Disneyland Abu Dhabi Could Open Before Universal’s UK Theme Park
As the race heats up between global entertainment giants, Abu Dhabi’s eagerly anticipated Disney theme park may surpass its UK-based Universal counterpart in opening its gates to the public.
According to the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi), the newly announced Disneyland Abu Dhabi is currently in the early design phase but could debut as early as 2030. A statement published on DCT Abu Dhabi’s official Experience Abu Dhabi website clarifies: “Disneyland Abu Dhabi is still in the early design stages. While no dates have been officially communicated yet, expect the opening of Disneyland Abu Dhabi to be sometime between 2030 and 2032.”
The park, which was officially announced in May 2024, will be located on Yas Island and is being developed by Miral, the emirate’s leading creator of immersive destinations and experiences.
Speaking to Reuters in May, Josh D’Amaro, chairman of the Disney Experiences division, provided an estimated project timeline, noting that a Disney park “could take one to two years to design, and another four to six years to construct.” Reinforcing that point, Disney CEO Bob Iger added in an interview with CNBC that “it typically takes us between 18 months and two years to design and fully develop and approximately five years to build.”
Nevertheless, Disney’s publicity team told Forbes that “we have not been giving an estimated opening date” for the Abu Dhabi theme park, indicating that the company prefers to keep timelines tentative during this developmental stage.
Meanwhile, Universal is planning its first major theme park in the UK, targeting a 2031 opening date. This was confirmed by Mark Woodbury, chairman and CEO of Universal Destinations & Experiences, during the Bank of America 2025 Media, Communications & Entertainment Conference. The UK park is described as “a full-blown Universal theme park with a 500-room hotel that is part of it, very much like Epic in terms of a park with a hotel.” According to Woodbury, the company has “created a different mix of attractions that we think will work great in the UK.”
In light of Disney’s ambitious Middle Eastern expansion, Woodbury remarked that Universal’s “priorities right now are driving Epic to full throttle and to execute on [the] UK.”
Though the countdown is just beginning, the stage is now set for an epic global showdown, as Disney and Universal push forward on two massive projects expected to reshape the entertainment landscapes of Abu Dhabi and the UK in the coming decade.
Team V.DIR-EM-UAE
