Events, artists and the programme calendar

This chapter covers the dated side of Dubai nightlife: DJs and artists, ticketed shows and their published prices, festivals, the seasonal rhythm from peak winter to summer and Ramadan, New Year's Eve, and the permits that sit behind a public event. The headline finding is that the calendar is heavily weighted to winter: Dubai Shopping Festival 2024/25 listed 619 concerts and shows in 38 days, against 76 in the 66 days of Dubai Summer Surprises 2025, and the 2026 regional conflict moved part of the 2026 programme into late 2026 and 2027, including UNTOLD Dubai, now set for 19 to 22 March 2027 (Zawya / DFRE; DJ Mag).

In brief

The Dubai Calendar lists over 1,000 events a year; DSF 2024/25 had 619 concerts and shows and DSS 2025 had 76 at 35 venues (Zawya / DFRE).

Ticketed DJ events for November and December 2026 start at AED 150 to 400 per person on Platinumlist, from Mahmut Orhan at Ushuaia to Adam Port at Playa Pacha.

Platinumlist has a reported share of about 80% of UAE entertainment ticketing, and more than 80% of its buyers live in the UAE (IQ Magazine, 2024; The National, 2026).

Platinumlist said EDM ticket prices fell by 50% in 2026 while Arabic concert prices rose by up to 30%, and reported H1 2026 concert sales up 75% (platform-reported, no base given).

UNTOLD Dubai drew more than 185,000 people in 2024 and more than 190,000 in 2025 (organiser figures); its next edition moved from November 2026 to 19 to 22 March 2027 at Dubai Parks and Resorts (Romania Insider; Revista Biz).

Ramadan rules are set each year: published guidance in 2023 and 2026 described venues open with music restrictions, while one 2023 organiser guide said nightclubs could not operate (Gulf News; Platinumlist for organisers).

NYE 2025/26 packages ranged from AED 299 per person at The Blacksmith to AED 7,000 at CÉ LA VI; for NYE 2026/27 the Atlantis gala with Katy Perry starts at AED 8,500 for adults.

Every entertainment event needs a DET e-Permit, and ticketed events also need a DET ticketing approval through an authorised seller.

Event fees for permits, postponement and cancellation were waived under Dubai's May 2026 relief package (Gulf News).

How Dubai's programme is sold

Dated events in Dubai are sold mainly through one ticketing platform. IQ Magazine, citing Statista, reported that Platinumlist holds about 80% of the UAE entertainment ticketing market, with Ticketmaster and Virgin Megastores also primary sellers. Platinumlist's CEO said in 2026 that more than 80% of its ticket buyers live in the UAE, and the company self-reports more than 10 million tickets sold and more than 7,400 events and experiences. IQ's 2026 UAE report says ticketing platforms are now "selling experiences rather than simple admission", through golden circle, hospitality lounge and fast-track tiers (IQ Magazine).

Lead times differ by format. Coca-Cola Arena promotes shows nine to ten months ahead, against about three months typical in the region, and reports that sales dip after the on-sale and pick up near the event date (Pollstar, 2025). Club and beach events are listed weeks rather than months ahead: the Platinumlist calendars read on 28 October 2026 carried club dates through to New Year's Eve (Ushuaia Dubai Harbour Experience). Some venues sell through their own sites, as The Agenda did for the February 2027 Sponge Cola and Karylle concert, and hotel clubs often take table bookings through SevenRooms rather than tickets.

For marketersBecause most buyers are residents, the event calendar is a resident marketing calendar first. Visitor demand adds to it in peak months, but the base audience for a club night or concert in Dubai is people who already live in the UAE.

DJs and club headliners

The club headliner market is concentrated in a few venues that sell dated tickets. The table lists every ticketed DJ or club event found on Platinumlist calendars for November and December 2026, with the price exactly as listed.

