Abu Dhabi: The popular Abu Dhabi Summer Season (ADSS) will officially start on Thursday, with the 2018 edition packed with experiences and promotional deals for families, friends, residents and visitors alike.
This year’s edition will see sales offering savings of up to 80 per cent at 18 shopping malls. It will also feature the first-ever ‘My Abu Dhabi Summer Pass’, offered by Rayna Tours, with which the public will be able to enjoy access to attractions and city tours with discounts up to 50 per cent across 16 experiences.
Organised by the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) along with its partners, ADSS 2018 will stretch for 59 days, coming to a close on August 18.
Sultan Al Mutawa Al Daheri, executive director of the Tourism Sector at DCT Abu Dhabi, said: “We have expanded this year’s Abu Dhabi Summer Season festival in both size and scale to allow residents and visitors ample opportunity to immerse themselves in all aspects of the festival.
“We also wanted to cater for its growing success as it has become renowned for its variety of experiences and fun-filled, family-friendly programme. We look forward to welcoming guests throughout the summer and sharing with them the true sense of hospitality that the UAE is known for. We are confident that this rich line-up of events will reaffirm Abu Dhabi’s position as a leading destination of distinction for tourism and family leisure,” he added.
Summer pass
Visitors can also enjoy the ‘My Abu Dhabi Summer Pass’, which went on sale from June 10 offering great deals across 16 attractions and city tours. The pass consists of six tiered packages with prices ranging from Dh230 to Dh1,100, and savings from 25 per cent to 50 per cent.
“We are very excited to partner with DCT Abu Dhabi and to launch this amazing new ADSS pass which has something to offer for all age groups. The ADSS pass will give users a wide range of options to experience and in turn drive more visitors to Abu Dhabi. We look forward to promoting this pass in key markets across Asia, the Indian subcontinent and across the GCC, where we can offer families all-inclusive holiday options,” said Deepak Hiranandani, director of Sales and Marketing at Rayna Tours.
Yas Island offers
This year, ADSS 2018 will also feature two offers specifically for the entertainment hub of Yas Island. A ‘Family Summer Season Offer’ will be available to purchase, giving families the opportunity to enjoy a special deal for a stay at a Yas Island hotel coupled with complimentary breakfast and entry to the theme park of their choice. The offer, which covers two adults and one child, includes access to Yas Beach. Moreover, the soon-to-open Warner Bros World Abu Dhabi will also join in the fun with a ‘Family & Friends’ offer. The eagerly anticipated theme park, which opens on July 25, is offering free entry for one family member if a four-person Family & Friends ticket is purchased.
Concerts and shows
Starting this weekend, DCT Abu Dhabi will also be hosting top quality performances and acts, kids’ shows, live family entertainment, renowned international shows, and Indian performers and concerts.
Designed to entertain family members of all ages, ADSS will feature popular characters from renowned shows including Al Beit Beit Aboona (June 22-23) at Raha Beach Theatre and Nickelodeon Experience (July 6-15) presented by MBC Group, Around the World (July 5-August 14) by Bawadi Mall, Pinkfong and Baby Shark (June 28-30) at Dalma Mall by Xceed Events, Unite with Tomorrowland (July 28) at du Forum by Envie Events, ALLDAYLIVE (July 26-28) at Emirates Palace and SPARKLES OF INDIA at du Forum (August 16-18) by Yak Events, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles show (August 17-23) at Dalma Mall.
Hotel promotions
The festival will also include several hotel promotions, with spa, food and beverage, rooms and kids offers throughout the summer season. More than 50 of the emirate’s hotels will be offering a total of 67 deals, with discounts ranging from 15 per cent to 50 per cent. Moreover, foodies will also get incredible deals this summer, with savings at their favourite restaurants — dine-in and online. DCT Abu Dhabi is partnering with Zomato to launch the ADSS Zomato Experience, presenting four food and beverage summer offers at more than 200 participating restaurants.
The Abu Dhabi Summer Season Family Package will offer Zomato Gold Memberships at a 25 per cent discount to enjoy meals at more than 200 restaurants, while the Abu Dhabi Summer Season Traveller Package is a special 15-day subscription valid from the date of purchase for overseas tourists visiting Abu Dhabi during ADSS.
Throughout the summer season, restaurants across the city will also be serving a kids offer presented by Zomato offering kids a main meal and dessert for Dh15 for kids aged up to 13 specially curated for ADSS across 45 restaurants with 85 participating outlets.
Lastly, ADSS Culinary Weeks will feature a series of themed ‘culinary weeks’, including ‘Simply Italian week’, ‘Deliciosa Mexican week’, ‘Masaledaar Indian week’, ‘Scrumptious Chinese week’, ‘Cheeeeesy Burgers week’, ‘Tangy Thai week’, ‘Perfect Pizza week’, and ‘Exotic Lebanese week’ where a different culinary cuisine will be highlighted at 25 restaurants per week by Zomato for customers to take advantage of a 25 per cent discount when dining out.
Discounts and raffles
Throughout the summer season, visitors and residents can also benefit from discounts of up to 80 per cent sale at the 18 participating malls including Yas Mall, WTC, Al Jimi Mall, Remal Mall, Shams Boutik, Deerfields Mall, Dalma Mall, Bawabat Al Sharq Mall, Marina Mall, Al Wahda Mall, Mushrif Mall, Khalidiyah Mall, Madinat Zayed Centre, Al Raha Mall, Mazyad Mall, Al Ain Mall, Hili Mall and Bawadi Mall.
ADSS 2018 will also include a unique shop and win promotion from June 29 to August 18 called ‘Unbox the Amazing’ at more than 10 participating malls across the emirate. Created especially for ADSS 2018, DCT Abu Dhabi will also be bringing a fun ‘game’ experience to participating malls across the city where, for every Dh250 spent, shoppers will enter a grand raffle, win instant prizes and get the opportunity to unbox ADSS discounts.
The promotion will also be available online. Shoppers who spend Dh250 can validate their bill at the mall kiosk, at which point they will be given instructions on how to enter the competition digitally with a chance to win either food and beverage vouchers or an instant prize. Once they have entered the online platform, they are then free to redeem their prize, or try again.
For more details on the upcoming events, industry summer special offers, raffle draws and more, visit the official ADSS website: www.abudhabisummerseason.ae
