Will Dubai Become the New Orlando
Visiting Orlando (or the US in general) hasn’t become easier over the last years for non US citizens. Airfare prices, long security check ins, it’s all keeping away many potential future visitors. Looking at an European view (living in Europe) I see many people enjoying a holiday closer to home not willing to spend the extra money and loose all that time checking in and going true the many security procedures. Obviously the procedures and security standards are there for a reason, and while I have no problem with them, many others just don’t want to take part into this long “getting there” part.
My next trip alone will cost me 15 hours from airport to airport (this includes an unfortunately long 4 hours stop over in Newark). Include the minimum 2 hour you need to be at the airport before leaving, getting to the airport and getting to Walt Disney World afterwards. I am looking at a 20 hour day… Not something I am looking forwards too (my holiday starts when I arrive, not when I leave my door), but at the end it will have been worth it, being the Disney Geek I am.
But like I said, this is not for everybody. A little closer for most Europeans (but also for others) is Dubai. Could Dubai become their new Orlando destination for those people?
Dubai is a growing tourist destination. 6 million visitors in 2006 and they want to increase this number to 15 million annually by the end of 2015. How? By offering visiting guests entertainment and leisure resort. Let’s have a look what is going on in Dubai and what the future has to offer.
We already mentioned the Ferrari theme park that is being build on the Yas-Island. Not only a Theme park but the actual F1 race will take place in Abu Dhabi as from 2009 and for at least 7 years. But that is only the beginning for Dubai as they have so much more planned
Let’s have a look at what is to come and what should attract the 15 million people to Dubai…
Ferrari Park; opening date 2009 with 24 attractions including a 70 meter freefall tower, (racing) Simulators and racing go-carts. Hotel, apartments a large shopping mall with cinema complex and a Ferrari Driving school will all be added to the resort.
Universal City (part of Dubailand); Planned opening date 2010. A 2.2 billion dollar theme park with a resort of hotels with 4000 rooms. Nothing is known about the attractions but the Mummy might be one of them. 100 restaurants are rumored to open (sounds a little much to me).
Marvel Theme Park; Again we already spoke about this park in the past (being a Marvel Comic reader myself). Nothing more is known about the park except that licenses are in order, including a Sponge Bob license.
WOW RAK theme Park in Al Khaimah; a Smaller “double” theme park. An Ice Land Water park that should open in 2008 and a Planet Earth theme park to be added to the first gate somewhere in the future. They expect 15000 visitors yearly for this park
Paramount Theme Park (Dubai); Planned to open in 2011 and will involve US blockbusters, Bollywood productions and Arabian films themed zones. The paramount deal will be looked after by Darrell Metzger, a former Walt Disney Manager and IAAPA vice president.
Living Legends; The park that will include animated Dinosaurs running around among other entertainment. Work on this park has already started and opening is planned for 2008
Aqua Dunya (Dubailand); 37 wet and dry rides with the world’s largest cruise ship, The Desert Pearl, inspired by an Arabian sea faring tale, as the centerpiece. Opening expected early 2008.
Great Dubai Wheel; A gaint ferris wheel
(Dubailand itself includes some of the projects mentioned above but includes a lot more like; Dubai Sports City, Culture & ArtFalcon City of Wonders, Motor City and lots more)
These plans are either finalized or very likely to see the day of light very soon. But I can’t help myself thinking that there will be more in the future. One big player missing is the Disney Company and I wonder if they want to miss out by staying away from what will become the future biggest entertainment location or if there would be a chance that Disney would expand their boundaries into the Arabic countries somewhere in the future. The interest would certainly be there.
Although the Disney Parks in the US are doing very well, attendance numbers up, money spend up, etc, we will not see any new parks or gates to be added in the US for anytime soon. Obviously it’s not only Disney that doesn’t look at new gates but I can’t see any big new park opening in the US. In Dubai it doesn’t seem to stop, one announcement after another for new parks have been coming our way. Is this going to be the new haven for the theme park industry?
The Arabic countries will well be representing a big part of Dubai’s millions of future visitors, but also the Asian market and the European market will be explored as much as possible. I wonder how, once everything is ready, they will advertise their paradise to the European market and if this will be the new “Orlando” destination for those looking at this kind of vacation?
