MARBELLA’S high-end offers, like five-star hotels and international designer stores, are attracting high-net-worth visitors from the Middle East this summer.
The arrival of these luxury-loving visitors is usually linked to the end of Ramadan. This year that fell between February 28 and March 29.
Marbella City Council Tourism Director Laura de Arce told Malaga Hoy, the Arab tourists have been arriving since the beginning of May, with July and August the typical period during which they take their vacations.
The main source markets are Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar. Aena said the Málaga-Costa del Sol Airport has five routes from the Middle East this summer.
De Arce said Marbella remains a ‘top destination’ for this market, and is ‘their first destination when they come on vacation,’ followed by Madrid and Barcelona.
“Marbella is their second home, a safe place with mild temperatures, entertainment, shopping, great hotels, and establishments where they can enjoy themselves and feel at ease,” she said.
Escaping the even hotter temperatures seen in their Middle Eastern origins, the high-net-worth visitors are travelling in family groups, and also, an increasing amount of young people are also visiting Marbella in recent years.
Don Pepe Gran Meliá hotel chain director Noelia Castillo said in summer, Arabs are the ‘second largest nationality’ staying, with guests specifically from Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar.
She said they carry out annual campaigns targeting the Middle Eastern market.
Retailers and hoteliers have shared concerns over whether the global geopolitical uncertainty caused by the Middle East conflict and the subsequent airspace closure would have an impact on this market.
Castillo said their had been a ‘slight deviation’ in bookings compared to previous years, but she is confident there will be a ‘rebound’ in last minute bookings.
She also said the holiday season will likely be extended until the second week of August.
‘Clients have started up again in recent days and are making reservation requests again, with the expectation of reaching between 25% and 30% as they are rethinking their trip to Marbella a few weeks late,’ she explained.
READ MORE: Spain’s inflation rate goes up due to energy concerns over Middle East crisis
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