#ON HOLD: UNIVERSAL CITY DUBAILAND

[THE DUBAI GUYS]

Universal Studios arm in Dubailand
Gulf News Report







Dubai: Dubai and Hollywood-based Universal Studios are to set up a Dh8 billion Universal City Dubailand on a 22 million-square-foot plot in Dubailand - the city's major leisure and entertainment destination.

Hollywood-based Universal Studios will provide technical support to the development while Tatweer, part of Dubai Holding, the Dubai Government's investment arm, will invest a further Dh8 billion.

Dubailand is a cluster of entertainment and theme parks that also include the City of Arabia, Dubai Motor City, Dubai Sports City, Al Barari, Aqua Duniya and Falcon City of Wonders.

This project will take investments in Dubailand to Dh73 billion to date, and will add to the attractions in Dubai - the most popular tourism destination in the Gulf.

R

[THE DUBAI GUYS]

HH Sheikh Hamdan unveils 'Universal City Dubailand' project at AED 8 billion
Mon, 30 Apr 2007 05:36 PM - Dubai Time

Under the directive of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council has launched the ‘Universal City Dubailand’, developed by Tatweer, a 22 million sq ft development within Dubailand with an investment to exceed AED 8 billion.

The centrepiece of the development Universal Studios Dubailand, a specialized theme park, will be amongst the world’s largest theme parks covering an area of 6.5 million sq ft. The city will also include hotels, retail outlets, commercial offices and residential compounds.

Saeed Al Muntafiq, Executive Chairman of Tatweer, said: “There is no doubt that the new project will contribute to highlighting Dubai as a global tourist destination, providing the tourism sector – one of Dubai’s most active sectors – with a strong drive to further diversify the economy.”

He added: “Universal City Dubailand’s unique offering is in its diverse components which will attract visitors from around the world, including the Asian sub continent, central and east Europe and South Africa.”

Moreover, ‘Universal Studios Dubailand’ will blur the line between fact and fiction and be the place where visitors can relive stories once reserved for the silver screen. Scenes from the biggest names in filmmaking history such as ‘Jurassic Park’ and the motion picture ‘King Kong’ amongst many others will be transformed into adventures with the completion of the project, which will contain four zones including Hollywood zone, Metropolis zone, and Adventure zone.

Thomas L. Williams, Chairman and CEO of Universal Parks & Resorts, said: “The vision of the leadership of Dubai, the investor-supportive environment and the convenient geographic location of Dubailand, combined with other strategic and iconic offerings, all contribute in making Dubai our location of choice for our first branded theme park in this region.”

Universal City Dubailand consists of more than 4000 luxurious hotel rooms, 100 restaurants, alongside a range of retail outlets. It will also include an integrated area of commercial office space as well as a distinguished residential area in the heart of the action.

Universal Studios is a globally respected and internationally renowned theme park brand. With three-time Academy Award winner, Steven Spielberg as creative consultant, its theme parks are known for some of most thrilling and technologically advanced “ride-the-movies”, motion picture and television show-based attractions.

Universal operates theme parks in Los Angeles, Florida, Japan and has licensing agreements with existing parks in development in Singapore. Universal Parks & Resorts worldwide enjoys more than 46 million guests annually to its theme parks, hotel facilities and CityWalk entertainment centres.

Al Muntafiq added that the Universal Studios Dubailand will be one of four similar family entertainment destinations around the world. Universal Studios Dubailand will be in addition to the other ‘Universal Studios’ in Los Angeles, Orlando and Japan.

R

[Dubai_Steve]

Disney must feel stupid now.

[vimto]

dubailand is delivering its promise

but 4000 hotel rooms in universal city? whats the point of bawadi then? legends also has 4 hotels of its own....

does universal studios have plans on opening anything in dubai studio city also?

i'm pretty sure the marvel park will choose to open in dubailand since universal is here... doesnt make sense for them to open anywhere else in the city.

[THE DUBAI GUYS]

bring on the hotels!

R

[guy_in_dubai]

woaaaaaaaaaaaaah! the best news for dubailand this year!

[Krazy]

damn! forget best news of the year.. this is what DubaiLand has been begging for for the past 3 years! Incredible news.. incredible project!

