UAE Visitors To Finland Increased By 30% In 2017

The Finnish tourist authority, Visit Finland, has highlighted an increase in global and UAE visitor numbers as the government entity makes its debut on the exhibition floor at ATM with a new marketing campaign aimed at Middle East tourists, contributing to what is hoped will be a record year for tourism numbers in 2018.

Speaking at a press conference during Arabian Travel Market today, Visit Finland representative, Teemu Ahola commented: “2017 was another excellent year for the Finnish tourism industry with nearly 22 million visitors, growth of 7% over the 2016 figures when tourists topped 20.3 million. However, we have already seen an increase in 2018 visitors of 3.1% compared to this time last year, so we are confident our tourism numbers, and receipts, will eclipse the successes of 2017.”

The increase in UAE visitors, explained Ahola, is in part due to an increase in direct flights to the Finnish capital, Helsinki. Finnair, the national carrier of Finland has committed to repeating its Dubai to Helsinki route later this year, flying between October 2018 and March 2019, while Turkish Airlines has a route between the UAE and Finland via Istanbul. Flydubai is also set to launch a new route which will increase capacity still further during the winter months.

Finland has long been a popular destination within the European market, however, Visit Finland is now keen to explore other markets and have identified the Middle East where the UAE, followed by Saudi Arabia, already make up the bulk of GCC visitors.