Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is receiving a surge of Chinese tourists thanks to its visa-free policy for Chinese passport holders.
Both the UAE and Qatar have established reciprocal visa-free arrangements with China since 2018.
Official figures show Dubai hosted 18.72 million international overnight visitors in 2024, up 9 percent year on year.
Among them, 824,000 were Chinese tourists, a 31-percent jump from the same period of 2023.
In midsummer, when the average temperature regularly hits 40 to 45 degrees Celsius, travelers are attracted to the world-famous Ski Dubai to escape the heat.
As one of Dubai's most iconic leisure destinations, Ski Dubai is the first and largest indoor ski resort in the Middle East, featuring one of the world's longest indoor ski runs at over 400 meters.
Five perfectly groomed runs offer varying gradients and heights, giving beginners and experts alike their own slice of winter.
Chen Jiaoyue, a Chinese instructor at the skiing resort, said she always encounters Chinese visitors in her class.
"I teach five or six classes daily. Chinese guests comprise roughly one-fifth of each lesson. We also run into some Chinese families - parents with kids - coming here for vacation. It's a fabulous summer retreat, and everyone wants to learn to ski here," she said.
Beyond the runs, a 3,000-plus-square-mete snow park awaits with sledding lanes, snow slides, bumper cars on ice, zorb balls and even surprise appearances of penguins.
Outside, the desert sun blazes; inside, it's a frosty wonderland.
This surreal reversal of seasons, coupled with visa-free entry, Chinese-friendly payments and mandarin services, has turned Ski Dubai into a must-visit stop for Chinese travelers.
"Since 2016 when we launched the visa-free access for the Chinese travelers, we've seen an exponential growth in Chinese travelers coming to the UAE, specifically to Dubai," said Aida Mohammed Al Busaidy, associate vice president of Consumer Advocacy at Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism.
Visa-free policy drives surge in Chinese tourists to UAE
