25 July 2016
Drop in the value of the British currency after Brexit has made it cheaper for Gulf visitors to travel to the UK.

The number of visitors from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to the United Kingdom (UK) rose 15 percent in the first quarter of this year, according to official figures released on Monday.

VisitBritain, the London government's tourism body, said 77,000 people from the UAE visited the UK during the first three months of 2016, representing the best first quarter on record, it said in a press statement.

Visitor spending was also up 9 percent to 105 million British pounds ($151 million) during the period, representing an average spend of around $1,961 per person.

According to figures from the Office for National Statistics, 723,773 visitors from the Gulf spent 1.59 billion British pounds in the UK last year.

"We are welcoming visitors from the GCC [Gulf Cooperative Council] to Britain and we are expecting this summer to see more GCC nationals visiting as we continue our activity in market to promote Britain as a favourite holiday destination," Sumathi Ramanathan, director of VisitBritain for the Asia, Pacific, Middle East and Africa region, said in a press statement.

The strong dollar, coupled with the drop in the value of the British currency after the June 23 vote by the UK to leave the European Union, has made the UK a much more affordable destination for UAE visitors.

"We're driving a strong value message coupled with great quality to ensure we continue to attract GCC visitors. With favourable currency exchange rates also helping matters, tourism from the GCC to Britain is very much on track for a great performance this year," Ramanathan said.

James Massoud, marketing manager at Wellington Travel and Tours, a London-based luxury travel provider which focuses on Gulf travellers holidaying in the UK, said the result of the Brexit referendum will be advantageous for UAE residents.

"The UK will be reliant on tourism to help strengthen the economy, especially from the Middle East... The drop in the value of the pound in the short-term will come as welcome news to those looking to visit the UK any time soon and to those that travel to the UK frequently, since the UK - London in particular has suddenly become a little more affordable," he told Zawya in an email interview.

© Zawya 2016