UAE flights: Airfares shoot up by 30% as rapid Covid PCR test rule is scrapped

Travel confidence has peaked a day after the UAE eased restrictions for flyers from the subcontinent.

The authorities have scrapped rapid PCR test requirement for UAE-bound passengers from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Since it was announced on Tuesday, airfares have shot up by 20 to 30 per cent. Return ticket prices from destinations such as Mumbai, Delhi and Kochi soared to Dh800 and above against Dh600 earlier.

Aviation experts said easing of travel rules could ‘greatly improve’ UAE tourism, as many would come to visit Expo 2020 which ends on March 31.

“School terms are also ending very soon. It is the right time for families to travel home for a short holiday, ahead of the start of the new school term. These relaxed regulations could not have come at a better time,” a top official of a private Indian airline official told Khaleej Times.

Rashid Abbas, managing director of Arooha Travels, confirmed that ticket prices have jumped by a marginal amount because of the increasing travel interest. At the moment, the rise in demand is highest among those who wish to visit India on a short trip, Abbas said.

“For families, the highest enquiries are in the months of April and May, when schools are set to close for a short vacation. We are expecting demand to increase at that time,” he said, adding that more Indian tourists are also looking at flying to the UAE.

A similar spike in demand is observed from other subcontinent countries, including Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

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The experts are expecting the peak of demand to begin on March 31, during Ramadan and Eid Al Fitr.