Dubai welcomed 11.17 million international overnight visitors from January-July 2025, marking a 5% increase compared to January-July 2024. Adding to its appeal for international audiences, Dubai’s accommodation and attraction portfolios continue to evolve for the remainder of 2025 and into 2026, offering quality at every price point. As the year progresses, the city continues to evolve as a global destination, unveiling a wave of exciting new openings across hotels, dining, attractions and events. From record-breaking properties and innovative culinary concepts to immersive experiences and major festivals, the rest of 2025 and into 2026 promise fresh reasons to explore Dubai.

HOTELS

What’s trending and new openings

Ciel Dubai Marina, part of IHG Hotels & Resorts’s Vignette Collection, will be the world’s tallest hotel at 365 metres. Opening in November 2025, the luxury five-star property will span 82 floors and feature more than 1,000 rooms and suites, three restaurants, Dubai’s highest infinity pool, a fitness centre and spa, club lounge, and a 360-degree observation deck with spectacular views over Dubai Marina, Palm Jumeirah and the Arabian Gulf.
Taking bookings from October 2025, the Mandarin Oriental Downtown, Dubai will be located within the new 302-metre Wasl Tower on Sheikh Zayed Road. Featuring the region’s tallest ceramic façade, the hotel will have 259 rooms and suites, along with 224 exclusive residences. It will also have various dining spaces, a rooftop helipad, and a spa spanning two floors. This is the brand’s second property in the city, following the Mandarin Oriental Jumeira, Dubai on Jumeirah Beach.
Moxy Dubai Al Barsha debuts the Moxy brand in the UAE with a 480-room in Al Barsha. The Marriott-operated hotel is a refurbished existing property, and will feature industrial-chic design and buzzing communal spaces with local influences. It targets young travellers seeking stylish, affordable accommodation with social areas.
Six Senses The Palm, Dubai will be the first Six Senses property in the city. When it opens its doors in 2026, it will offer just 61 rooms and 162 branded residences along a private stretch of beach on Palm Jumeirah’s West Crescent. The resort will also have a signature Six Senses Spa, social and wellness club, restaurants, a library and pools. 
Mileo The Palm has made its debut on Palm West Beach. The hotel features 176 rooms and suites – from deluxe studios to two-bedroom apartment suites – many with private balconies showcasing views of Palm Jumeirah and the Dubai Marina skyline. There are seven dining venues plus wellness amenities, a kids’ club, and rooftop infinity pool.
Meliá Desert Palm Meliá Collection has introduced six new one-bedroom Al Waha villas, offering immersive wellness sanctuaries just 20 minutes from Downtown Dubai. Set on a secluded polo estate, each villa features indoor and outdoor dining areas, a courtyard garden, and a private pool. Interiors echo the Arabic word waha (oasis), with natural fabrics, aromatherapy kits, and yoga mats.
Scheduled to open in December 2025, ZUHHA Island by Zaya is a resort situated within The World Islands, an archipelago just off the coast of Dubai. It will include 30 luxury residential villas, 70 resort villas, restaurants, a spa and fitness facilities, and activities. 

RESTAURANTS

 

What’s trending and new openings

Three Bros, the new concept by the Orfali brothers, opened in August 2025 at Al Wasl 51 in Jumeirah, just steps from their MICHELIN-starred flagship venue. Offering global flavours, this compact, 22-seat restaurant embraces the same commitment to quality ingredients but serves them in a more casual, free-flowing style. Dishes arrive as they’re ready, encouraging a relaxed, grazing approach to dining.
25 Jump Street in One Central, adjacent to the 25hours Hotel, is a new dining destination and the city’s first licensed street. Featuring 12 unique experiences, venues already open include Em Sherif Deli, Yubi Handroll Bar, and Antika, while upcoming openings include Esco-Bar, Junk smash burgers, Lady Bird, and LucyLu.
Located in Alserkal Avenue and opened in July 2025, The Growhouse is a sustainable cafe that doubles as an indoor farm. This cafe is a farm-to-fork experience, with an indoor farm on the upper level that grows ingredients for your plate. The space combines industrial elements with lush greenery, creating a peaceful ambience.

Upcoming restaurant openings

Set to open at Kempinski The Boulevard Dubai on Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Boulevard, Woohoo is the city’s first AI-themed restaurant. It’s a futuristic dining experience featuring “Chef Aiman”, an AI culinary engine that crafts personalised menus. The AI analyses ingredients by texture, acidity, and umami to create unique dishes, then human chefs refine the AI-generated recipes to ensure quality.
Modern seafood restaurant Kraken is set to open on 17 October 2025 on Al Wasl Road. Led by award-winning chef Grégoire Berger, formerly of MICHELIN-starred Ossiano, the restaurant is inspired by Dubai’s coastal and Emirati heritage with a menu featuring innovative seafood dishes that celebrates the region’s vibrant marine life.
Legendary restaurant CARBONE is set to open its new Dubai venue at Atlantis The Royal on 6 October 2025. Described as ‘the most celebrity-studded restaurant on earth’ by Vanity Fair, visitors in Dubai will be able to enjoy New York-style Italian cuisine served by tuxedo-clad service captains in a sprawling dining room that will transport guests to 1950s New York. The restaurant will offer both indoor and outdoor seating, with the latter providing views of the hotel’s Skyblaze Fountain Show.
In November 2025, award-winning UK-born concept Tattu will make its international debut atop Ciel Dubai Marina, the soon-to-open world’s tallest hotel. The multi-level modern Asian destination unfolds in three chapters: The House of Dragon, serving modern Chinese cuisine with Marina and Palm views; The House of Koi, home to the world’s tallest infinity pool; and The House of Phoenix, a crown jewel of dramatic design.
Following its venues at Atlantis, The Palm and Nobu by the Beach in Atlantis The Royal, legendary Japanese chef Nobu Matsuhisa will soon open his third Dubai-based location. The new restaurant Nobu One Za’abeel, will be situated on floor 24 of The Link at One Za’abeel. 
Abra Restaurant is set to open at the landmark Etihad Museum in Jumeirah. Led by chef Sahar Parham Al Awadhi, who was awarded best pastry chef at the 2022 World’s 50 Best MENA Awards, the restaurant will be a celebration of Emirati culinary heritage, offering a contemporary take on regional flavours.

