Dubai is entering into its winter season with a variety of new attractions and experiences launching to further cement Dubai’s position as an extended stopover and a destination in itself.
Fans of The Hunger Games can now unleash their inner Katniss at Motiongate, the Hollywood-inspired theme park at Dubai Parks & Resorts. The World of The Hunger Games comes with never-before-seen content from the films, interactive character experiences from the Coal Miner’s Clash (a high-octane percussion show), food and drink available from Peeta’s Bakery and gifts and memorabilia that can be bought from Panem Supply Co.
What about the new rides? The first is the Capitol Bullet Train, which sees visitors take a hair-raising rollercoaster journey from District 12 to the Capitol. The second is the Panem Aerial Tour, which involves a 3D flight over the landmarks of the fictional nation. Learn more >
For kids, a first of its kind interactive children’s play museum is set to open in Dubai next week. Located in the Al Quoz area of Dubai, OliOli is an ‘observe and learn’ playground featuring a range of installations, science labs and a car gallery.
Spread across 30,000 square feet, the two-storey facility boasts a massive play area that houses eight galleries that follow the STEAM education theme (science, technology, engineering, arts and maths). There are over 40 exhibits inspired by the work of leading educators, artists and development psychologists.
Visitors to Dubai Frame will have to book their tickets through an app to see the city’s major landmark, scheduled to open next month. Testing and operations launch of Dubai Frame will be at the end of October, and it will open to the public in November. Check it out >
The first phase of La Mer will open to the public on 15 October. La Mer is one of the latest projects from Meraas, the developer behind the likes of The Beach at Jumeirah Beach Residence, Boxpark and City Walk – as well as the brand new Al Seef cultural district.
Located between Pearl Jumeirah and Jumeirah Bay, La Mer spans a whopping 13.4 million square feet of existing and reclaimed land.
Travellers departing from Dubai will no longer need to pass through any sort of security clearance counter or e-gate; they will simply walk through a virtual aquarium tunnel that will scan their face or iris using hidden cameras while they’re in motion.
The tunnel, which will display high-quality images of an aquarium, will be equipped with about 80 cameras set up in every corner and the idea came about after 18 months of brainstorming.
The first of these “virtual borders” will be installed by the end of summer 2018 at Terminal 3 at Dubai International airport. In phases up until 2020, the tunnels will be rolled out at other Dubai terminals.