Late-2026 club and DJ tickets start between AED 150 and AED 495 per person

Lowest published ticket price per person, AED, Platinumlist calendars read 28 Oct 2026, Dubai; Ushuaia box office also shows a higher figure per event (basis not stated)

View chart data

Label	Ticket from, per person (AED)
Sole DXB 2026 (Nad Al Sheba)	495
Adam Port (Playa Pacha, JBR)	400
Synthony x Faithless (venue not stated)	295
Adriatique (Ushuaia, Dubai Harbour)	250
ARTBAT (Ushuaia)	195
Ilkay Sencan (Cavo)	150
Mahmut Orhan (Ushuaia)	150
Argy NYE (Ushuaia)	150

Ticket prices for electronic music fell in 2026. Platinumlist's CEO said EDM ticket prices had gone down by 50% that year, with tickets around AED 100-plus, and the same executive said in July 2026 that EDM prices were down by roughly half while around 70% of shows were selling out (The National, 2021 to 2026; Gulf News, The Hustle podcast). The prices in the table are consistent with that: the Ushuaia headliners start between AED 150 and 250. At the top of the market, Calvin Harris at Ushuaia won Best International DJ Set at the What's On Nightlife Awards 2025, and The Penthouse runs a dated artist calendar with separate ticket and VIP routes.

Below the headliners, recurring nights are built on resident DJs. The Mansion names DJ Sam Oui for Wednesdays and DJ A-Rok for Sunday Arabic house, Mercury Rooftop has DJs every night from 10pm to 2am with live saxophone or percussion from Thursday to Saturday, and Brasserie 2.0 pairs a DJ with live saxophone for its sunset afterparty. Listening data shows where demand sits: Spotify's UAE top five artists for 2025 were Drake, The Weeknd, Taylor Swift, Arijit Singh and Pritam, and Anghami reported Afro House streams up 250% in MENA in 2024, led by Adam Port's "Move".

Ticketed concerts and shows

Concerts are the largest single source of dated demand. The table below lists the non-club ticketed events found for late 2026 and early 2027.

Coca-Cola Arena, with a capacity of 17,000, is the main indoor concert room. A 14,000-seat Majid Al Muhandis show there sold out in 2026, according to Platinumlist's CEO (Gulf News, The Hustle podcast). Pollstar's figures for the arena (more than 500 events since 2019, and 13,165 tickets for Teddy Swims on 22 November 2025) could not be re-read on 28 October 2026 and are unverified. Platinumlist reported that ticket purchases for Arabic music rose more than 300% year on year (period not stated) and that its CEO put the rise in Arabic and classical concert spending at about 30%; these measure different things (IQ Magazine, 2026; Gulf News, The Hustle podcast, 2026). It also reported H1 2026 concert ticket sales up 75% and Desi events up 69%; these are platform-reported transaction growth with no base given, during a period when visitor arrivals fell 44%, and point to resident-led demand rather than market size (Khaleej Times citing Platinumlist and Udora; Malay Mail).

Platinumlist reported H1 2026 growth of 75% in concert sales and 69% in Desi events

Year-on-year growth in Platinumlist UAE transactions, %, H1 2026 vs H1 2025; platform-reported, no base given; during a period when Dubai visitor arrivals fell

View chart data

Label	YoY growth (%)
Concert ticket sales	75
Desi events	69
Indoor attractions	94

Festivals

Dubai's music festivals are few, large and concentrated in winter. UNTOLD Dubai drew more than 185,000 attendees to its first edition at Expo City Dubai from 15 to 18 February 2024, by the organiser's count (Romania Insider). Its second edition ran from 6 to 9 November 2025 at Dubai Parks and Resorts with Martin Garrix, Armin van Buuren and Steve Aoki, and the organiser reported more than 190,000 attendees over four days with more than 100 artists on six stages on a 267,000 sq m site (What's On Dubai; Revista Biz). It won Best Festival at the What's On Nightlife Awards 2025 (Ushuaia Dubai Harbour; UNTOLD Dubai, 2026). The 2026 edition, first announced for 5 to 8 November 2026, was postponed to 19 to 22 March 2027 at Dubai Parks and Resorts, with no reason given beyond "an even more ambitious edition" (DJ Mag). One third-party listing gives 19 to 21 March 2027; DJ Mag's 19 to 22 March is used here (UNTOLD Dubai, 2026; DJ Mag, 2026).

