Online travel marketplace Wego has released the MENA Traveller Destination Leaderboards for Q2 2018, which looks at the rise and fall in popularity of travel destinations among travellers from the MENA (the Middle East and North Africa) region.
The destination rankings are derived from the flight and hotel search activity by users of Wego’s apps and websites users during the quarter surveyed.
Global
Historical sites like the pyramids are great draws. (Image credit: sculpies-/iStock-Getty Images)
Egypt was the most popular global destination among MENA-based travellers, maintaining its undisputed #1 position for Q2 2018 thanks to the continued patronage of both leisure and business travellers from the region. Visitors are enthralled by this enigmatic country popular for its historical sites, stunning river cruises, bustling markets and all-round value for money.
India jumped two places to the #2 position, up from #4 in the same quarter in 2017, with Pakistan doing the same in moving up from #11 to the #9 position. “This is probably a result of the holy month of Ramadan beginning mid-May, and many Gulf-based Indian expats who chose to travel to their home country during this period (or immediately afterwards),” says Wego in a statement.
Saudi Arabia, which dropped to the #3 spot, remained a popular destination among domestic and international visitors who travel for business, leisure and the Umrah.
Turkey moved down one spot to #4 position, but it is looking especially affordable for GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) -based travellers this year owing to continued currency weakness, with its tourism numbers reflecting strong demand.
The UAE retained its spot as the fifth most popular destination, a position that it has been holding on to for the last four quarters.
Travel to the Philippines from the MENA region saw strong growth because of expats travelling home during Ramadan, marketing efforts by the Philippine Department of Tourism and the opening up of new airline routes.
The top 10 destinations:
- Egypt
- India
- Saudi Arabia
- Turkey
- UAE
- Indonesia
- Jordan
- The Philippines
- Pakistan
- Morocco
Europe
London, one of the beneficiaries of increased visitor arrivals from MENA to the UK. (Image credit: ZoltanGabor/iStock-Getty Images)
Within Europe the United Kingdom and Germany remained #1 and #2 respectively, while Azerbaijan jumped to the #3 spot – up by two rungs from Q2 2017.
Wego attributes the UK’s popularity to Visit Britain’s effective campaign (“I travel for….”) that targets the Middle East traveller, leading to good growth in tourist arrivals from the GCC region. The German government has also been active in enticing more tourists from the region for leisure travel, while Azerbaijan is reaping the rewards from the simplification of visa processes for visitors from many Arab countries.
Baku and Azerbaijan, says Wego, are two of this year’s top trending destinations among its GCC users. “It should also not come as a surprise to any football follower that Russia jumped seven places to rank #9 on the European destination leaderboard. This rise can be attributed to the football mania surrounding the FIFA 2018 World Cup.”
Meanwhile, Spain did not fare so well as anti-tourism protests and marches in the country have significantly dampened its attractiveness to the Middle Eastern traveller. This resulted in a triple downgrading of its standing in the leaderboard to 10th from seventh in the same quarter last year.
Top 10 destinations:
- United Kingdom
- Germany
- Azerbaijan
- Georgia
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- France
- Austria
- Switzerland
- Russia
- Spain
Asia Pacific
The Borobudur temple in Yogyakarta is one of the most visited attractions in Indonesia. (Image credit: platongkoh/iStock-Getty Images
The Asia Pacific destination leaderboard remains largely unchanged in Q2, according to the report. Four destinations retained their spots: Indonesia #1, Philippines #2, Thailand #3 and Malaysia #4. “This also validates the enduring appeal of the lush tropics to those of us living in drier parts of the world,” it added.
China, ranked #5, is an up-and-coming destination for many global tourism markets. “It will be interesting to see if, over time, China challenges the popularity of the other big Southeast Asian destinations among MENA‐based travellers,” Wego points out.
In this quarter only Japan and Singapore have swapped positions, ranking #9 and #10 respectively.
The top 10 destinations:
- Indonesia
- Philippines
- Thailand
- Malaysia
- China
- Maldives
- South Korea
- Australia
- Japan
- Singapore
MENA
Balloon flight over volcanic mountains in Goreme national park in Cappadocia, Turkey (Image credit: Elena-studio/iStock-Getty Images)
Destination rankings for travel within the MENA region remained largely unchanged this quarter with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, UAE and Jordan continuing to make up the top five.
Kuwait, with its large offering of luxury hotels and resorts, experienced a significant uptick in tourist arrivals – rising one place to rank #8 in the leaderboard. Oman, with its natural beauty and backed by the government’s tourist-friendly initiatives, attained the #9 position. Bahrain, however, dropped two places to #10.
The 10 top destinations
- Egypt
- Saudi Arabia
- Turkey
- United Arab Emirates
- Jordan
- Morocco
- Lebanon
- Kuwait
- Oman
- Bahrain
“The second quarter of 2018 has seen significant changes in the ranking of the most popular destinations for MENA based travellers. This reflects the changing consumer tastes and shifting markets conditions within the region,” notes Wego.
• Featured image credit: zenstock/iStock-Getty Images
