Tourism Industry in Dubai

Dalton Bryant

GEOG 100

03/30/16

Tourism Industry in Dubai

Background

[pic 1]Dubai is located on the southeast coast of the Persian Gulf and is one of the seven emirates that make up the country. Dubai is a very wealthy region and has become the business hub of the Middle East, and is a major transport hub for passengers and cargo.  By the 1960s, Dubai’s economy was based on the revenues from trade and oil exploration. The oil revenues first started to really flow in 1969 and their economy took off. Today, the oil levels are low and the reserves are limited. Today less than 5% of Dubai’s revenue comes from oil. [pic 2]

Dubai’s geographical proximity to Iran made it a very great trade location as seen in Figure 1. This made Dubai a superb port for foreign tradesmen.  The country wasn’t always known for its abundant supply of oil. In fact, in the 1930s, it was known for its’ pearl exports.  The Great Depression in the 1930s and the innovation of cultured pearls damaged the pearl trade permanently. With the fall of the pearl industry, Dubai faced a deep depression and many residents began to migrate to different areas of the Persian Gulf.  It wasn’t long after that oil was discovered in the territorial waters off Dubai in 1966. This was the beginning of the turn of their depression.  Due to this, the population in Dubai multiplied by over 300% between 1975 and 1986. The oil revenue accounted for 24% of the GDP in 1990 but has sense reduced to 7% as of 2004 (Pacione).

[pic 3]Dubai is very unique and interesting because of the Palm Islands that they have. The two islands take the form of a palm tree as you can see in figure 2 below.  Both of the islands host a large number of residential houses for the city of Dubai. The two islands are called Palm Jumeirah and Palm Jebel Ali; right on the coast of Dubai.  The creation of Palm Jumeirah took place in 2001, and shortly after that Palm Jebel Ali construction began.  A third island was started but was later remodeled and renamed the Deira Island. This island does not look like the Palm islands because it is more of just a grouping of smaller islands. [pic 4]

The palm islands are artificial islands that are constructed from sand dredged from the bottom of the Persian Gulf.  The sand is sprayed from dredging ships onto the necessary areas. They actually move the sand from the bottom of the ocean to the surface spots where they want it in order to make the palm islands.  Dredging is an excavation activity that will carry the sediments from the bottom of the ocean and move them to a different location. The dredging ship, located in Figure 3 below, is a large ship that relocates the sand. Dubai is so wealthy; they can physically create their own islands. The Islands have roads and houses on each side. [pic 5][pic 6]

The climate of Dubai is a tropical desert climate because of its location within the Northern desert belt. The summers there are extremely humid, with an average of around 106 degrees Fahrenheit. The highest recorded temperature in Dubai was recorded as 126 degrees Fahrenheit in July of 2002. The precipitation has been increasing within the last few decades with about 5.91 inches per year (Pacione). The climate of Dubai is very warm and sunny due to its position near the line of the Tropic of Cancer. As you can see from Figure 4 below, the temperature does not vary that much with the change in the months. It stays within 10 degrees (for the most part). This is because of Dubai’s location near the equator. Now as you can also see on the graph, the amount of rainfall varies a lot within the year. In May through October there is little to no rainfall. But, in December and January, the rainfall can get up to 35 or more millimeters.  

[pic 7]The climate in Dubai does not change that much from month to month.  Since Dubai is located so close to the equator, it has a high average for temperatures. One of the things that happen in Dubai is the sandstorm. During the summer season a low-pressure area develops over Dubai forcing some really strong winds that form from the northern westerly winds from Saudi Arabia. These winds are known as Shamal in Arabic.  The sandstorms are so bad that they reduce the visibility making it very hard to see. The sandstorms they get can last for several days. [pic 8]

The population of Dubai is 2,109,274. Approximately 85% of the residential population is Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Filipino, Bangladeshi and Sri Lankan).  About 25% of the population has an Iranian origin. The median age in Dubai is 27 years old. In 2014, there were estimated to be about 15.54 births and 1.99 deaths per 1,000 people (Wikipedia). The official language of Dubai is Arabic, but English is more commonly used in Arabic communications between the city residents. The religion of Dubai is declared to be Islam. The government of Dubai funds or subsidizes almost 95 percent of Sunni and employs all Sunni imams. An Imam is an Islamic leadership position. Dubai also has a large community of Hindus, Christians, Buddhists, Sikhs, and [pic 9]others (academic).

The Al Maktoum family has ruled Dubai since 1833; the emirate is an absolute monarchy with no elections. This is a form of government in which the monarch has absolute power among his or her people and over the entire land. The ruler, Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is also the Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, and a member of the supreme council of the Union. Dubai is the first country in the world to have a Minister of Happiness, who was appointed by his High Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum. [pic 10]

As you can see in Figure 5, the dress code in Dubai is very conservative. The dress code is typical of several countries in the Arabian Peninsula. Women usually wear the “Abaya” which is a long black robe with the hijab (the head scarf which covers the neck and most of the head). And even some women might add the niqab, which covers the mouth and nose and only leaves eyes exposed. The Men wear the “Kandurah” also referred to as “dishdasha” or even the “thawb” and a headscarf (expatwomen).

Tourism in Dubai