Megan Singleton: BloggerAtLarge.com writer on Disney opening its first theme park in Abu Dhabi

Disney's latest theme park destination will be in the United Arab Emirates, on a relatively new tourist island already packed with amusement parks, a golf course, indoor skydiving and a stadium. 

Construction on the project hasn't started as of yet - and industry reports indicate it could take at least six years before the park opens to Disney fans.

BloggerAtLarge.com writer Megan Singleton says the project will be an indoor park - a different look to the company's other parks.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudkin
from News Talks ADB Travel with Windy Wuturs, where the
world is yours for now and Disney has announced a
new theme park and to tell us all about it,
we're joined by blogger at large dot com Megan Singleton.
Good morning, Good morning.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
This is exciting. It's actually the first theme park they've
opened since twenty sixteen, which was in Shanghai. But this
time they've partnered with a local entertainment park developer based
in Abu Dhabi and they don't have to buy the land.
So Disney are going to be licensing their characters to
this new park and their imagineers will work on the

(00:48):
designs that are going to blend Disney stories with Abu
Dhabi culture. So it's going to be an indoor park
because we know that temperatures get to fifty degrees in
the summer over there, but that allows for so much
more scope when it comes to things like facades that
don't have to be weather proved. I think lighting, lasers,

(01:10):
projected art, secret doors that are going to lead to rides.
So and it's going to be very futuristic in things.
So it is on the edge of the ocean at
Yes Island. So Yes Island already has Warner Brothers, the
Formula One racing track, Ferrari World, and so there might
be roller coasters that's zip in and out like at

(01:30):
Ferrari World, which I have been on their mental roller
coaster that suits you out so fast you think you're
going to lose your hair. And it's slated to open
in about twenty thirty, between twenty thirty and twenty thirty three.
So there you go. You know, Disney Company, I just
googled this quickly while you were in the ad Brak
made ninety one billion US dollars in the last fiscal year.

(01:54):
So they're not short of a bob to open a
new park, are they.

Speaker 1 (01:57):
No, it sounds like they've already got There's already quite
a lot that happens in this area. Though will be
will this could have increased you think tourism through the region.

Speaker 2 (02:05):
Well, that's the idea. So there's two point five million
people that live in Abu Dhabi and twenty three million
visitors that come every year. There is a lot of scope.
They just build another island. But so there are other
islands there. The Guggenheim is slated to be built there.
That seems to be stalled at the moment. The Loover
as well on the other islands, and they're all sort
of linked by causeways. But they just build it. You know,

(02:27):
they've got the sea. They just pop another island and
then put another thing park on it, another hotel, and
away we go.

Speaker 1 (02:33):
Oh, fascinating stuff. Thank you so much.

Speaker 2 (02:35):
Actually is a great place to visit.

Speaker 1 (02:37):
Thank you so much, Megan. For more from the Sunday
session with Francesca Rudgin, listen live to news Talks they'd
be from nine am Sunday, or follow the podcast on
iHeartRadio