Colliers upbeat about future of UAE theme parks, despite flat 2016 for visitor numbers

It would take time for visitor numbers at the newly opened theme parks to pick up and for advertising to reach international markets.

Visitors ride the Flying Aces roller coaster at Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi. Christopher Pike / The National

The number of visitors attending theme parks in the UAE is expected to rise five-fold to 19 million by 2020, although figures for this year are likely to remain flat because of the economic slowdown, according to the property broker Colliers International.

“We think we have been quite conservative with our estimates and we may well revise that prediction upwards next year,” said Filippo Sona, the head of hotels for the Mena region at Colliers.

A total of about 3.7 million tourists are expected to have visited the UAE’s nine theme parks this year, the same number of visitors as last year when just four of the parks were open.

Colliers said that it would take time for visitor numbers at the newly opened IMG Worlds of Adventure, Legoland Dubai, Lego­land Waterpark Dubai, Bollywood Parks Dubai and Motion­gate Dubai to pick up and for advertising to reach international markets.

It also said that visitor numbers to some of the UAE’s existing parks – Ferrari World, Yas Waterworld, Aquaventure and Wild Wadi – had been hit by a slowdown in the economy.

“In Abu Dhabi especially we have seen that tourist numbers are down,” said Mr Sona. “This is partly because domestic tourists are choosing to spend less as a result of the economic slowdown. Families which would have previously visited these parks twice a month are choosing to visit once a month instead.”

According to Colliers, visitor numbers to the UAE’s previously existing theme parks fell slightly last year to 3.7 million from 3.74 million a year earlier.

“In Dubai we have seen that the two water parks are reaching full capacity so the organisers are not offering so many incentives and are making it more expensive to visit,” Mr Sona said.

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