Special Features
Dubai tourism boost through Qantas and Emirates partnership
Qantas marked its one year anniversary of launching services from Dubai to Australia and Dubai to London as part of its historic partnership with Emirates. Qantas has now carried more than one million passengers through Dubai, resulting in a significant boost to tourism in Dubai.A recent report from the Dubai Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) reported a 39 per cent increase in Australian tourists visiting Dubai which has been accredited to the airlines’ partnership. This increase has meant higher touristic expenditure in the Emirate which is helping contribute to the hotel and hotel apartment operator revenues with DTCM confirming an increase of 16.1 per cent year on year.
Qantas International CEO Simon Hickey said customers had given the partnership a clear stamp of approval in its first year.
"The reaction to the partnership has been extremely positive to the point where the highest customer satisfaction ratings across our international network are on flights from Sydney and Melbourne to Dubai." said Mr Hickey.
"Our customers have told us that they enjoy the network options with shorter travel times to Europe in particular. The feedback also shows that the dedicated A380 terminal is very popular as are the frequent flyer benefits available under the partnership.
"Since Qantas began flying through Dubai, there has been increased interest from Australians in Dubai as a holiday destination with travellers now staying on average between two and seven nights," added Mr Hickey.
Emirates’ Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, Mr Thierry Antinori, said the relationship continues to evolve and grow since our landmark partnership commenced with Qantas.
"Emirates and Qantas are dedicated to providing travellers with the best products in the sky and a fantastic network, now connecting 32 destinations in Australia with over 65 points in Middle East, Africa and Europe. Emirates, in addition to its 36 European destinations, offers the world’s largest A380 network with 27 destinations including Barcelona, Rome, Munich, Paris and London," Mr Antinori added.
"Tourism to the city of Dubai has benefitted strongly with the increased passenger traffic to our hub - the geographical centre of the partnership - with Australia now sitting as one of Dubai’s leading source markets and New Zealand traffic having increased by 21%, Mr Antinori concluded.
The partnership has also opened up 32 destinations on the extensive Qantas domestic network, making travel to and within Australia easy for visitors from the Middle East.
Outside its city gateways, international customers have purchased an average of five times more fares to the top regional centres in Australia including Cairns, Hobart than under Qantas’ previous partnership arrangements for Europe and there has been a significant increase in bookings for new codeshare destinations including Alice Springs, Darwin and Townsville.
Together, Qantas and Emirates offer 98 flights per week from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth to Dubai, and onwards to more than 65 destinations in the Middle East, North Africa, the UK and Europe.
The Qantas-Emirates partnership offers world class travel experiences, an extensive joint network with shorter travel times to key destinations and exclusive frequent flyer benefits.
