Dubai: Five leading Dubai malls will stay open longer from January 16 until the Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) ends on February 2.
The Dubai Mall, Mall of the Emirates, Deira City Centre, Mirdif City Centre and Dubai Festival City Mall will extend their timings beyond the usual 10am-10pm schedule.
Shops and food courts there will stay open by an extension ranging between 1am and 3am.
The announcement was made on Sunday by DSF organiser Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE), an agency of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM).
DSF regularly sees some malls extend timings to allow a surge of DSF visitors and shoppers more leisure time during the annual month-long festival.
The 19th edition of DSF started on January 2.
DFRE said the move also comes in anticipation of an increase in visitors to Dubai from neighbouring countries over the next few weeks, especially due to mid-term school holidays that have resulted in many families planning a trip to Dubai during DSF.
The new timings will offer mall shoppers additional time to browse through and buy from an extensive selection of the world’s leading brands and pick up discounts of up to 75 per cent on a wide range of merchandise, in addition to allowing them to enjoy the various entertainment options within the mall itself.
DFRE CEO Laila Suhail said: “We always look for ways to enhance the shopping experience for our DSF visitors. With shopping malls in Dubai becoming more of standalone destinations rather than just a shopping centre, we are sure that extending mall hours till the wee hours of the day allows shoppers more time to shop and have fun, and at the same time enhances retail sales across the participating shopping malls.”
“We want families and visitors to avail themselves of special offers and discounts offered by thousands of retail outlets in the malls and share the extraordinary experience of shopping in Dubai during DSF in a true embodiment of the festival theme ‘Shop at your Best’.”
The extended mall hours will also boost the retail sector, which has been enjoying high sales every year during DSF.
In 2012, DSF attracted 4.3 million visitors to the city who spent a total of Dh14.7 billion. Of this, spend on shopping alone accounted for Dh8.9 billion.
Some 70 malls and over 6,000 retail outlets across Dubai are taking part in DSF this year.
