Emirates And flydubai Team Up To Make Dubai A Cashless Destination For Tourists; Here’s How

Cash is slowly losing its grip in Dubai. And now, two of the city’s biggest players—Emirates and flydubai are pushing the change forward. According to Emirates, they’ve teamed up with Dubai Finance to make sure tourists (and yes, that includes the cash-clutching kind) can enjoy the city without fumbling for notes.

Emirates & flydubai Go Cashless: What It Means for Travellers

We’ve signed an MoU with @DOF_Dubai to promote digital payments among international tourists, Dubai’s largest untapped opportunity for its ‘Cashless Strategy.’ https://t.co/jDo2IYNQI8 pic.twitter.com/rCBBs44aZO

— Emirates (@emirates) October 2, 2025

The bigger picture? Think of it less as “no more cash” and more as “why bother with coins when a tap does the trick?”

Truth be told, plenty of tourists still rely heavily on cash. Around 18 million visitors poured into Dubai last year, and many of them treated dirhams like lifelines. Old habits, you know? This strategy aims to gently (or maybe not-so-gently) shift them into digital-first mode.

From Airfare To Your Coffee Run

Now, airlines aren’t new to cashless payments. You already book flights online, pay by card, and manage loyalty points digitally. So what’s the fuss? Well, Emirates and flydubai want you thinking “cashless” from the very start—booking the flight, checking into hotels, hopping into taxis, even buying that karak tea.

Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Deputy President and CCO, summed it up in the release that with Emirates’ global reach, the airline will spread Dubai’s cashless message internationally.

Marketing, Incentives, And Less Hassle

Expect awareness campaigns, offers, and maybe even perks if you go contactless. In practice, it’s about making digital payments the easier, more rewarding choice. And, let’s be honest, fewer people queuing for cash machines can only be a good thing.

Hamad Obaidalla, flydubai’s Chief Commercial Officer, pitched it as a convenience game in the same release that simpler, more secure, more accessible service is their ultimate aim. In other words, tap and move on. No coins, no confusion, no maths at the till.

Already Halfway There

To be fair, both airlines are starting from scratch. Emirates already supports 14 payment gateways and runs Skywards, its loyalty programme, entirely on digital currency. So yes, the bones of a cashless ecosystem are in place—it’s just about getting visitors to actually use it.

And the economic angle? Analysts suggest the shift could pump an extra Dh8 billion into Dubai’s economy every year. That’s not just loose change; that’s serious fuel for growth.

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What ‘Cashless’ Means In Reality

Important note here: this doesn’t mean you can’t carry notes. Nobody’s banning money. It simply means digital payments, apps, cards, and contactless wallets will dominate. Dubai’s also exploring AI-driven solutions and newer tech to make paying even slicker.

So, picture it: no fumbling with dirhams in a taxi, no panicking at the mall checkout. Just tap, pay, go. For a city obsessed with speed and convenience, it feels like the natural next step.

And let’s face it, tourists might resist at first, but give it a few days and they’ll wonder why they ever bothered with cash in the first place.

Cover Image Courtesy: Emirates Airlines/Website