The first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and south-Asia region is off to a great start, with Expo 2020 Dubai welcoming 411,768 ticketed visits in its first ten days.

Expo 2020 opened its doors on 1 October, and figures up to and including October 10th show that visitors belonged to 175 nationalities – not far off the 192 countries that are participating in the event, each with its own pavilion. One in three has come from abroad, with this proportion expected to increase as international travel ramps up.

Dimitri Kerkentzes, secretary general of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), said: “Expo 2020 Dubai’s opening week has undoubtedly been a success. The numbers we are seeing are very encouraging and demonstrate the global desire for people to reconnect with each other and to imagine a better future.”

A number of ticket options are open to visitors, with multi-day and season passes proving popular. One in five visitors have already visited expo more than once, demonstrating that one day is not enough to enjoy the diverse and dynamic array of activities and entertainment on offer.

Reem Al Hashimy, director general, Expo 2020 Dubai, said: “The numbers achieved in the first ten days reflect the enthusiasm of the world to attend Expo 2020 Dubai. The coming days and weeks will be full of special events offering a visitor experience that will be rich, purposeful and entertaining, and we look forward to welcoming many more people from around the world.”

The figures include all physical ticket-holders. They exclude representatives, delegations and guests of international participants, partners and other stakeholders, as well as expo staff.