Dubai Placed Among The Top 5 Tourist Cities As Global Appeal Grows

2026-02-02 04:44:32

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Emirate maintains its ranking among the world's top 10 powerful cities in the annual Global Power City Index 2025

PUBLISHED: Mon 2 Feb 2026, 9:22 AM

By:
Waheed Abbas

Dubai's appeal among global tourists has grown in 2026, rising from fifth to fourth place, thanks to variety of new shopping and dining options added across the city, according to the newly released annual Global Power City Index (GPCI) 2025.

Known globally for its shopping options, the emirate is home to the world's largest shopping centres, including the Dubai Mall and prominent destinations such as The Mall of the Emirates, Gold Souk, Ibn Battuta Mall, Dragon Mart, among others.

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In the first half of 2025, Dubai welcomed over 9.88 million visitors - an increase of six per cent. Dubai Mall alone receives millions of visitors each year, hitting 111 million in 2024.

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Globally, Dubai was positioned ahead of New York, Madrid, Moscow, Istanbul, Bangkok, Amsterdam, Vienna, Sydney, Hong Kong, Copenhagen and others. London, Tokyo and Paris retained the top three positions in the index.

Though London experienced a minor drop in tourist attractions and nightlife sub-index, it was still perceived favourably for tourists, with strengths in the number of stadiums and museums.

Released by The Mori Memorial Foundation, Dubai, overall, has been placed at ninth position, ahead of Berlin, Copenhagen, Beijing, Melbourne, Madrid, Sydney, Vienna, Stockholm, Osaka, Frankfurt, Zurich, Hong Kong, Toronto, and dozens of other major cities.

The Index ranks the major cities of the world according to their“magnetism,” or their comprehensive power to attract people, capital, and enterprises from around the world. It does so through measuring six functions - economy, research and development, cultural interaction, livability, environment, and accessibility.

Globally, London topped the index, followed by Tokyo, New York, Paris, Singapore, Seoul, Amsterdam, Shanghai, Dubai and Berlin.

In the list of 48 cities, Johannesburg, Mumbai, Cairo, Jakarta, Mexico City, Buenos Aires, Tel Aviv, Sao Paulo, Fukuoka and Washington DC were ranked at the bottom.

Top choice for business leaders, employees

When evaluated based on the factors that business leaders prioritise in corporate location decisions, Dubai is ranked fourth globally.

“Dubai continued to improve its scores in a variety of workplace options and number of startups, rising from ninth place last year to fourth this year,” it said.

Based on the evaluation of the cities from the perspective of highly-skilled workers who are active on the global stage regardless of borders or nationality, Dubai is placed seventh in the GPCI index.

In the economic performance, Dubai leapt from 42nd to 10th place in GDP growth rate, highlighting ongoing regional economic diversification. It broke into the top 10 cities for the first time.

Interestingly, Dubai on Saturday announced a very strong GDP growth rate of 5.3 per cent in the third quarter of 2025, reaching Dh113.8 billion. The GDP grew at an impressive pace of 4.7 per cent during the first nine months of 2025, reaching Dh355 billion.

The emirate was ranked even higher in accessibility, tourism attractions, and cultural interaction, placing it in fifth position.

The strong growth of Dubai's flagship carrier, Emirates, and its smaller airline, flydubai, has exceptionally enhanced accessibility, providing connectivity across the globe. Therefore, it is placed third globally in the list of cities with direct international flights.