Disney Announces New Abu Dhabi Park Will Be “More Ambitious” Than Anything Done Before

Earlier this week, Disney announced that it would be working on a new theme park in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

Since the announcement, Disney has responded to questions about when the park would be open, and the announcement itself has been met with controversy. But what can we really expect from this new park? According to Disney CEO Bob Iger, they’re very serious about this new addition.

In an interview with CNBC, Bob Iger talked a little bit more about the plans for this park, saying:

“And I will also say this is far more ambitious than anything that’s been built here. And that will be reflected not just in the size and in the quality, but in the sheer scale and in the — I think, diversity and I guess the array of experiences that will be offered. We’re not talking about anything small or anything in a box or this will be a significant theme park that we’re putting here.”

From these comments, it sounds like Disney is planning for this park to be quite large with a wide variety of offerings. The Chairperson of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Josh D’Amaro, was also part of the interview and continued, saying:

“Yeah, it’ll be much larger than anything that’s currently here now. And I think to Bob’s point, and you can see it in some of the renderings that we’ve released, we’re being incredibly ambitious in terms of the architecture, use of indoor and outdoor space. One of the great things about the piece of land that we’ll be building on is it’s right up against the water. And so we’ll be pulling water into this resort.”

Speaking more about the target demographic for this park, Josh D’Amaro is quoted as saying:

“There’s a big, big opportunity here. Of course, we do entertain guests from this area of the world in our parks around the world. But for every one theme park visitor that we have around the world, there are 10 more that we know actually want to participate in Disney experiences, but they just don’t have an opportunity to do so. And that’s most clear in this part of the world. So these markets are incredibly relevant to us.”

This new theme park will be located on Yas Island and has been described as “authentically Disney and distinctly Emirati.” The park will be developed and built by Miral, which has developed other parks in the area, such as SeaWorld Yas Island, Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi, and Ferrari World Yas Island. This means Disney will not pay for this project; Disney Imagineers will lead the creative design and operational oversight, and Miral, in collaboration with American and European brands, will operate the resort.

Disney CEO Bob Iger

Disney has not revealed the full scope of its plans yet, but we know that the park will offer signature Disney entertainment and themed accommodations, as well as dining and retail experiences.

We’ll continue to report to you the news we hear about this new addition to Disney theme parks, so stay tuned to AllEars.