What is J1 Beach? The beachfront venue replacing La Mer in Dubai

La Mer will close during the redevelopment and the new concept will open by the end of next year

J1 Beach will be a flagship beach resort destination with high-end food and drinks outlets. Photo: Merex Investment

La Mer, the beachfront development in Jumeirah, Dubai, is to be rebranded as a new lifestyle destination featuring new restaurants, including a few global concepts making their debut in the UAE.

Merex Investment, the firm managing La Mer, announced the rebranding on Tuesday, effectively replacing the beachfront venue, which has now closed for construction.

J1 Beach, a new day-to-night seaside destination is replace La Mer, with plans to open by the end of next year.

What happens to the existing tenants of La Mer?

La Mer has been home to a number of famous restaurants, including Asian dining spot PF Chang’s and popular burger shack Salt.

Due to reconstruction, these outlets have closed, with some of them moving to other Merex destinations, such as The Beach and City Walk, a representative of the company tells The National.

What is coming at J1 Beach?

Merex said it aims for J1 Beach to be a flagship beach resort, with high-end food and drinks outlets.

Valet services and parking will be available, as well as golf cart shuttle services and green pathways. Guests can also arrive by sea through a waterfront reception.

“We firmly believe that the addition of the day-to-night seaside lifestyle experiences and restaurants will reimagine the way visitors enjoy interactive and new elevated choices,” Shahram Shamsaee, chief executive of Merex, said.

Merex singled out three brands which are set to be part of the new destination — including Gigi Rigolatto, Baoli, and Sirene Beach by Gaia. A group of 10 new restaurants is also expected to set up shop at J1 Beach.

All the way from France, with a presence in Saint Tropez, Paris, and Val d’lsere, Gigi Rigolatto is bringing its beachfront experience to Dubai. It will feature a restaurant with two terraces, a garden, a Bellini bar, a swimming pool, a kids’ circus and a wellness area. Guests can also access the beach directly from the venue.

A render of the new J1 Beach that replaces La Mer South. Photo: Merex Investment

Another venue is Baoli, a retreat-style space “inspired by the beautiful stepwell baolis in India” its founder Sanjeev Nanda said. The restaurant, which also has branches in the US and France, will offer modern Japanese cuisine.

The third outlet is Sirene Beach by Gaia, which is a home-grown spin-off of the Greek-Mediterranean restaurant Gaia.

Inside Aya, a new 'experiential park' in Dubai - pictures

Aya, a new immersive light-and-show park, is opening in Dubai on Saturday at Wafi City mall. All photos: Antonie Robertson / The National

The park utilises lights, sounds, as well as mirrors to create an otherworldly experience for visitors

The park is spread across 3,700 square metres

One room requires visitors to lay on their backs and watch a light show projected on the ceiling — the idea is to create an illusion of floating

Each room, or zone, at the park is designed to create an 'out-of-body experience', say its founders

Aya is divided into 12 zones, with each meant to evoke a specific reaction from guests

Aya mostly features abstract imagery, incorporating extra terrestrial elements in some of the light projections

Flora zone features jellyfish-like creatures swimming or flying through an ethereal dimension

The zones also feature individual shows, with a vibrant choreography of lights and sounds that could go up to seven minutes

The Source zone

Flora zone

Outland zone

Luna zone

Flora zone

The Source zone

Rama Allen, chief creative officer at HyperSpace