Expo 2020 Dubai visitor numbers exceed 11 million as school visits resume

A third of all visitors were from abroad, with 10% of those coming from India, 10% from Saudi Arabia, 6% from Germany and 5% from Russia.

Community group Ngati Ranana in a show of Maori culture on New Zealand's national day at Expo 2020 Dubai, entertaining the audience with kapa haka performances. All photos: Expo 2020 Dubai

Members of the community group Ngati Ranana.

Community group Ngati Ranana during a kapa haka performance.

The group performed at Al Wasl Plaza, Expo 2020 Dubai

Five Kiwi artists joined forces at Expo 2020 Dubai to create a 20-metre mural that reflects New Zealand’s vibrant street art.

Street artists Eva Fuemana, John Crouch and brothers Kairau and Earnest Bradley will be joined by Dubai-based artist Gary Yong at Al Forsan park to complete the artwork over the course of five days.

Six60 perform during Sounds of Aotearoa at Jubilee Stage. Expo 2020 Dubai

Members of Ngati Ranana join Six60 on stage during Sounds of Aotearoa at the Jubilee Stage.

Expo visitors enjoy the Six60 performance at Expo 2020 Dubai.

Expo 2020 Dubai's visitor numbers have reached more than 11 million, organisers said on Tuesday.

With 58 days left — or eight weekends — before Expo 2020 closes, the world's fair has recorded 11,608,240 visits since its opening on October 1, 2021, up to Monday, January 31.

This week's visitor numbers were boosted by the Black Eyed Peas in concert, the launch of Why? The Musical, a 45-minute show directed by Bafta-winner Shekhar Kapur, with music by Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman, and a Q&A session with Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo, who visited the emirate during a midseason break.

Organisers said repeat visits rose to 57 per cent in January.

A third of all visitors came from abroad, with 10 per cent of those coming from India, 10 per cent from Saudi Arabia, six per cent from Germany and five per cent from Russia.

Expo 2020 Dubai’s virtual visitation numbers have crossed 100 million, largely driven by live entertainment — the Black Eyed Peas concert secured 24.4 million online visits alone.

Organisers said China and India are among the top countries logging in to view the online programming, followed by the UAE, the Philippines and Egypt.

Schools return

Numbers will be boosted further in the coming weeks by the resumption of Dubai school visits and Expo's Young Stars programme.

Dubai's Knowledge and Human Development Authority — which administers private education in the emirate — announced that schools in the emirate could resume extra-curricular activities from Monday, January 28. They had been suspended since the start of the term.

“Thanks to the support and co-operation of parents, educators and [pupils], PE lessons, gatherings, trips and extra-curricular activities can resume from Jan 31,” the authority said.

Before the suspension of excursions, organisers estimated that around a third of the UAE’s school population had made trips to Expo, with more than 334,000 visits from pupils over the course of 41 school days.