Why Do So Many Europeans Travel To The Middle East?

Approximately 89% of the UAE population is made up of expatriates, making it one of the most intense cultural hubs in the world. It’s not just the UAE that is popular, though, with Qatar now hosting the world cup, Cairo and Istanbul being incredibly popular tourist destinations, and Saudi Arabia receiving 15.5 million tourists a year.

Whilst there some culture differences to be taken into consideration, such as a banning of casinos in many of these destinations (which is why Arabic Casino VIPArabClub is so popular), many Europeans are realising these places to be fascinating places to visit. Here are some of the main reasons why the Middle East is so popular among Europeans.

Sports Events and Fewer Restrictions

Each year, sports becomes ever more prevalent in the Middle East. Whether it’s the £300 million Saudi takeover of Newcastle Football Club or Qatar hosting the 2022 World Cup, more people are seeing the Middle East as an important component of world sport. Because of hosting these events, such as Fight Island in the UFC and huge boxing bouts, like the planned Anthony Joshua vs Tyson Fury fight which was set to go ahead in Saudi Arabia.

The events are being hotsed there in part because of the wealthy economies and individuals backing them, but it’s also because they’re offering a stage when other countries are locked down due to Coronavirus. The UFC have been using Dubai more and more due to crowd restrictions in the US, and it’s likely the Qatar World Cup will be the same.

Tourism

Of course, tourism makes up for a large portion of these European visits. The weather in the Middle East is reliably better than in Europe (besides the summer, which may be considered too hot). The all-year-round weather is appealing, along with the fantastic tourist facilities such as Dubai’s hotel market, which has a lot of options, or Istanbul’s restaurants and street markets, which are fascinating to Europeans.

In general, the Middle East is seen as very exotic. There are opportunities to do things that cannot be done in Europe, such as driving 4x4s on desert dunes or riding camels across beaches. Then, of course, there’s the glamorous side too, such as high-rise skyscrapers, brand new shopping malls, and luxurious hotels.

Egypt is a popular tourist destination due to the Pyramids, which is one of life’s greatest wonders. This touches on an undercurrent of motivation though, because the Middle East had the oldest civilisations in the world, making it a remarkable historical visit.

Business

It’s not all leisure, with many of the visits from Europe being business trips. There is a lot of wealth in some of the Middle East, and this has created some powerful business hubs around. For example, bankers in London will often leave for Dubai where they can get paid more. There are also many great business networking places, from the Casino du Liban in Beirut to the many international conferences in Riyadh. Though it’s worth noting that since the pandemic has restricted venues such as the Casino du Liban, which turned gamblers to VIPArabClub Online Casino instead, it’s meant business networking is less prominent currently.  

Islam in Europe

Europe has many Muslims as well as many people who claim Arabic descent. For example, the UK recorded 230,556 Arabs living in the UK along with 2.5+ million Muslims. It’s therefore not uncommon for people in Europe to visit the places where they migrated from and haven’t seen since childhood or places they have always been interested in due to their religion or family history - plus Arabic is the fifth most spoken language in the UK, with many people in Belgium, France, and Sweden also being able to speak Arabic.

Medium-haul flights

The proximity of the Middle East is one reason why Europeans tend to visit. With a 5 hour flight from Paris to Jeddah, most Europe-Middle Eastern flights are in that range of time, which isn’t enough to get jet lag. This makes it the closest region outside of Europe to fly to, besides North Africa in some situations.

Furthermore, airports such as Qatar and Dubai are massive connection areas for long-haul flights. Instead of spending 12 hours in the airport waiting for a connection flight to Thailand, many are organising longer layovers and spending time exploring the city instead.

Final Word

The Middle East has been wealthy for a long time now and has a remarkable history for even longer. Whilst much of the Middle East was once a normal place to visit, particularly along the hippie trail, Places such as Afghanistan have become too dangerous. Whilst this did stop visitors coming to much of the Middle East for a few decades, the tide is changing once again, with places such as UAE, Turkey, and Qatar being seen as very safe and luxurious places to visit. Sport has certainly helped improve their relations with Europe, but the business and high-end developments have too.