughout the week. It has 7 million things to be
displayed, it has “world’s oldest mummy and Rosetta Stone”. Some of the famous visiting spots
lie near Thames River. The Tower of London is the frequently visited destination due to the
Crowns Jewels of England, which are showcased there. The Tower Bridge is located just near
the Tower of London and there are Houses of Parliament along the river banks. For book lovers,
the Kings Cross Library exhibitions are a good place to visit. From Lewis Carroll’s, “Alice in
Wonderland” to the famous “Magna Carta”, the library has many literary delicacies. (London’s
Economic Plan and Major Industries, 2018)
Tourist Attractions of Dubai
Dubai is using smart tourism to attract more and more tourists each year. This type of tourism
will promote sustainability and it will be at the priority of the planning process. The city is
focusing to improve the tourism and is using government agencies, educational centers and other
institutions which can collaborate with government for the development of smart tourism. Dubai
tourism agencies are focusing on the development of infrastructure and technological aspects of
tourism. The projects for promoting smart tourism include- smart airports, high-tech hotels and
smart conveyance facilities. It has man-made islands and beautiful theme based malls. It is a fact
that the tourists believe that Dubai is a place which has shown tremendous development in last
few decades. It is one of the major competitive cities of the world. The city has some of the
amazing architectural marvels like- Burj Al Arab and Burj Khalifa, which are amongst the most
luxurious hotels of the world. Dubai has been chosen as the best business hub for many modern

companies. So, Dubai has a bright future and it has more tourists in store for the coming years.
(Khan et al, 2017)
Reasons to choose London for Tourist Destination
From recent few years, London tourism has taken a giant leap and it is presently at a very strong
position. The city has welcomed thirty million visitors per year, from various places of the world
and United Kingdom, too. The annual spending is more than 14 billion pound. There were many
hosts for the Olympic Games, but London has kept eh passion for improvement alive, even after
the end of the games. London has attracted sixteen million overseas visitors, after London
Olympics 2012. The Mastercard survey has placed London ahead of Bangkok and Paris, which
are world’s favorite tourist destinations. The people from various wealthy places like UAE come
to this place in search of pleasant weather, cultural treat, best museums, theatres and art galleries.
People speak around three hundred different languages, and the rich hospitality sector provides
the tourists, the best of both the worlds. You can never be a stranger in this most friendly city of
the world. It is a city which remains in movement day and night; there is no boredom or stillness
in the city ever. The best tourist destinations in London are- Buckingham Palace, Big Ben,
Piccadilly Circus and London Tower. The cultural treats include a visit to National Gallery and
London Museum. The people, who visit frequently and get bored easily, the city has both ancient
and modern places. There are many leisure activities like a visit to theatres and Queen Elizabeth
Park. The serendipitous tourists are the prime source of earning in tourism business. In the past
few years, the rate of people visiting cultural places in London has increased. There is a new
generation of visitors, the explorers, who stay in London for longer time and spend more money.
(Visit England, 2017)

Reasons for choosing Dubai as a Tourist Destination
A destination similar to UKs London is Dubai, which is the gem of UAE and world’s best
attraction site. In 2020, the city is believed to drive twenty five million travelers, as it is the host
for World 2020 Expo. More than 120 nations are expected to participate in this great event. The
top guns of the world will be the part of this wonderful event. It will be Dubai’s first event. The
expo will prove beneficial to the economic growth of United Arabian Emirates and it will be
going to attract more foreign investors. UAE due to its superfluous infrastructure and
geographical location, will attract great number of tourists. (Modul Dubai University, 2017)
UAE has reached the pinnacle of tourism industry due to its friendly government policies, well-
planned infrastructure, splendid tourist attraction sites and promotion of diverse forms of
tourism. Dubai is the central place for hosting world’s top level business conferences. The sports
tourism has also grown in the past few years. UAE hosted the Champion league matches and its
world famous hospitability has attracted many tourists. Dubai is a place where people come for
sports activities like “Formula 1 Grand Prix, Tennis Championships, horse racing, skydiving,
water surfing and scuba diving.” In this way the different types of tourism has benefitted the
growth of Dubai. (Modul Dubai University, 2017)
According to VisitBritain site, the forecast for the year 2017, was thirty nine million visitors for
London, which was six point two percent more than the year 2016. The year 2017 set new
records for the visitor spending. The tourism industry has experienced such a rate of growth after
2006. The spending rate increased after the year 2013 and it was recorded to be the fastest in the
year 2017. The forecast for the year 2018 was done to be forty one million visits and 26.9 billion
pounds in traveler spending. This marked up a 6.8% increase than last year’s spending. (Visit
Britain, 2018)