Sole DXB ran from 12 to 14 December 2025 at Dubai Design District with one-day general admission at AED 299 and three-day passes from AED 350 to 999 by wave, per a property portal blog. Its 2026 edition is listed for 11 December at The Square, Nad Al Sheba, from AED 495. AfroLOUD's "Kingdom" at Dubai World Trade Centre on 28 June 2025 was billed by FACT as Dubai's first indoor summer festival, with tickets from AED 199. Expo City Dubai hosted more than 75 events in 2025, and DXB LIVE reported 26 entertainment, sports and music events among 442 events in 2025, including the nine-day Global Encounters Festival with more than 100,000 visitors (Dubai Media Office; TradeArabia). Terra Solis, the Tomorrowland-backed desert venue, closed after four years with a last scheduled event on 31 January 2026 (Gulf News).

Industry dates

The What's On Nightlife Awards are the main public industry date. The 2025 edition, held on 29 October 2025, had 28 categories, five of them by public vote (ladies' day, ladies' night, promoter night, live music venue and happy hour) (Published list: What's On Nightlife Awards 2025, 2026). The 2026 awards took place on 28 October 2026 at Bohemia Beach Club, FIVE Palm Jumeirah, strictly 21 and over, and were listed as sold out. Filmfare Middle East's restaurant awards, held on 1 October 2025, included a Favourite Indian Night Club category (Tashan2, Royal Ascot Hotel, 2026). Award entries and public votes give venues dated content and third-party validation that platforms accept more readily than offer-led creative.

Seasonality: peak season

Dubai's peak season runs from late autumn through winter. December 2025 was the first month in which Dubai received more than 2 million visitors (Khaleej Times). STR data from CoStar showed occupancy of 84.3% and an ADR of AED 1,042.11 in December 2025, the best December in nearly two decades; this is a one-month figure on a different basis from DET's annual series. The festival calendar follows: DSF's 30th edition ran 38 days from 6 December 2024 to 12 January 2025 with 619 concerts and entertainment shows and more than 125 events at more than 60 venues (Zawya / DFRE). Visa reported that premium card winter spending in the UAE rose 30% year on year in December 2025, with inbound European spending up about 50% (UAE-wide, not Dubai only).

Within the week, a 2026 travel blog says Thursday to Saturday are the main club nights and Sunday to Tuesday are "significantly quieter" (Dubai clubs general). Venue programming in the notes places ladies nights mid-week: Wednesdays at The Mansion and City Social, Thursdays at Pier 7, Barfly and McGettigan's. Brunches cluster on Fridays and Saturdays (Malibu Sky Lounge, Paramount Hotel Midtown, 64th floor, 2026; Mama Zonia, Pier 7, 2026).

Winter's DSF listed 619 concerts and shows in 38 days against 76 in 66 days of summer's DSS

Concerts and entertainment shows per festival edition, Dubai; DSF 6 Dec 2024 to 12 Jan 2025; DSS 27 Jun to 31 Aug 2025 (DFRE)

View chart data

Label	Concerts and shows
DSF 2024/25 (38 days)	619
DSS 2025 (66 days)	76

Seasonality: summer

Summer is the low season for outdoor and visitor-led formats. DSS 2025 ran 66 days from 27 June to 31 August 2025 with 76 concerts and shows at 35 venues, and DFRE reported average consumer spending during DSS 2025 up 110%. DSS 2026 ran from 2 July to 30 August 2026 with more than a dozen concerts and shows, Summer Restaurant Week from 13 July to 2 August and nearly 100 hotel and attraction deals (Gulf News). Residents travel: in a 2023 YouGov survey, 70% of UAE residents planned to spend more time in their home countries over summer (older data), while a 2026 Majid Al Futtaim survey found 47% planned to stay in the UAE over summer 2026. A UAE promoter said in August 2026 that recent disruption had effectively doubled the usual June to August low-cash period for events (The National). In August 2026, DET hotel occupancy was 66% (DET, via Dubai Public Debt Management Office).

