Abu Dhabi is preparing for the post-war return of tourists, forging ahead with new attractions in an effort to show that its hospitality industry remains unbowed. Sphere Abu Dhabi has broken ground at a site on Yas Island, slotted between a mega-mall and an indoor SeaWorld theme park, with a price tag of $1.7 billion and a deadline of 2029. Like its sister site in Las Vegas, the venue will seat up to 20,000.
Moving ahead with work on the Sphere is “a clear signal,” Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of the Department of Culture and Tourism in Abu Dhabi, said in a statement. “Abu Dhabi is open, ambitious, and unwavering in its direction.”
Meanwhile, plans are still on track for the nearby future site of Disneyland Abu Dhabi, which is expected to open by 2033. “The strategic logic of our Abu Dhabi plans is unchanged,” The Walt Disney Company said in its May earnings report.
Hotel occupancy plunged to around 40% after the Iran conflict began in late February, down from 85% in 2025. Any signs of rebound have so far come from staycationers, not foreign tourists, who had been arriving in the tens of millions in recent years but are now steering clear: Abu Dhabi attracted 26.6 million visitors last year, and is still targeting 39.3 million by 2030.