According to the report of the London Tourism statistics, there has been an increase in the
number of tourist visits to UK, and London has been the top priority of the visitors. London
offers iconic landmarks such as London Tower, Houses of Parliament and the famous St. Paul’s
Cathedral. The British capital has best tourists. The tourist site, “London & Partners”, is the city
Mayor’s official agency, which keeps a record of the tourist visits to the place. According to the
site, the tourism industry has grown by ten percent in the year 2017. London alone had five point
five million visitors, during the second quarter of the year. The travelers spent 4.5 billion dollars
during their visits. It has been seen that the North Americans showed a thirty percent rise in their
visits to the place and around eighty percent visitors in April, were from North America. The
traveler spending during the year 2016 showed a twenty three percent rise. American people also
started frequently visiting London, due to fall in pound as compared to dollar. (Smithers, 2017)
Andrew Cooke, from London & Partners, said, “It is fantastic news that growing
numbers of people are opting to visit London”, the capital experienced too many
travelers in last few years. London is a welcoming city, and it embraces its
guests with wide open arms. The people visit this place for its unique culture,
world-class sports and historical places. The experts in the industry say that
North Americans are the best target visitors in London. There are some frequent
visitors due to business or just for leisure activities. The travel industry plans to
attract millions of US visitors till the end of the year 2025. Tourism has helped to
raise the city’s GDP to 11.6 percent and it has contributed to nine percent for
the whole UK. There are many options for employment in tourism sector, every
1 in 7 people in London belongs to this industry. The travelers spend fifty three
percent in London alone. (Smithers, 2017)

London with Dubai Compared on basis of Data
Dubai has many things to offer including its skyscrapers and the man made islands. There are
dozens of five star hotels and with world-class malls, it has been named as the most expensive
destination of the world. The estimated spending of the tourists is 278. 92 pounds per person for
a single night stay, which is four times more than the European destinations. In a study done by
airport booking site, Hoppa, it was calculated that a tourist normally purchases beer, coffee, meal
for two persons, hotel bookings and taxi fares. And, Dubai topped the ranking of most expensive
place with a five-star stay for a person to be 214.81 pounds. (Kitching, 2016)
Travel and tourism industry in UAE has given rise to 12.1% of GDP in the region. The leisure
tourism has accounted to 77% of total tourism spending of the region. The share for business
travel was merely, 23% of the share. On the other hand, the domestic tourism has reached 26% in
2016 with a foreign spending coverage of 74%. The tourism sector will cover 56 billion USD till
the year, 2022. According to the report of Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, tourism
will reach an altogether new level in the coming years. Tourism and travel is the main source of
earning for UAE, and it is clear from the fact that twelve percent of the region’s GDP is
dependent on this sector. Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry studies confirm that, by the
end of the year 2022, hospitality sector will rise to 56 billion US dollars. In 2017, the nation’s
tourist spending crossed forty two billion USD. The number of business and leisure travels to
the region reached nearly fifteen million during the year 2016. The leisure travel alone gained
seventy percent of tourists but the visitors for business were just twenty three percent. (Dubai
Chamber, 2017)
As compared to Dubai, London has always been the topmost choice for travelers from emerging
economies. It is a perfect base for the people, who plan extended travel to other places in Europe

