Why We’re Already Worried about Disneyland Abu Dhabi

In the spring of 2025, Disney shocked many by announcing that they were working with the Miral Group to bring a new theme park to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. However, a history a failed theme park projects in the region suggests this may be more difficult than it sounds.

According to Disney’s announcement, the new park will be located on Yas Island and be built in partnership with Miral Group, an Abu Dhabi-based entertainment company that “specializes in the creation of leisure and entertainment destinations throughout the UAE.” Similar to Disney’s agreement with the Oriental Land Company in Tokyo, the new resort will be developed and built by Miral, with Disney and its Imagineers leading creative design and operational oversight.

At the time of the announcement, Disney CEO Bob Iger said of the development, “This is a thrilling moment for our company as we announce plans to build an exciting Disney theme park resort in Abu Dhabi, whose culture is rich with an appreciation of the arts and creativity. As our seventh theme park destination, it will rise from this land in spectacular fashion, blending contemporary architecture with cutting-edge technology to offer guests deeply immersive entertainment experiences in unique and modern ways. Disneyland Abu Dhabi will be authentically Disney and distinctly Emirati – an oasis of extraordinary Disney entertainment at this crossroads of the world that will bring to life our timeless characters and stories in many new ways and will become a source of joy and inspiration for the people of this vast region to enjoy for generations to come.”

While Iger may have been ebullient in his public comments, history says that the project may run into some issues. This new Disney project isn’t the first theme park to be announced for the United Arab Emirates. In fact, over the course of the last two decades, several theme park projects have been announced for the UAE. Some have succeeded, some have failed, and some (including from industry leaders) were never even built.

Let’s start with those never-built parks, specifically one from Disney’s biggest rival, Universal. In 2007, Dubai government-owned developer Tatweer announced that they were teaming with Universal to build a 20,000,000 square foot park known as Universal Dubailand. The park was said to feature attractions based on Ghostbusters, Jurassic Park, Sesame Street, King Kong, Men In Black, and the The Mummy.

Ground was broken on the park in 2008, with the highlight of the ceremony being a massive Universal arch constructed in the dessert. However, construction stalled soon after, and never started again. Universal officially confirmed the project was dead in 2016.

Also n 2007, Six Flags announced that it was partnering with Tatweer, to build a 5 million square foot theme park in Dubai. Sigs Flags then-President Mark Shapiro said at the time that, “Expanding Six Flags beyond our current North American borders validates the growing strength and momentum of our brand.” After the 2008 financial crisis hit, plans for the park stalled and construction never began.

In 2014, Six Flags once again announced a planned Dubai park, this time in collaboration with Meraas Leisure and Entertainment, a Dubai Holding subsidiary. The plan aimed to bring a Six Flags park to the Dubai Parks and Resorts complex (remember that name) in Jebel Ali. Construction began in 2016, with an opening set for 2019 and a planned lineup of 27 rides. However, financial issues led to the park never being completed, and it was canceled in 2019.

The Dubai Parks and Resorts complex did eventually open, and is currently home to three theme parks: Motiongate Dubai, Real Madrid World (Formerly Bollywood Parks Dubai) and Legoland Dubai. However, the complex’s finances still seem to be in flux, as a said 2024 report said that visitor numbers and revenues were down 69% and 71%, respectively, compared to 2019.

While all that may sound like a doomsday scenario for Disney’s UAE park, that may not be the case as their partner in the venture, Miral, has seemingly bucked the trend of UAE theme park failure. Currently, the company operates 4 mostly indoor theme parks on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi: Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, SeaWorld Abu Dhabi, Warner Brothers World Abu Dhabi, and Yas Waterworld Abu Dhabi.

The parks, which due to their primarily indoor construction, allow them to be open year-round, helped Yas Island draw more than 38 million visits in 2024, a 10% increase on the previous year. Not coincidentally, while there are few specifics about the Abu Dhabi Disneyland Resort, it has been confirmed that current plans call for the park to be at least partially indoors.

While Disney’s plans for Disneyland Abu Dhabi seem grand, they must heed the cautionary tales of previous theme parks that have been announced for the area. Stay tuned to AllEars for more on Disney’s Abu Dhabi theme park plans.

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