EW Issue 5 2025 | Page 38

Sponsored content

Dubai- building global legacies through business events

“ DXB remains the world’ s busiest for international travellers, handling 46m guests in the first half of 2025” impartial guidance and strategic connections to organisers, ensuring accessibility is matched by on-theground expertise.
Dubai has also taken major strides to ensure every delegate feels welcome. In April 2025, it became the first Certified Autism Destination™ in the Eastern Hemisphere, with leading attractions, hotels, and even public beaches achieving the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards( IBCCES) certification. DXB itself was the first international airport worldwide to secure Autism Centre™ status. Together with metro expansion, affordable transport, and widespread workforce training, the city makes it easy for all visitors to experience Dubai confidently and comfortably.
ubai has steadily emerged

D as one of the world’ s most compelling destinations for international conferences, exhibitions, and incentive programmes. With a buoyant events economy, world-class infrastructure, and government-backed ambition, the city is not just hosting meetings, it is turning them into engines of enterprise and innovation.

In 2024, Dubai secured 437 international event bids set to attract more than 210,000 delegates in the coming years. That momentum continued into 2025, with 249 additional new bids secured in the first half alone, projected to bring another 127,000 delegates in the years ahead. These gatherings cut across sectors from healthcare and life sciences to sustainability, AI, fintech, and urban development, cementing Dubai’ s place among the top global business events hubs.
A global crossroads Much of Dubai’ s appeal lies in its accessibility. Within an eight-hour
flight of two-thirds of the world’ s population, Dubai International Airport( DXB) remains the world’ s busiest for international travellers, handling 46 million guests in the first half of 2025 and connecting to 272 destinations across 107 countries.
On the ground, the city offers 822 hotels and 152,483 rooms, including 167 five-star properties, with occupancy averaging 80.6 % in H1 2025. This scale ensures events of every size, from incentives to global congresses, can be hosted with ease.
Supporting this ecosystem is Dubai Business Events( DBE), the city’ s official convention bureau, which provides
Above left: The Dubai Balloon at Atlantis
Left: Museum of the Future
Venues that inspire Dubai’ s venues are as diverse as its delegates. From the carbon-neutral smart district of Expo City Dubai, with its iconic 360-degree Al Wasl Dome, to the Museum of the Future and Atlantis The Royal, spaces are designed not only for practicality but for inspiration. The Dubai World Trade Centre alone contributed AED22.35bn to the economy in 2024, underscoring the central role of events in the city’ s growth.
Equally important is the experience beyond the conference halls. Delegates can network over Michelin-starred dining at one of 119 restaurants recognised in the 2025 Guide – representing 35 global cuisines and including two three-star establishments. They can continue conversations during desert safaris under the stars, on networking cruises aboard traditional dhows, or in cultural venues such as the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding. These memorable experiences are not just backdrops, they’ re catalysts that help strengthen networks, spark new collaborations and leave a lasting professional legacy for delegates.
38 Issue 5 2025
www. exhibitionworld. co. uk