Dubai officially opened its borders to international travellers on Tuesday, with a flight from Heathrow among the first to arrive.
While the UK Foreign Office still advises against all but essential travel to the emirate, visitors on the Emirates flight were welcomed with gifts on arrival.
Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates – which was also left off the UK government’s list of countries from which arrivals in England are exempt from 14-day self-isolation – has been awarded with the World Travel & Tourism Council Safe Travels Stamp.
The stamp is a global kitemark to show the destination meets hygiene measures to keep visitors safe from Covid-19.
Gulf carrier Emirates has already launched a destination Dubai advert to encourage tourists to return.
Helal Saeed Almarri, director general of Dubai Tourism, said: “As we reopen Dubai’s doors to tourism and welcome our international visitors back to the city, our foremost priority is their wellbeing, achieved through stringent hygiene and safety protocols that have been deployed across all tourist touch points.
“The WTTC’s Safe Travels stamp endorses Dubai’s comprehensive and effective measures to ensure guest health and safety. We trust that our efforts not only provide an optimised experience for our visitors, but also secure their health and that of their families, further cementing the confidence that our guests have had thus far in Dubai, and encouraging people from every corner of the world to visit one of the safest cities in the world this summer.”