and UK, as they find it central to their destination spots. So, people automatically choose London
as a worth seeing place. London’s unique style and world-class travel infrastructure makes it a
favorite tourist spot. It is the top tourist destination of UK, and credit goes to its “heritage sites,
vibrant nightlife, strong dining scene, and almost unrivalled retail offering”. People can find
hundreds of reason to visit this amicable place. London has world’s best travel network with
splendid airports, busiest metros and tubes. The good connectivity of the place makes it an easy
prey of the travelers from various parts of the world. The best of London can be found in its
cultural landmarks, iconic locations, super markets and presence of multicultural community.
(Lowe & Saul, 2014)
London is world’s best vibrant cities and it promotes international and national tourism. In the
last few years, there has been a relaxation in the visa requirements for the travelers from the
UAE, Oman and Qatar, this has given a major uplift to the tourism in London. Visitors from the
Arab nations are amongst the contributors of the highest expenditure per visitor. The UAE
tourists are reported to have spent approximately, £448m in London in the year 2017. The
visitors from various parts of the world visit London for shopping, leisure stay and sightseeing.
The recent London Olympic Games has significantly improved the rate of tourism. The visitors
during the games had a glimpse of London’s hospitality and leisure spots. Apart from the trendy
fashion shops, London has many captivating places to offer, which include- “Westfield Centres
in Shepherd’s Bush and Stratford, and the world-renowned West End destinations of Oxford
Street, Regent Street, Knightsbridge and Bond Street”. In the recent years London has become
the world’s best retail destination, which has also helped to gain more travelers per year. (Lowe
& Saul, 2014)

Mastercards’s league table manages the international spending throughout the world, according
to the reports, London has topped the list with a tourist spending of 25.6 billion US dollars, at
second place is Paris and Dubai is at the twelfth place with a spending of 7.8 billion US dollars.
The JPMorgan project named, “The Global Cities” in collaboration with Brookings Institute, has
done four surveys of European cities on basis of economic performance in the year 2012 and it
has been found that London topped the list by becoming the best performer. A French newspaper
has revealed that London has overtaken Paris in the game of tourism growth after becoming the
host for the 2012 Olympics. The games gave London a new outlook and it attracted a large
number of international tourists during that time. (Randall, 2014)
Britain office for national stats(ONS) reported that in the year 2017, between the months of July
to September, nearly 4.9 million people had visited the capital. It has been the largest number of
tourists which the place has experienced, ever. During the first 9 months of the year 2017, the
total number of visitors in London experienced an increase of 12%. The hot destination Paris
has lagged behind London with 5.2% visitors only. The place has beautiful museums, the best
theatre experience and more natural places than any other destination of the world. (Randall,
2014)
Conclusion
The data and features explained in the paper point out to the fact that London is a better
destination for tourists. The reason is the stats and information gathered from various sources.
Dubai has many amazing things to offer like the man made islands, best architectural designs,
marvelous buildings, world-class malls etc. However, it is very costly as compared to London, as
the one night stay in Dubai is very expensive. Secondly, there is more scope for leisure tourism
in Dubai, and London on the other hand offers the fusion of cultural and leisure tourism. There

are a large number of cultural sites in London and more than enough modern places to choose
from. London is the central place for the tourists, who travel to Europe. So, it becomes a priority
to visit this place. It is a place more secure and there are three hundred different languages
spoken in the city. So, no one can be a stranger in the city. The environment of London is
friendlier and open as compared to Dubai. The stats from last few years confirm the fact that
London is the best tourist destination, because it has attracted millions of tourists from varied
parts of the world. London hosted Olympics in the year 2012, and it spent many pounds on the
makeover, and millions of tourists visited the place during the games. The people explored the
city’s heritage and culture and found it appealing for future visits. Dubai, on the other hand has
harsh climatic conditions and has less natural sightseeing to offer. It lacks the variety offered by
London. So, we can conclude that all the points prove London to be the best tourist destination,
and it does not make Dubai any less in the race of better tourism. It has its own merits but
London being one of the oldest cities of the world, has many more cultural sites and modern
marvels, too. The mastercard survey has also suggested that London is even above Paris in the
list of best tourist destinations.

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