Iran war
Resilience to the fore as Iran crisis hits events hard
WITH THE SITUATION AROUND IRAN REMAINING UNRESOLVED, WE EXAMINE SOME OF THE EFFECTS FROM THE CRISIS ON THE EVENTS SECTOR
W e live in difficult times.
The war in Ukraine continues, with the loss of life mounting day by day; while the situation around Iran is precarious to say the least. Meanwhile Wall Street contnues to set records and the S & P 500 companies report good profits during the first three months of 2026. Traders, it seems, are thinking that the economic war may be more effective in getting concessions from Iran’ s regime than the kinetic war?
For the meetings industry, a whole region, the Gulf, is on pause due to safety concerns and flight issues.
Events reliant on international delegates were among the first to postpone, resulting in a growing concentration of activity in October to December and it is clear that demand has not disappeared.
Airlines in the region are operating at reduced capacity and hotel occupancy rates are in decline. Lufthansa cut 20,000 short-haul flights over the summer, saying rising fuel prices have made many journeys“ unprofitable”.
KLM-France and Delta have also cut flights and ticket prices have risen.
The Gulf is also a major source of aviation fuel and accounts for nearly half of Europe ' s imports.
One positive signal has been Qatar Airways announcing resumption, 23 April, of flight operations between Doha and key destinations across the Middle East.
Research from Trade Counsellors for Business indicates bookings by UK SMEs via Middle Eastern hubs are down 85 % year-on-year, while demand for the US is up 17 % and Australia 61 %.
Hotel occupancy in Dubai plummeted from over 80 % to as low as 21 % by mid-March and the government has moved to permit hotels to defer some fees, including sales taxes on rooms and food and beverage, for three months, effective 1 April.
Many are also using the quiet period as an opportunity to make renovations. Examples include the Jumeirah Burj Al Arab, Armani Hotel Dubai, The St. Regis Dubai, The Palm, Radisson Blu Hotel, Dubai Media City, JW Marriott Marqui Hotel Dubai and the Park Hyatt Dubai.
Rachel Travers, president RX Global’ s UK Hub, tells CMW:“ As always, the safety of our customers, partners and colleagues is our top priority. To give everyone greater confidence and flexibility in planning, we have rescheduled some events to later in the year, including Arabian Travel Market. I’ m very proud of our RX team in the region; their resilience and commitment to supporting our customers and partners have been outstanding.”
Jack Wilson, regional director, UAE of noise cancelling booth technology suppliers-45dB, adds:“ I had 53 meetings during the US – Iran conflict. At the start, there was a lot of uncertainty. I saw a real sense of people coming together, supporting each other, sharing information, and trying to make the best decisions they could with what they had. There was a shift towards focusing on what could be controlled, building contingency plans, and keeping things ready to move as soon as things opened back up. What surprised me most was the mindset. There was a level of positivity and resilience that you don’ t always expect in moments like this, with teams staying proactive and solutions-focused rather than reactive. Despite supply chains being disrupted, RFPs are still coming in, briefs are still going out. In moments like this, the real strength of the events industry is not just what we build, but how we show up for each other.” n
48 / CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD / ISSUE 142