Dubai Shopping Festival 2025 to kick off on December 5; everything you need to know

Dubai: Dubai will kick off the 31st edition of its flagship Dubai Shopping Festival on December 5, 2025, transforming the city into a winter destination of concerts, culinary experiences, cultural programming and large-scale retail promotions that will run through January 11, 2026.

Organised by the Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment, part of Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism, the festival will blanket the city with 38 days of entertainment, drone shows, fireworks displays, major prize draws and hundreds of retail offers across malls and neighbourhoods.

The upcoming edition aims to set a new benchmark for urban festivals by blending entertainment, shopping and culture into a single, citywide experience.

“The Dubai Shopping Festival has embodied the emirate’s spirit of creativity, ambition and community for more than three decades,” said Ahmed Al Khaja, CEO of the Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment.

He said the 31st edition was designed in partnership with public and private-sector institutions to showcase Dubai “as the best city in the world to live, work and visit,” and to reinforce its growing reputation as a global winter destination.

This year’s programming covers several venues and districts, with nightly drone shows running from December 5 to January 11 at Bluewaters and The Beach at JBR, which will be the largest aerial display in the festival’s history.

Festival Bay Nights

Dubai Festival City Mall will host a second edition of its Festival Bay Nights, featuring concerts, family entertainment and live performances, along with the world finals of Red Bull Tetris on December 13, accompanied by a display of 4,000 drones above Dubai Frame, billed as the first of its kind.

In Hatta, the festival will introduce Hatta x Dubai Shopping Festival, an immersive mountain experience from December 5 to 31 that includes candle-lit concerts by Fever, a Dinner in the Sky activation, and a Roxy Cinema dome, all requiring advance booking.

January will bring the return of Auto Season, a ten-day celebration of car culture in Dubai with more than 12 activities, seven major automotive showcases, and an estimated 5,000 cars representing over 100 global brands. Organizers say the citywide programme will blend performances, demonstrations and community gatherings for car enthusiasts.

The Big Bounce

One of the festival’s most family-friendly draws, The Big Bounce Dubai, will also return. Spanning over 16,000 square meters, it features seven inflatable zones and what has been certified as the world’s largest bounce house, The Big Castle, measuring 2,325 square metres.

On New Year’s Eve, fireworks will light up Bluewaters, JBR, Hatta and Al Seef at midnight, continuing Dubai’s tradition of positioning the festival as part of its global holiday calendar.

Retail remains the backbone of the festival. This year’s edition will feature discounts of up to 75 per cent across more than 1,000 brands and 3,500 stores, with exclusive promotions in malls, seasonal destinations and pop-up retail concepts.

Organisers identified five flagship retail campaigns, including the DSF Lucky Receipt, 12-hour flash sales, citywide markdowns, “scan and win” activations and daily surprises. Major retail groups and malls will also run parallel prize campaigns and exclusive collections.

Luxury experiences

Food continues to serve as a central pillar of the festival, with expanded outdoor-dining concepts, chef-driven experiences, artisanal food markets, beachside night markets and limited-edition pop-up cafés. The program aims to highlight Dubai’s diverse culinary landscape and showcase homegrown brands alongside international names.

The festival will also highlight emerging designers and luxury retail experiences at the Dubai International Financial Centre, City Walk and The Outlet Village, offering exclusive releases and curated mini-collections. Prize campaigns will continue throughout the emirate to sustain citywide engagement.