UAE Eid Al Adha, summer holidays: Top 10 travel destinations revealed

This year's longest official holiday is less than a week away. Airports across the UAE are all set to welcome millions of passengers as residents make the best of the 6-day Eid Al Adha weekend, followed by the two-month summer break.

According to dnata Travel, majority of summer bookings are for Eid Al Adha. "Across the summer, 80 per cent of bookings are for international travel, while the remaining cover UAE staycations," the travel provider said.

The agency has revealed the most popular holiday hotspots over summer in 2023. In order of popularity, the 10 most booked destinations are: Thailand, Turkey, Italy, UK, Greece, Maldives, Bali, Mauritius, Switzerland and Oman.

Experts have also revealed an 18 per cent increase in international holiday bookings from June to September 2023 so far, compared to the same period in 2022.

As the most popular destination, Thailand accounts for 23 per cent of dnata Travel bookings across the summer. Within the country, the capital city Bangkok, alongside the islands of Phuket and Krabi are the top three locations for UAE travellers.

Meerah Ketait, head of Retail and Leisure UAE, said: "A pent-up demand is driving travellers to explore more of the world, including lesser-known places and varied locations across popular hotspots. In addition to the ever-popular destinations of Thailand, Turkey, Italy and UK, we have seen a notable increase in travel to Greece in particular, compared to the same period last year."

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