Venues respond with indoor and day-to-night formats. Barasti's Tease Me sunset brunch ran on Saturdays from June to September 2025; AfroLOUD moved a festival indoors in June 2025; and beach clubs relaunch for the cooler months, as Zero Gravity did with a "new season" of pool and beach parties in September 2025. SKY2.0, an open-air club, opened its second season on 9 October 2019 (SKY2.0, 2026).

Seasonality: Ramadan

Ramadan changes what venues may programme, and the sources conflict. Rules are set each year by circular. In 2023 and 2026, published guidance described venues open with music restrictions; one 2023 organiser guide said nightclubs could not operate (Gulf News; Platinumlist for organisers). Check the current DET circular before planning the month.

The two 2023 sources contradict each other on nightclubs, and the Platinumlist guide is internally inconsistent; this book does not state a blanket nightclub ban as a current rule. What the sources agree on is that loud and live music is restricted during Ramadan. Programming shifts to background music, smaller live formats and food-led events: the Ramadan Street Food Festival drew more than 65,000 visitors in 2025 (Zawya / DFRE). Eid holidays then bring dedicated parties, such as the "Persian Eid Party with Tohi" at Zero Gravity on 6 June 2025.

New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve is the single highest-priced night of the year and a city-wide operation. For NYE 2025/26, Dubai deployed 9,884 police officers for 48 fireworks shows at 40 locations, ran the Metro and Tram for 43 hours, and deployed 14,000 taxis and 18,000 limousines (Gulf News). Downtown ran an eight-day programme from 31 December to 7 January, with Burj Park tickets at AED 950 for adults and AED 550 for children aged 5 to 12 (Gulf News, 2025). These are last year's benchmarks, not plans for 2026/27.

Venue NYE pricing spans two orders of magnitude. Gulf News listed 16 NYE 2025/26 packages ranked by price, from The Blacksmith in Business Bay at AED 299 per person to AURA Skypool on the Palm at AED 3,500, and a separate list of the most expensive packages, including CÉ LA VI at AED 7,000 per person and Shimmers at AED 6,500 per adult. Premium table offers went much higher: Palazzo Versace's VIP poolside tables started at AED 30,000, and Atlantis The Palm sold a Sky Suite VIP table for 10 at AED 200,000 for its Maroon 5 gala. An Emarat Al Youm survey of 20 hotel restaurants, cited by Gulf News, found NYE offerings from AED 175 to 14,000.

NYE 2025/26 per-person packages ran from AED 299 to AED 7,000 across Dubai venues

Published 'from' price per person, AED, New Year's Eve 2025/26, Dubai; single-venue offers as reported by Gulf News, Dec 2025; district in brackets

View chart data

Label	NYE package from, per person (AED)
CÉ LA VI (Downtown)	7000
Shimmers (Madinat Jumeirah)	6500
Nazcaa (Downtown)	4000
AURA Skypool (Palm)	3500
Rixos The Palm (Palm)	3000
FIVE LUXE (JBR)	2500
Palazzo Versace dinner (Al Jaddaf)	1999
Tamoka and Cana Beach (JBR)	1800
Jumeirah Zabeel Saray (Palm)	1750
Time Out Market (Downtown)	1000
ULA, Dukes (Palm)	1000
Ciel (Dubai Marina)	850
Marriott Palm Jumeirah (Palm)	795
The Blacksmith (Business Bay)	299

