Universal City Dubailand was announced April 30 by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, chairman of the Dubai Executive Council.

The project represents an investment in excess of AED 8 billion ($2.2b/€) and is to be developed by Universal Parks & Resorts alongside Tatweer, a division of government-owned Dubai Holding charged with developing the complete Dubailand resort.

“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,” notes Thomas L. Williams, chairman and CEO of Universal Parks & Resorts.

A Universal Studios Dubailand theme park will account for 6.5 million sq ft of the total 22 million sq f t earmarked for the Universal project, which will also include hotels, retail outlets, commercial offices and residential compounds.

“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,” notes Saeed Al Muntafiq, executive chairman of Tatweer. “Universal City Dubailand will attract visitors from around the world, including the Asian sub continent, central and east Europe and South Africa.”

Universal City Dubailand will be split into four zones and include theme park attractions based around major movies such as Jurassic Park and King Kong. Universal Studios Dubailand will be the fourth Universal-branded park in the world, joining existing facilities in Hollywood, Orlando and Osaka, Japan, which already entertain more than 46 million guests a year.

Additional theme parks already announced as part of Dubailand include a Formula 1 park, Snowdome, Aqua Dunya waterpark and dinosaur-themed Restless Planet.

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