Category: Tourism

Salman Gul > Insights > Tourism
Off-Plan vs Ready Property Marketing: Two Different Playbooks

Off-Plan vs Ready Property Marketing: Two Different Playbooks (2026)

Posted on by Salman Gul
In H1 2026, off-plan property made up roughly 67% of Dubai's transaction volume, at an average deal size of AED 2.38 million, while ready properties averaged AED 5.39 million. These are not two versions of the same product. They are...Read More
Digital marketing for real estate in Dubai and the UAE, hub cover

Digital Marketing for Real Estate in Dubai and the UAE: The Complete Guide

Posted on by Salman Gul
GCC real estate marketing Digital marketing for real estate in Dubai and the UAE The playbook for lead generation, off-plan and ready sales, and overseas investor demand across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and the wider UAE, built from real 2026 market...Read More
First-Party Data Strategy for Hospitality Brands in the Middle East

First-Party Data Strategy for Hospitality Brands in the Middle East (2026)

Posted on by Salman Gul
81% of hotels report a revenue lift after implementing a first-party data strategy, and 78% of leisure travellers now expect a property to remember their preferences from a previous stay. Yet most Middle East hotels still let that data scatter...Read More
MICE Marketing in Dubai and Abu Dhabi: Rebuilding the Pipeline

MICE Marketing in Dubai and Abu Dhabi: Rebuilding the Pipeline (2026)

Posted on by Salman Gul
The UAE's MICE market is valued at roughly US$6.69 billion in 2026 and is forecast to nearly double to US$12.14 billion by 2033, a compound growth rate of 8.9%. Dubai ranked first in the Middle East and Africa in Cvent's...Read More
Tourism Marketing in Saudi Arabia: The Vision 2030 Opportunity

Tourism Marketing in Saudi Arabia: The Vision 2030 Opportunity (2026)

Posted on by Salman Gul
Saudi Arabia welcomed 122 million visitors in 2025, recorded around SAR 300 billion in tourism spending, and posted SAR 82.7 billion in spending in the first quarter of 2026 alone from 37.2 million visitors. The Kingdom already blew past its...Read More
Booking Engine Conversion Rate Optimisation for Middle East Hotels

Booking Engine Conversion Rate Optimisation for Middle East Hotels (2026)

Posted on by Salman Gul
A 2026 study of 65 hotel booking journeys across India, the Middle East and Southeast Asia found that 72% of hotel websites fail the three-second load benchmark, average mobile load times hit 4.1 seconds, and 44% of hotels hide taxes...Read More
Google Hotel Ads and Metasearch: The GCC Setup Guide

Google Hotel Ads and Metasearch: The GCC Setup Guide (2026)

Posted on by Salman Gul
When a traveller types your hotel's name into Google, a booking module appears with dates, prices and a list of places to book: Booking.com, Expedia, and, if you have set it up correctly, your own website at your own rate....Read More
Digital marketing for hotels in the GCC, hub page cover graphic

Digital Marketing for Hotels in the GCC: The Complete Guide

Posted on by Salman Gul
GCC hospitality marketing Digital marketing for hotels in the GCC The playbook for demand, distribution and revenue across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman, built from real 2026 market data and a decade running acquisition in the...Read More
Chart comparing what a hotel keeps from an OTA booking versus a direct booking on a 1000 dirham reservation

How to Reduce OTA Commission: The 2026 Direct Booking Playbook for GCC Hotels

Posted on by Salman Gul
Here is the number that should end the debate in your next commercial meeting: roughly 63% of hotel properties across the Gulf are currently displaying a higher rate on their own website than a traveller can find on an OTA....Read More