Disneyland Abu Dhabi is likely to open by 2030

Disney's new theme park in Abu Dhabi could open as soon as 2030, beating arch-rival Universal's upcoming outpost in the United Kingdom by a year.

As this report forecast on Monday, Disney's chief executive Bob Iger announced at a glittering ceremony today that the media giant will build its seventh resort in Abu Dhabi.

Although an official opening window hasn’t been given, Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney’s Experiences theme park segment, told Reuters that a project of this scale could take a year or two to design, and another four to six years to build.

In just the past 15 years Abu Dhabi has become a powerhouse of the theme park industry. The city is already home to SeaWorld, Warner Bros. and Ferrari theme parks with a land based on Harry Potter in development. Due to the heat in the United Arab Emirates, the parks are all indoors and have been praised for being the best in their class. They are all on the man-made Yas Island which is where Disney's new resort will also be located, though unlike its counterparts, concept art shows that it appears to be a hybrid of indoor and outdoor attractions.

Disney will be the jewel in Yas Island’s crown and is a crucial part of a long-term strategy to diversify the UAE's economy due to dwindling fossil fuel reserves.

Disneyland Abu Dhabi will feature a twist on the classic Disney castle

The UAE is pouring its profits from oil into leisure investments and it is paying off. The country’s GDP – the value of all of the goods and services it produces – rose 3.9% in 2024 with its........

© Forbes