Obviously the Disney Company doesn’t have to worry about their US citizens. The chances they will exchange WDW for a Dubai visit will be limited, apart from some who really want to see the parks there, most will stay close to their home parks already commonly known to them. But will Europeans or those living in Europe put both options on the table and seek out the new parks in Dubai instead. With an expectation of 15 million people a year, they have to come from somewhere…
Being a Disney fanatic, Disney Club membership and my Disney dedication my choice will always be WDW, but I do have to admit that a 1 time visit, when everything is ready is something I will do.
What about you?
October 12th, 2007 at 1:40 am
I feel that Dubai will prove to be very popular with Most europeans especially the English dropping Orlando in faviour of Dubai which has very simular weather ,clothing etc is quite cheap as in the USA and you don’t get interigated by Homeland Security treated as a undesirable when it’s perfectly obvious that you have just come to visit Mickey Mouse and the other Orlando Attractions.
October 12th, 2007 at 4:31 pm
Dubai will likely have little effect on WDW, but it could play a competitor for Disneyland Paris… although there are many family attractions in Dubai and even a few more in the UAE in general, I would compare it to Vegas more than Orlando.
One good thing about this is if Disney does develope competition from Dubai it will be forced to create better attracts to draw people into its resorts and parks. That would be a very good thing. Maybe they’ll start creating rides like Tokyo’s “Pooh’s Hunny Hunt” instead of offering us cheap, pared-down versions like Anaheim or Orlando have. Having John Lasseter in charge will help guide the company and he and Iger both know that there is greater competition for people’s money in this first part of the 21st century.
October 16th, 2007 at 8:01 pm
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October 18th, 2007 at 4:54 pm
It is certainly an intriguing question, and one the UK travel industry is wrestling with (especially the tour operators who all feature big Florida programmes). My feelings are that it is unlikely to have an impact, at least in the short term.
1) It’s too hot. The average temp in Dubai from June-Sept is close to 40C and it can top 45C at times - MUCH hotter even than Orlando (around 35C). Even in the spring and autumn, it can be 35C, and that is not terribly family-friendly.
2) There isn’t enough there at the moment (and much of the development is not due until 2010 and beyond) to lure people for a 2-week holiday (the typical stay in Florida). We also see people visiting Orlando for 3 weeks or more; that will never happen in Dubai.
3) The hotels are more expensive than Florida and there is no vacation home development (where most Brits now choose to stay in Orlando). There would need to be a MUCH broader range of accommodations to attract the mass-market UK audience.
4) It’s the Middle East, and many people will still associate that with terrorism and other problems. They won’t realise Dubai is not associated closely with Egypt, Israel, etc, and they will avoid the region as a whole.
5) It could still be a terrorist target at some stage in the future and, the first serious incident there will end Dubai’s hopes for mass market tourism at a stroke.
6) Many Brits have investments (in the form of holiday homes) in Florida, hence they will continue to holiday there.
7) It doesn’t have the same potential for repeat visits as Florida does (which is a much bigger and more diverse area). People may visit Dubai once out of curiosity, but it doesn’t appear to have the capacity to lure the same visitors back year after year. many people also now visit Florida and other parts of the US, and the US as a whole has a truly vast range of of holiday possibilities.
9) The USA is in the process of revising its immigration procedures to make their entry process less intimidating. Dubai will have much less of an advantage in future (and, if they are suddenly attracting millions of visitors, they will run into the same immigration queues that the US currently has!).
10) No Disney. Until the Disney Company adds its name to the list of Dubai attractions, it doesn’t matter how many Marvel/Paramount/Universal/Dubailand parks they add, people will still not consider Dubai above WDW, DLP and even DL. Disney remains the king of theme park development with a truly international reputation; no-one else comes close. There are some great parks elsewhere in the US, but they are largely unknown outside America. Why? Because they are not Disney. QED.
Obviously, some of these negatives can change in time (especially if Disney DO decide to build there), but I really can’t see Dubai attracting the kind of long-haul Market (and it is still around a 6/7-hour flight from London) that Florida does. It may be different for other parts of Europe, though.
