Travel / news
Nearly 20 Non-Gulf Airlines Stay Off Dubai Routes This Winter
Almost 20 airlines based outside the Gulf are still not flying to Dubai, and several will not return before the end of March, leaving hotels short of the long-haul capacity they had counted on for the winter season.
Singapore Airlines said on Friday that it will not operate to Dubai until February 28, while Air France has extended the suspension of its Riyadh service to December 12, according to published reports.
The two carriers join a wider retreat by non-Gulf airlines. KLM decided on October 26 to skip Dubai for the entire winter season, and Lufthansa Group moved on October 23 to push its return back to November 25. Finnair, United, Air Canada and low-cost carrier Wizz Air are also staying away until spring.
The result is that roughly 20 airlines from outside the Gulf remain absent from a market whose airport is otherwise busy, stripping out much of the long-haul seat capacity that Dubai's hotels rely on during the peak European winter months.
The timing has caught hoteliers off guard. Operators said last week they had expected European airlines to restore service with the winter schedules in late October, and some said that anticipated capacity was already helping lift December bookings.
Forward-looking figures were more cautious before the latest withdrawals. As of September 30, booked volumes were already tracking below the optimism of some operators, pointing to a rebound that arrives later than the winter season's start.