[crazyeight]

Awesome!

[malec]

great stuff for dubailand, was needed

[vimto]

al khaleej says the first phase of the project is the theme park at AED 2.5 billion and 6.5 million sqft, and completion date is late 2010. it will attract 3 million visitors/year.

the next 3 phases include the hotels, retail areas, restaurants, residential units, offices.... total of aed 5.5 billion and more details for them will be announced in the next year.

[metroreporter]

yeah, sweet news. hopefully they'll have the best of- from all their parks; maybe they can get their own metro stop like LAs.

[smussuw]

This is great

am concerned with the number of visitors though

[Dubai_Steve]

What concern exactly ?

[smussuw]

Would it have 3 million visitors or would it be lift empty? Same apply to other Dubai Land projects.

[Dubai_Steve]

A Universal Studios theme park will be a cornerstone attraction in the huge Dubailand vacation resort rapidly rising in the United Arab Emirates.

The park, to be called Universal Studios Dubailand, will be comparable in size to Universal Studios Orlando, should open by 2010 and is projected to eventually draw up to 5 million visitors a year.

Officials of Orlando-based Universal Parks & Resorts and the United Arab Emirates, including Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE vice president, prime minister and ruler of Dubai, announced Monday that a Universal park will be built in the quickly developing Arabic vacation land.

The city already features worldwide landmark hotels, a gigantic Mall of Arabia, stadiums, museums, golf courses and beaches. The master-planned tourist district caters Western-style vacations to the Middle East and draws heavily from Russia, India and much of continental Europe markets. Plans also have been discussed for a water park and other parks.

Universal Parks & Resorts won't own or run the theme park but will license the company's name, expertise, training, operational methods, products and top attractions, such as Revenge of the Mummy. That arrangement makes Universal Studios Dubailand much like what Universal Parks & Resorts has in Japan and Spain, and especially like the new Universal Studios planned in another multiattraction tourism city being built from scratch in Singapore.

The park will be developed by Tatweer, a Dubai-based company in charge of a larger, $2.2 billion leisure area of parks, hotels, shopping, offices and residential compounds within Dubailand, called "Universal City Dubailand."

"It's a healthy, growing economy. There is visionary leadership, robust commerce and a local regional population that suggests great potential and a vibrant, growing tourism industry," Universal Parks & Resorts Chairman Tom Williams said by phone from Dubai on Monday. "It's a great mutual fit for us both."

In a news release, Saeed Al Muntafiq, executive chairman of Tatweer, said, "There is no doubt that the new project will contribute to highlighting Dubai as a global tourist destination."

The Universal park would have four themed lands, including Hollywood Zone, Metropolis Zone and Adventure Zone.

Williams said it would include some attractions already successful elsewhere, such as Universal Studios Orlando's Revenge of the Mummy and Islands of Adventure's Jurassic Park River Adventure and The Eighth Voyage of Sinbad Stunt Show, along with new attractions such as a King Kong-themed roller coaster and an Aladdin-themed ride.

"This makes tremendous sense for Universal," said Peter Yesawich, chairman of Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown and Russell, a Central Florida travel research and marketing company.

Dubai, Yesawich said, is highly Westernized. Even the billboards are in English.

And while Islamic mores generally restrict cultural behavior there, the culture is considered open compared with much of the region

He was just in Dubai a few weeks ago as a keynote speaker at a vacation investment conference and said the development scope and pace there are "overwhelming . . . the product of a remarkable vision and what I presume to be unlimited resources."

Yet there are concerns about whether there is enough local population. The population of the United Arab Emirates is only about 2.6 million, according to the United States CIA factbook.

"The park cannot count on local residents to help carry it," said Dennis Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services in Cincinnati, who also has been to Dubai recently. "It's going to have to survive and thrive on tourism."

[Imre]

UNIVERSAL CITY DUBAILAND

[ZZ-II]

damned, can't wait until the whole Dubailand is completed

[Dubai-Toluca]

WOW, I WANNA TRAVEL TO DUBAI, ITS BEATIFUL

somebody speak spanish? because I from mexico and i speak a few of english, only the basic.

[Krazy]

comastas?

[malec]

I wonder if something like this will be open all year round or just 3 seasons