Airfares from the UAE to major Arab destinations have surged by as much as 45 per cent ahead of the Eid Al Adha holiday, as strong seasonal demand, limited seat availability and a rise in last-minute bookings put pressure on regional routes, according to travel industry executives.
Travel agencies said demand for flights to key Arab cities has accelerated sharply in recent weeks, with Saudi Arabia emerging as the strongest market amid overlapping Eid and Hajj travel demand.
Praveen Choudhary, managing director of Al Saffron Travel & Tourism LLC, said flight seat occupancy on several routes has risen by around 70 per cent to 75 per cent compared with earlier weeks.
Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels
“Due to the Eid holidays, there is always a rush to home countries, so demand suddenly increases for a short period,” he said. “Airfares have also gone up because of rerouting, higher fuel charges and a large number of last-minute bookings.”
Choudhary added that the highest demand among Arab destinations is currently for Riyadh, Jeddah, and Madinah in Saudi Arabia, followed by Cairo and Amman.
He noted that ticket prices on these routes have increased by around 25 per cent to 45 per cent compared with the past two months, with average fares on some segments reaching nearly Dh3,500.
“Travel demand for both Hajj and Eid vacations has mixed together this time, while many children can continue classes online from home, and all these factors are making airfares spike,” he said.
Meanwhile, Rashida Zahid, vice president of operations at musafir.com, said the fare increase is being driven by a mismatch between recovering travel demand and still-limited airline capacity.
“Airfares to major Arab destinations have gone up mainly because there are still fewer flights operating than usual, while travel demand has picked up quickly ahead of Eid,” she said.
Zahid explained that although flight schedules across the region have started stabilising, availability remains tight on many popular routes because some airlines are still operating reduced frequencies and gradually restoring capacity.
She added that the longer Eid break this year has further boosted outbound travel demand from UAE residents, causing flights to fill up much faster than usual.
“This is especially visible across popular Arab destinations, as well as routes to the CIS and Balkan markets, where limited seat availability and strong holiday demand are pushing fares up across the board,” she said.
According to Zahid, travellers are also increasingly interested in Balkan destinations such as Serbia, Bosnia, and Albania, attracted by affordability, natural scenery, and growing halal-friendly tourism offerings.
Bharat Aidasani, Managing Partner at Pluto, notes that the annual Eid travel rush continues to place significant pressure on airline pricing.
“The surge in airfares ahead of Eid Al Adha is largely driven by a combination of demand and capacity dynamics,” he said.
“Eid is one of the busiest travel periods in the GCC, with expatriates travelling home and residents planning short leisure trips and holidays.”
Aidasani said Egypt, Jordan, and Oman are among the destinations seeing strong demand this season, adding that limited flight availability is contributing to higher ticket prices.
“The cost has definitely gone higher due to demand and limited availability of flights,” he said.
With demand continuing to outpace available seats on key regional routes, travel agencies expect airfares to remain elevated until the Eid holiday period.
Source: Khaleej Times