ATTRACTIONS

 

What’s trending, new openings and reopenings

Atlantis, The Palm has launched Casablanca Beach Club in partnership with Ounass, offering a luxurious beach experience with bespoke furnishings, two pools, and private cabanas. The menu features signature sushi and seafood towers while a dedicated Ounass pop-up boutique is also available. Prices start from £50 per person Monday to Friday and £70 per person Saturday and Sunday, with redeemable amounts on food and beverage. Open daily from 10am to 8pm for visitors aged 21 and above.
Discover The Messi Experience at Dubai Festival City Mall and step into the thrilling world of Lionel Messi, Argentina’s FIFA World Cup-winning captain. Open until 31 December 2025, football fans can relive his rise from a young talent in Rosario to global icon through interactive games and unforgettable stories across nine dynamic zones.
Visitors can step aboard the Heritage Express trolley bus and go on a cultural journey through Old Dubai. Starting at the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Centre for Cultural Understanding (SMCCU) in Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood, the two-hour experience is guided by Emirati cultural presenters, who will tell authentic stories that bring the city’s heritage to life. Following the tour, visitors can then enjoy a traditional meal at SMCCU’s charming wind-tower house. From £38 per person.
Dubai Fountain, located outside Dubai Mall at the foot of Burj Khalifa, has been undergoing a major upgrade for the past five months and will relaunch on 1 October 2025. Known for dazzling choreography and spectacular displays, the free attraction will return with enhanced sound, lighting, and water effects.

EVENTS

 

Festivals and culture

 

Dubai Design Week, the region’s largest creative festival, will see Dubai Design District (d3) transform into a hub of inspiration and artistry from 4-9 November 2025 as architects, designers, brands, artists and institutions converge in a celebration of creativity.
The 31st edition of Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) will run for 38 days from 5 December 2025 to 11 January 2026. Full of spectacular shopping experiences and deals and giving visitors the chance to win life-changing prizes and get access to world-class family entertainment, DSF will launch with the star-studded opening weekend concerts, bringing an electrifying roster of A-list international and regional artists. A number of popular events and activities will return to the festival with enhanced features including the DSF Drone Show, DSF Auto Season and e& MOTB.
Experience Dubai’s vibrant street culture at Sole DXB, a three-day annual festival held in Dubai Design District (d3) from 12-14 December 2025. Expect the latest footwear launches, fashion shows, art installations, cultural talks and workshops, basketball and skateboarding sports tournaments, music performances and DJ sets.

Sport and fitness

Dubai Fitness Challenge, taking place from 1-30 November 2025, is one of the city’s marquee events. Challenging participants to complete 30 minutes of exercise each day for 30 days (30×30), the programme includes many fitness events, classes, and sporting activities.
In the Dubai Ride on 2 November, part of Dubai Fitness Challenge, cyclists pedal their way through the heart of the city. Attracting a record 37,130 participants in 2024, this all-ages community event promises an action-packed day of fun and fitness. Riders can choose between the family-friendly 4km route around Downtown Dubai, offering views of Burj Khalifa, or take on the 14km challenge along Sheikh Zayed Road. 
Dubai will host the Final Qualification Tournament for the Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 at The Sevens Stadium from 8-18 November 2025. This is the last stop on the road to the World Cup in Australia, and only one team will make it through. Four nations from across the globe will compete over three match days in a round-robin format. 
After its inaugural edition in 2024, the Dubai Premier Padel P1 will return from 9-16 November 2025 and be held at a new venue – Hamdan Sports Complex, the region’s largest indoor sports facility. The event will feature 240 elite padel players (male and female pairs).
As the grand finale of the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai schedule, the DP World Tour Championship, hosted on the Earth course at Jumeirah Golf Estates from 13-16 November 2025, brings together the leading 50 golfers in the DP World Tour Rankings. Set against the backdrop of Dubai’s stunning landscapes and iconic skyline, the championship offers an exciting spectacle for both avid golf fans and casual observers. General admission on Thursday and Friday at the DP World Tour Championship is free for spectators, while Saturday and Sunday is ticketed. 
The Emirates Dubai 7s from 28-30 November 2025 will see elite rugby sevens teams from around the world compete head-to-head in both men’s and women’s tournaments at The Sevens Stadium, a superb purpose-built venue. Aside from enjoying thrilling rugby action and top-class entertainment, visitors can enter a team in the largest mass-participation rugby seven tournament in the world and also take part in other sports such as cricket, netball and padel. 

Dubai is a multiple winner of the World Travel Awards, last year winning awards for:

World’s Leading Exhibition Destination 2024
World’s Leading Shopping Destination 2024
Middle East’s Leading Destination 2024
Middle East’s Leading Tourist Board 2024

To find out what’s new and trending in Dubai, please visit: www.visitdubai.com