The UAE once again marked New Year’s Eve with large-scale celebrations, as several emirates staged fireworks and drone displays built around spectacle, innovation and world-record ambition.
Ras Al Khaimah continued to build on its reputation for memorable New Year’s Eve productions – and officially walked away with a new Guinness World Records title. The emirate confirmed it set the record for the “largest aerial display of a phoenix formed by multirotors / drones”, achieved during its 15-minute coastal display stretching from Al Marjan Island to Al Hamra Island.
The show featured pyrotechnics, LED and laser drones and fireworks choreographed to specially composed music, with organisers saying more than 120,000 people gathered to watch as the phoenix shape lit up the night sky. The display also formed part of RAK’s ongoing push to position itself as one of the UAE’s leading New Year’s Eve destinations for record-breaking visual shows.
In Abu Dhabi, the Sheikh Zayed Festival in Al Wathba was among the biggest New Year’s Eve destinations. Organisers prepared a programme centred on Guinness World Record attempts, with plans to secure five new titles across different segments of the evening. Events began from 8pm and continued up to midnight, culminating in a 62-minute continuous fireworks display – one of the longest staged in the country – lighting up the sky for more than an hour.
Celebrations also included one of the largest drone shows seen in the UAE, with 6,500 drones forming a series of large-scale visual scenes for 20 minutes, synchronised with music and fireworks as crowds counted down to 2026.
Dubai, meanwhile, opted for widespread celebrations across the emirate, rather than a single central record attempt, with 48 fireworks displays at 40 locations, including Burj Khalifa, Burj Al Arab, Atlantis The Palm, Global Village, Expo City Dubai and Hatta. As part of Dubai Shopping Festival, Bluewaters Island and The Beach, JBR also hosted what was billed as the region’s largest narrative drone show, introducing brighter drones, faster formations and added fire effects.
Sharjah, meanwhile, staged 10-minute fireworks displays at Al Majaz Waterfront, Al Heera Beach and Khorfakkan Beach, while Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain also hosted celebrations, offering accessible public gatherings and large community displays.
