As of today, Chinese nationals looking to visit the UAE will have a much easier time entering the country.
“We have approved the decision to grant visas on arrival at the country’s airports to visitors from the Republic of China,” Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum announced via the official governing platform Twitter.
Ironic considering the social media platform is blocked in China...
The Sheikh followed up the original Tweet by adding, “Our relations with China are strategic and a priority.”
Since 2014 the numbers of Chinese visitors to the gulf state have increased at a rapid rate which has turned itself into a world class tourist honey trap in the last decade. The number of Chinese visitors to the UAE stood at 450,000 last year, an increase of 29 percent from the previous year.
Dubai, set to host the 2020 Global trade fair expo, saw 14.2 million tourist that year and local tourism officials expect numbers to rise to 25 million for 2020. These changes come just in time according to Shabaz Ahmad, head of the visa department at Golden Ocean Travels, as the peak season for Chinese visitors is between September and March.
[Image via Shanghai Daily]
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