For NYE 2026/27, the published offers read on 28 October 2026 are fewer. Atlantis The Palm's gala with Katy Perry starts at AED 8,500 for adults, with Rouge Circle at AED 10,500 and Golden Circle at AED 14,500; the AED 6,500 "from" price on the ticket listing is the premium seat for children aged 4 to 13. Last year's Maroon 5 gala started at AED 6,500 for adults, with Golden Circle from AED 12,500 (Atlantis The Palm, 2025). DREAM Dubai at Address Beach Resort sells NYE 2026/27 from a bar seat at AED 2,000 to a Platinum Table at AED 3,500 per person, with a show of about three hours and a DJ after-party from 1am to 4am, strictly 21 and over and non-refundable. Ushuaia lists Argy for New Year's Eve from AED 150.

ONS reading NYE is sold on certainty of place and view, and the risk is in the detail: arrival time against road closures, what the price includes, and refund terms (DREAM Dubai's are non-refundable). Pages should state these before the booking form. Because most NYE packages bundle drinks, the paid campaign must be built on the artist, the view, the dinner and the countdown, never on the package's drinks content.

The 2026 conflict and the event calendar

The regional conflict that began at the end of February 2026 disrupted the spring calendar. By 12 March 2026, Northbourne Advisory research cited by PRmoment had tracked 89 UAE events, of which 11 were postponed, 9 cancelled and 5 reopened; Affiliate World Global at Dubai World Trade Centre was postponed to spring 2027 (PRmoment MENA, 2026). The National listed postponements including A1 and Music Travel Love at Coca-Cola Arena (to 17 April 2027), Amr Diab's 4 April show, the Opa World Festival at Expo City, five Dubai Opera shows and Art Dubai (to 14 to 17 May) (The National, 2026). Amr Diab's Dubai show was rescheduled to 7 November 2026 and is now listed from AED 245 (Wego Travel Blog; Coca-Cola Arena). EBI's 1 April 2026 date at Coca-Cola Arena shows a cancelled-event label, with status unconfirmed. Global Village, Ain Dubai and Dubai Parks and Resorts closed until 6 March 2026 as a precaution (Gulf News).

Demand then recovered from a low base. Dubai's visitor arrivals from January to August 2026 were 6.97m, down 44% on the same period of 2025, and hotel occupancy was 36% in March 2026 and 66% in August 2026 (Malay Mail; DET, via Dubai Public Debt Management Office). Platinumlist's CEO said bookings dropped, plateaued and then began climbing again about six weeks before his July 2026 interview, with most postponed shows expected in Q3 and Q4 2026, and IQ reported that UAE ticket buying returned to year-on-year growth in June (Gulf News, The Hustle podcast; IQ Magazine). Dubai's second relief package in May 2026 waived permit, postponement and cancellation fees for events, exhibitions, conferences and recreational events and gave one-time fee exemptions to event management firms, within government support totalling AED 2.5bn (Gulf News).

Event permits and approvals

A public event in Dubai sits on a chain of approvals. DET requires a permit for entertainment events through its e-Permit service, and holders of a valid ticketed-event permit must then apply for ticketing and select an approved ticket seller or registration provider. Platinumlist, as an authorised seller, describes the sequence: a DET e-Permit, then an e-Code through a DET-authorised ticketing provider covering ticket tiers, prices, quantities and floor plan, and a reconciliation of attendance and sales to DET after the event. Performers need separate entertainment permits, and e-Permit fees "vary by category" with no amount published (Platinumlist). The DET service pages state the requirements but not fees, processing times or venue-specific exemptions.

