Controversial private taxi app Uber, has partnered with Destina.com, the international OTA (online travel agent), to give travellers who book through the site, AED100 credit for a free taxi on arrival in Dubai, Jeddah and Riyadh, throughout 2015.
Designed for travellers leaving or arriving in Dubai, the promotion will be exclusive to first-time Uber users, allowing them to discover the advantages of booking a private car for their journeys, and giving them the option of travelling in style from the second they start their journey.
It is unclear at this point how locally operated taxi and transfer services will react to the announcement.
In a survey conducted by Destinia.com during the second half of 2014 with more than one thousand global travellers, the online travel agency reported that 87% of the Arabic speaking travellers polled supported private car ride services such as Uber. The survey indicated that lower cost and ease of booking were top reasons to choose the service.
Ines Chueca, strategic partnerships manager in MENA region of Destinia.com, said: “Having received positive feedback about private car ride services, we decided to offer our faithful customers travelling to and from Dubai the opportunity to discover the advantages of booking flights with us, and travelling with Uber, the leading private car service.”
The online travel agency is looking to expand this service in other MENA markets in the near future.
