📝 usncan Note: Dubai’s Luxury Hotel Openings: Rosewood Joins The Race
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Many luxury hotels announced new openings in Dubai within a few years.
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Rosewood Hotels & Resorts just announced plans for its first Dubai property by 2029. This marks a significant milestone for the luxury hotel brand in the Gulf. But Rosewood is not alone.
In a market long favored by global luxury players, Aman, Baccarat, SHA Wellness and MGM are also racing to secure long-term footholds in Dubai’s ultra-luxury hospitality and branded residences sector.
Here’s a look at who’s entering the market—and why now.
Upcoming Luxury Hotel Openings in Dubai
Rosewood just announced it will open in Dubai with a 195-key hotel and eight private garden villas.
Rosewood
Rosewood (2029)
Rosewood Hotels & Resorts is the latest global player to enter the Dubai market, announcing plans for a landmark debut in the emirate by 2029.
The project will include a 195-key hotel, eight villas and 63 branded residences overlooking the Dubai Canal. The site is located within the Peninsula development in Business Bay, a billion-dollar waterfront district by Bright Start—the real estate investment firm also behind Bvlgari Resort Dubai and Aman Dubai.
The announcement follows a string of successful, high-profile openings for Rosewood, including new flagships in Amsterdam and Munich. Last summer, the brand also restored and reopen Austria’s historic Schloss Fuschl, delivering one of Europe’s most impressive hotel revivals.
Rosewood already operates hotels in Abu Dhabi, Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, and Qatar’s Doha. With additional properties underway in Saudi Arabia (Riyadh, Shura Island, Amaala)—and now Dubai—the brand is steadily expanding its footprint in the Middle East.
Aman Dubai will combine the tranquillity of an Aman resort with Arab hospitality when it opens in 2027.
Aman
Aman Dubai (2027)
Set on 1.4 million square feet of beachfront land in Jumeirah 2—an exclusive, low-rise neighborhood just north of the Burj Al Arab—Aman Dubai will include only 80 suites and a private Aman Club.
Developed by Bright Start, the same real estate investment company behind Rosewood’s development, the project reflects Aman’s signature low-density, high-cost approach.
With room rates projected to exceed $3,000 per night, Aman Dubai could become the most expensive hotel per key in the UAE.
Mandarin Oriental Downtown Dubai will have 259 rooms and suites and 224 exclusive residences.
Copyright Mandarin Oriental Alex Jeffries
Mandarin Oriental Downtown (October 2025)
Mandarin Oriental announced yesterday that its Dubai property will open in October 2025, marking the brand’s second property in the city. Set within the architecturally striking (because of its ceramic twisting façade) Wasl Tower on Sheikh Zayed Road, it will include 259 rooms, 224 branded residences, and a rooftop helipad.
The structure features the region’s tallest ceramic façade and advanced energy-efficient systems, contributing to Dubai’s urban sustainability goals.
The gigantic MGM resort is set to open in Dubai in 2027.
MGM
MGM Resorts (2027)
MGM Resorts has spent nearly two decades trying to enter the UAE. After several failed attempts, the company now announced it will open in Dubai in late 2027.
“The Island” will bring the Aria, Bellagio and MGM brand into a 1,400-room beachfront development. Aside from hotels, MGM’s project will have a full-scale entertainment district. Plans feature a performance sphere (similar to the version in Las Vegas) and retail promenade, with space that could one day accommodate gaming. Whether gaming will be allowed depends on regulatory developments: So far, only the Wynn resort in the neighboring Ras Al Khaimah emirate has received a UAE casino license.
A rendering of Corinthia’s planned luxury hotel opening in one of the world’s tallest towers.
Corinthia
Corinthia Meydan Beach Dubai (2030)
The luxury Maltese brand makes its Middle East debut with a 55-story beachfront tower in Dubai Marina that will rise along Sheikh Zayed Road near the Museum of the Future, occupying a two-tower structure connected by a sky lobby 656 feet above ground.
Fun fact: It will feature the world’s highest outdoor sky pool, suspended more than 1,640 feet in the air with 360-degree views of Dubai.
The world’s first island for healthy living and longevity: Sha Wellness Island.
SHA Wellness Island
SHA Wellness Island (2026)
Located halfway between Dubai and Abu Dhabi along the Sahel Al Emarat Coast, this man-made wellness island is part of the massive AlJurf development. It will house a SHA Wellness hotel, clinic, spa, and branded residences—the first of their kind globally.
Marketed as the world’s first “healthy living island,” the project signals a new direction for luxury wellness and a focus on longevity in the Gulf region.
Shiny tower, shiny happy people? The upcoming Six Senses Residences Dubai Marina will rise 122 stories above the city.
Six Senses
Six Senses Dubai Marina (2028)
The brand is behind what’s set to become the tallest residential tower in the world: the 122-story Six Senses Residences Dubai Marina, slated for completion in 2028. The US$1 billion project will include outdoor yoga decks, a sky-high lap pool, and full-scale fitness facilities—more than 100 floors above ground. On-site services will mirror those offered at Six Senses’ ultra-luxury resorts, tailored for residents who want wellness without leaving home.
Why Dubai—And Why Now?
Dubai’s rise as a luxury capital is about long-term planning, regulatory ease, and knowing how to attract people with money. And not just for a quick visit, but as return customers or for good.
In 2024, the city pulled in $2 billion in foreign direct investment into tourism—14% of all FDI that year. That same year, it welcomed 18.7 million international visitors, up 9% from 2023. In the first half of 2025 alone, 9.88 million international overnight guests arrived—putting the city on track for another record year.
That kind of growth requires actions, of course. Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC) is now undergoing a $35 billion expansion that will make it the largest airport in the world.
New Airplanes For Emirates Airlines
Emirates is upgrading its fleet with 300+ new aircraft and $4 billion in retrofits. Six of those upgraded 777s will serve U.S. routes to cities like Chicago, Seattle and Miami.
And hotels are also keeping pace. In 2024, Dubai added 4,255 new rooms—70% of them luxury. Another 4,620 are expected this year. Occupancy hit 80.6% in H1 2025, with 22.24 million room nights sold. ADR rose 5%, RevPAR 7%.
Beyond infrastructure, the city is also becoming easier to access. A new Unified Tourist Visa will allow visitors to move freely between the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman. For travelers basing themselves in Dubai, the entire region is about to feel a lot closer.
Add in tax-friendly regulations, elite schools, and strong real estate gains—and Dubai is where high-net-worth travelers are setting up base. No wonder so many hotel brands want a permanent address here.
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