Further rules shape the programme. From 1 December 2026, Ministerial Resolution 136 of 2026 introduces music licence fees for venues and organisers that play music commercially, including concert and event organisers; nightclubs are not named and no nightclub rate was published (Khaleej Times; Emirates 24/7). Dubai Municipality's noise guideline limits sound outside entertainment premises to 45 dB(A) from 8pm to 7am. Creators who promote events need a UAE advertiser permit, which covers paid and unpaid promotional content; the permit became mandatory from 1 February 2026 after an extension, is free for residents for the first three years, and costs visitors AED 500 for three months through a licensed agency (National Media Authority; The National, 2025). On Google Ads, event ticket sellers need confirmed eligibility, while a primary provider such as the organiser, venue or authorised seller is exempt from the reseller disclosure requirements.

Promoting events within the advertising rules

Under each major platform's advertising policy and UAE advertising rules, alcohol and shisha cannot be promoted in Dubai advertising. Cabinet Resolution 68 of 2024, Article 33(9), prohibits direct and indirect advertising promotion of alcohol, tobacco and smoking. Google does not allow alcohol ads to target the UAE; Meta lists the UAE among countries where alcohol ads cannot run; TikTok lists alcohol-related events and establishments as not allowed in the UAE; Snap lists the UAE among 18 prohibited countries; and X prohibits all alcohol advertising in the UAE. Event creative must therefore lead with the artist, the music, the stage, the date and the setting.

No shisha may appear in any ad, directly or indirectly, including images or video showing a shisha device, hose, smoke or smoking, and any copy or landing page promoting it. Google, TikTok and X prohibit hookah lounge advertising, Meta shows hookah imagery as non-compliant, and Snap does not allow depictions of smoking. Crowd and stage footage from events must be checked frame by frame before use.

ONS's experience of running nightlife campaigns in Dubai is that images and videos of drinks without branding (no branded bottle, label or brand name) are sometimes accepted by platform review. This is not a rule or a guarantee; approval depends on each platform's review of the full ad and its destination, including the ticket page.

Policy text not fully retrieved. WhatsApp lists alcohol and tobacco as restricted and requires alcohol messaging to follow local law; the UAE's allowed-country status was not confirmed. Event reminders on WhatsApp should carry only the programme, timing and arrival details.

The programme calendar

The calendar below combines the dated evidence in this chapter into a planning year. Dates for future editions are those published as of 28 October 2026; past dates are shown as benchmarks.

Build the calendar from confirmed venue programming. Marketing should not invent an event to fill a posting slot. The event owner supplies the approved programme, permit status and terms; the content team captures rights-cleared assets with no shisha visuals, checks every version against the full ad and destination, and monitors postponements and booking issues.

Keep an asset register with the event date, permission scope, expiry and approved channels. When the programme changes, update every affected version, including partner pages and paid ads, not only the latest social post. The 2026 postponements show how quickly a date can move (The National). Event pages should use event structured data for each real date, with the status updated when an event is postponed or cancelled (Google Search Central, 2026).

ONS reading The evidence points to a calendar with two engines. Resident demand, which Platinumlist says makes up more than 80% of its buyers, carries the base all year, including summer and Ramadan in adjusted forms. Visitor demand stacks on top from November to March. ONS plans venue calendars the same way: a stable weekly resident programme that runs all year, and a peak-season layer of dated headliners and NYE that is launched with enough lead time for visitors to book before arrival. The 2026 disruption showed the value of the first engine when the second stalled.

Gaps in the evidence

No public data. The research looked for DET event-permit counts by type, nightclub event attendance, ticket sales by genre in AED, Ramadan 2025 and 2026 DET circular text, Ramadan 2027 dates, NYE attendance at venues, UNTOLD 2027 ticket prices and Ushuaia table tiers. None were found or retrieved. No 2025 or 2026 DET circular on Ramadan entertainment was retrieved, e-Permit fees are not published, UNTOLD and Sole DXB attendance figures are organiser claims, and Pollstar's Coca-Cola Arena figures are unverified. A future edition should request the annual Ramadan circular, DET permit statistics by event category, and Platinumlist genre-level sales with a stated base.