He explores the market shifts, traveller trends, and the future of tourism in the Middle East.
As the Middle East continues to emerge as a global travel hub, the region’s tourism sector is navigating rapid changes in traveller expectations, source market dynamics, and competition. For businesses in this industry, staying relevant requires not only operational excellence but also strategic foresight and adaptability.
Richard Stolz, Partner for Tourism, Travel, & Leisure at Roland Berger, offers his invaluable insights, drawn from his more than 14 years of strategic consulting experience. He has worked across a diverse range of industries, including tourism, travel, transport, airlines & aviation, leisure, hospitality, entertainment, education, and healthcare, helping businesses grow.
Based in Dubai, Stolz's functional experience spans corporate strategy, business development, growth, market entry, market assessment, project management, business transformation, and organisational effectiveness. He also regularly shares his industry perspectives through authored columns, media commentary, and interviews, contributing to leading publications and shaping conversations around global tourism and related industries.
Navigating the Middle East’s tourism market shifts
In an interview with Stolz, he shared his perspectives on the evolving dynamics of the Middle East’s travel and tourism industry and what businesses must focus on to stay competitive in the region.
When asked how the travel industry in the Middle East is evolving, Stolz noted a constant increase in visitor numbers, especially in major hubs such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi. He highlighted the growing importance of source market volume, including the CIS, the Indian Subcontinent, and Mainland China.
"All key players in the tourism and travel value chain are needed to provide a stellar traveller experience," Stolz said. This includes airports, airlines, ground transport, hotels, and DMCs, amongst others.
On the topic of adapting to shifting source markets and evolving traveller expectations, Stolz emphasised the need for businesses to tailor their offerings, such as food and beverage options, multilingual signage, and ensuring the availability of tour guides fluent in languages like Mandarin. Additionally, DMCs should consider offering packaged tours directly 'on the doorstep' in key source markets.
Addressing the ongoing talent challenge in the region's tourism and hospitality sector, Stolz stressed that in order to attract, develop, and retain skilled talent in a competitive hospitality and tourism labour market, companies must provide a good work-life balance. "Offer attractive talent development and training schemes," he added. He also suggested strengthening collaborations with leading tourism and hospitality schools globally and in the Middle East to ensure access to the best and motivated professionals.
Whilst innovation continues to redefine the industry, Stolz believes that agility must be matched with a focus on people and keeping the human touch in an organisation. "The element of building real and motivated teams is still key," he noted.
Looking to the future, Stolz expects several trends to shape the region’s tourism landscape. He pointed to longer average lengths of stay, with destinations such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi being increasingly seen as viable options for long-term living rather than just for vacations. He also highlighted the growing number of emerging destinations across Saudi Arabia, which are set to enhance the GCC’s overall tourism offering.
Recognising excellence in tourism
As a judge for the TDM Travel Trade Excellence Awards 2025 - Middle East, Stolz will be placing strong emphasis on recognising entities that consistently deliver best-in-class traveller experiences and those who set the benchmark for excellence and continue to raise industry standards.
