Dubai’s iconic landmarks and major entertainment attractions continued to draw international visitors in 2025, while more tourists showed interest in cultural, architectural, desert and marine experiences.
Data from the 2025 Dubai International Visitors Survey showed that 99.7% of international visitors said they were “happy or very happy” with their experience in Dubai, broadly in line with the level recorded in 2024.
The findings came as Dubai recorded another strong year for tourism, welcoming 19.59 million international overnight visitors in 2025, up 5% from 18.72 million in 2024, according to Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism.
Dubai Mall tops the list
Dubai Mall remained the most visited attraction among international tourists, attracting 97% of visitors.
Beaches and marine experiences ranked second, attracting 79% of international tourists, up from 72% in 2024. Heritage and cultural areas attracted 64% of visitors.
Dubai Fountain was visited by 56% of tourists, while 49% visited Burj Khalifa, slightly higher than the previous year.
Desert safaris also recorded strong growth, attracting 49% of international visitors, compared with 43% in 2024.
The figures show that beaches, marine activities and desert experiences are becoming an increasingly important part of tourists’ itineraries, alongside Dubai’s best-known landmarks.
Growing interest in iconic attractions
Despite the wide range of experiences available, Dubai’s most famous attractions continued to rank highly among international visitors.
Global Village attracted 41% of visitors, up from 34% in 2024, an increase of 7 percentage points.
Palm Jumeirah attracted 41% of international visitors, an increase of 3 percentage points compared with the previous year.
Dubai Frame also saw a significant increase, with 40% of international visitors visiting the attraction, compared with 31% in 2024.
Meanwhile, Museum of the Future attracted 38% of visitors, up from 31% the previous year.
Other popular attractions included The View at The Palm (27%), Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo (26%) and Bluewaters Island (23%).
Burj Al Arab and waterparks each attracted 12% of international visitors.
The survey also showed growing interest in attractions combining culture, architecture and interactive experiences, while the 64% share recorded for heritage and cultural areas reflected continued interest in Dubai’s history and identity.
Entertainment remains the main reason for visiting
The attraction figures were closely linked to the main reasons tourists travelled to Dubai.
Entertainment accounted for 78% of international visits in 2025, followed by visiting friends and relatives at 13% and business travel at 8%.
Couples represented the largest travel group, accounting for 44% of visitors, while the average travel group size was 2.8 people.
High visitor satisfaction
Dubai also recorded strong satisfaction levels among international visitors.
In addition to the 99.7% satisfaction rate, the destination recorded a 99.4% recommendation score, showing that the vast majority of visitors were willing to recommend Dubai to others.
Hotel reputation also improved, with the overall digital rating rising to 9.2 out of 10 in 2025, compared with 9.1 in 2024.
Hotel guest services received high scores, with service and food both rated 9.5 out of 10, while cleanliness scored 9.2.
Outside the hotel sector, restaurants scored 9.7 out of 10, while tourist attractions received 9.4.
The results highlight the strength of Dubai’s tourism sector across different parts of the visitor experience, from accommodation and dining to attractions and entertainment.