October 22nd, 2007 at 12:19 pm
When we stay last years in Dubai for vacation we see the planning-area from the new theme parc, it is a giant project, very big and very good.
The next time we stay there, we will visit the park if it is finished.
October 30th, 2007 at 1:22 pm
It’s an interesting idea. Macau has already surpassed Las Vegas for total gambling dollars and Dubai has literally sprung out of the sand dunes in the last ten years to be one of the hottest (no pun intended) resort destinations.
However, Disney hasn’t really been successful with the Hong Kong park, and the idea of expanding into the Middle East might be viewed as a high-risk plan. Plus, at the risk of sounding cynical, the US dollar has become so devalued that international tourism will probably stay high, despite all the Homeland Security harassment.
November 12th, 2007 at 12:55 pm
ad 7) It doesn’t have the same potential for repeat visits as Florida does (which is a much bigger and more diverse area). People may visit Dubai once out of curiosity, but it doesn’t appear to have the capacity to lure the same visitors back year after year. many people also now visit Florida and other parts of the US, and the US as a whole has a truly vast range of of holiday possibilities.
Well I guess, Orlando started out of nothing too, didn’t it? Dubai will have to develop its parks and developing it does very very quickly.
One point you have is the weather. But there also is a skiing resort there, so leave it to them to come up with a weather-proof solution!
Accomodation will follow sure enough as well.
I for my part as a European refuse to visit the States as long as visitors are treated as possible terrorists.
The impact of the Bush administration on the opion held by Europeans towards the US is devastating. I hardly know anybody who wants to go to the US here in Austria. Neither do know of any of my friends in Holland. Only my sister wants to go there for an internship, in San Fransisco, which doesn’t count
On the whole, people really despise the States for its current politics and I really hope things will change next year drastically.
I think Dubai has a very interesting position at present, they seem to be aware of the fact that the oil will be out some time in the future and they are looking to widen their sources of income.
November 14th, 2007 at 7:50 pm
Some day when I have the money I would love to visit Dubai. But I feel Dubai will never get as popular as Orlando. As a reader wrote “Florida and other parts of the US, and the US as a whole have a truly vast range of of holiday possibilities” …unlike Dubai.
On the issue of Homeland security treating foreigners as a undesirable.. Tough!! I’d rather be safe than worry about your feelings getting hurt!
November 17th, 2007 at 1:15 pm
[...] seem to believe building new theme parks is a good investment at the moment. Again, I am looking at Dubai, but also at the Hard Rock park in Myrtle Beach. A park they say to be the first of what might be a [...]
January 22nd, 2008 at 9:45 am
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April 1st, 2008 at 4:53 am
I think Dubai definitely will take business from Orlando and Cali when the parks are up and running. I would love to vacation in Dubai at some point but if I’m going to go that far I think Egypt and Italy would be higher on my list for tours.
August 24th, 2008 at 5:04 am
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August 31st, 2008 at 9:15 pm
wake up people, Dubai is crazy and fake, it will not last!!!
Everything about it is artificial, no culture, no democratic system, just crazy buildings build from oil cash. It will not last for sure. A new center of the world? dream on. I think everything will collapse very soon. Who would want to live in a desert? it is kind of like Vegas, maybe be OK to visit once, but the eco-system is so fragile and it will not be sustainable. People there are clearly just trying to make some quick money and leave, it will be a ghost town in a few years when oil crashes.
August 31st, 2008 at 9:45 pm
That´s absolutely bullshit thinkharder. We stay twice in Dubai, fly again next week for 11 Days in the Emirates Towers. It is a wonderful and glamourus city if you have the money for it! We have.
Do you stay there for vacation? I think no.
They build these wonderful buildings and parcs for the tourists. So the people come and the oil is not interested, no more. The have enough money and don´t need the oil in the next years. The eco system is not fragile, the eco sytem and invironment is fragile in the United States where all the crazy people live ….. ….. and Dubai will never be a ghost town. All rooms/apartments in the new buildiungs and areas are sold. ……