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Updated November 2023
Sheikh Zayed Festival 2023 brings thrilling experiences and unforgettable moments with its varied range of events and activities. This season, Sheikh Zayed Festival has the slogan “UAE: Uniting Civilizations”, which is reflected by the involvement of numerous different cultures from around the world.
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What is Sheikh Zayed Festival?
Sheikh Zayed Festival is a seasonal festival held with the support of the President of the UAE, H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The event aims to be a platform for social and cultural exchange.
What to expect at Sheikh Zayed Festival 2023?
This season of the Sheikh Zayed Festival features exciting and unique events, amusing attractions, and plenty of competitions. Visitors will also be able to enjoy Emirati heritage and culture and other festive events like National Day and New Year’s celebrations.
Global pavilions are on-site in China, Egypt, India, Iran, Kuwait, Levant, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Yemen, Turkey, Asia, and Africa.
Union Parade
The Union Parade features performances that reflect the history of the people of the United Arab Emirates. The engaging performances also showcase people’s appreciation of the UAE’s noble values.
Emirates Fountain & Laser shows
Visitors can have a fantastic opportunity to witness the Emirates Fountain view accompanied by dancing water shows, augmented by laser and 3D hologram shows.
House of Fear
Visitors who love horror and everything adrenaline-pumping should come to what’s been called the scariest escape room in Abu Dhabi. The setting of the rooms and the actors are enough to frighten everyone who enters it. The arena is open at 4 PM every day.
Selfie Street District
Astonishing combinations of colors and 3D shapes are the highlights of this spot. From the watermelon-themed corner, visualized paintings to abstract sketches are available here.
Heritage Village
The Sheikh Zayed Festival also features an integrated Heritage Village that represents the aspects of popular heritage. Visitors can explore traditional industries and crafts in a family-friendly, entertaining, and educational environment. In this year’s festival, the heritage village is designed based on the nostalgic traditional lifestyle. The exhibition in this section aims to bring the visitors to the tranquillity and simplicity of ancient life represented by mud houses, homes made of palm fronds, heritage competitions, folk arts, and products.
Weekly Firework Shows
At the Sheikh Zayed Festival, visitors can enjoy some of the biggest and most elaborate fireworks displays that light up the Al Wathba skies throughout the Festival’s run with the most spectacular colours and formations.
Sheikh Zayed Festival 2023 date
The Sheikh Zayed Festival will be open to all. The four-month festival will run from Friday, November 17, 2023, to Saturday, March 9, 2024.
The festival will be open daily, from 4 PM until 12 AM.
Book cheap flights to Abu Dhabi
Sheikh Zayed Festival 2023 tickets
The previous year, visitors were charged an entrance fee of AED 5 (USD 1.36). However, people of determination, children below the age of 3 years and seniors above the age of 60 are exempt from entrance fees.
The price for Sheikh Zayed Festival 2023 tickets are yet to be announced!
You can simply visit the official website of the Sheikh Zayed Festival to secure your ticket.
Sheikh Zayed Festival 2023 location
The event will be held at Al Wathba in Abu Dhabi.
Visitors can use regular bus transportation to reach the festival ground from the following locations or vice versa (available every 30 minutes):
From Abu Dhabi to SZF
Monday to Thursday:
- Abu Dhabi main bus station: 3 PM – 10 PM
- Cooperative association: 3:30 PM – 10:30 PM
- Baniyas court: 3:30 PM – 10:30 PM
- Sheikh Zayed Festival: 4 PM – 11 PM
Friday to Sunday:
- Abu Dhabi main bus station: 3 PM – 9:30 PM
- Cooperative association: 3:30 PM – 10 PM
- Baniyas court: 3:30 PM – 10 PM
- Sheikh Zayed Festival: 4 PM – 10:30 PM
From SZF to Abu Dhabi
Monday to Thursday:
- Sheikh Zayed Festival: 4:30 PM – 11:30 PM
- Baniyas court: 4:45 PM – 11:45 PM
- Cooperative association: 4:45 PM – 11:45 PM
- Abu Dhabi main bus station: 5:15 PM – 12:15 AM
Friday to Sunday:
- Sheikh Zayed Festival: 4:30 PM – 12 AM
- Baniyas court: 4:45 PM – 12:15 AM
- Cooperative association: 4:45 PM – 12:15 AM
- Abu Dhabi main bus station: 5:15 PM – 12:45 AM
Another option is to use private transportation. Take a look at the map below for directions to the site.
What are the facilities or services provided there?
Upon visitor’s arrival, there are several services provided at the gate entrances:
- Wheelchairs
- Children’s strollers
- Shopping carts
- Valet Parking
- Childcare services
For more details about their facilities, visitors can check their official website.
What are the rules of the festival?
Here are the rules that visitors should obey when they get there:
- Pets are not permitted
- Avoid public displays of affection
- Should dress modestly
- It is not allowed to ride any sort of bikes
