Big things are happening over at Disney… Disney is creating an all new immersive art experience! Just this month, they broke ground on a new theme park in Abu Dhabi, their seventh location around the globe. This extraordinary project will unfold on Yas Island. It’s a colorful, funky pied-à-terre filled with all varieties of quirky entertainment and retail excursions.
For starters, Yas Island is a smart pick. It is home to Abu Dhabi’s largest retail mall and award winning golf course, making it a leading hub for attracting and entertaining both local and international tourists. Disney is looking to fuse cutting-edge technology with contemporary architecture and ideas in this new park. Guests should look forward to incredibly immersive entertainment experiences delivered in all new and different formats.
Disney started looking into setting up a resort in the area back in 2017 or 2018. The rollout was already slowed by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent leadership changes. Even with these various setbacks, Disney still intends to establish a presence in the UAE, with good reason as the region is seen as having incredible tourism potential. Almost two-thirds of the world’s population lives within four hours of the UAE. This small town of 50,000 people boasts amazing opportunity, with an addressable regional tourism market of over 500 million visitors.
Bob Iger, Disney’s CEO, emphasized the importance of this development, stating, “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.” He called experiences, small events or large themes, the essential business for Disney and the company’s best growth platform.
The Abu Dhabi project would be the second large-scale theme park Disney has licensed. Unlike Disney’s own $60 billion, ten-year plan to boost its theme parks, this plan is very short on detail. As Iger noted on an earnings call, it takes 18 months to two years to design and develop a theme park. Construction would then take approximately five years.
Josh D’Amaro, Disney’s Parks Chairman, hinted at the scale of the upcoming resort by stating, “This groundbreaking resort destination represents a new frontier in theme park development.” He teased that it would be “much larger than anything that’s currently here,” suggesting that this new addition will offer an unprecedented experience in Disney’s portfolio.
As we discussed in this conversation with Pierre Peron, Disney is committed to innovation and quality. Because of this, the Abu Dhabi resort will be their biggest and most interactive destination to date. This combination of cutting-edge technology with immersive narrative storytelling is a demonstration of Disney’s commitment to delivering the most innovative experiences imaginable to our guests.