Miami and Dubai tourism benefit from Egyptian uprising

Online travel firm Ebookers has revealed that both Miami and Dubai saw a hefty increase in bookings during the Egyptian uprising.

The website said that the weeks of unrest in Cairo and other cities in Egypt led to a boost in bookings for a number of other sunny destinations. The news comes after governments around the world warned citizens to avoid travel to the North African nation, including the UK’s Foreign Office, which said that all travel to the cities of Cairo, Suez and Alexandria should be avoided unless essential.

Dubai and Miami both saw exceptionally large increases in bookings. According to figures from Ebookers, The US’s nightlife and beach hotspot saw an year-on-year increase in bookings of 32% for the month of January compared to 2010, whilst Dubai benefitted even more with a whopping 42% year-on-year increase in bookings for the same period.

Ebookers UK Head of Marketing Mario Bounas said: “Recent political unrest in Egypt has meant travellers have had to turn to other exotic sun destinations when searching for their next holiday.”

He added: “These latest figures certainly show Miami and Dubai have benefited from the issues in Egypt however, now the Foreign Office have removed their advisory not to travel to the Red Sea and Luxor, there are some fantastic offers available as operators try to lure travellers back. Holidaymakers can save up to 30% on some of the deals available but they won’t be around forever, so we’d advise travellers to bite the bullet and book now!”