Harry Potter Abu Dhabi is under construction: Warner Bros World on Yas Island is building the region’s first Potter-themed land, and Warner Bros filings suggest it is meant to outdo Universal’s Wizarding Worlds rather than match them.
Warner Bros made all eight Potter films and the three Fantastic Beasts spin-offs, but its own parks have never hosted a land based on them. The theme park rights went to Universal in 2007, and Universal has used them well. All but one of its seven parks has a Wizarding World of Harry Potter, starting with Hogsmeade at Islands of Adventure in Orlando in 2010. Diagon Alley exists only at Universal Studios Florida, and the newest attraction, Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry, is in Orlando’s Epic Universe.
The standard these lands set is written into the licence. Universal’s agreement with Warner Bros requires its Potter lands to sit “at a first-class, world-class level for destination theme parks unsurpassed in quality by any other destination theme park worldwide”. The restrictions are just as strict: only products from the Potter stories can be sold, which is why the restaurants serve Butterbeer rather than Coca-Cola, and even guest-convenience items such as sun cream cannot carry manufacturer logos inside the themed area. Warner Bros approves every artwork, design, ride and architectural plan.
The Abu Dhabi agreement has not been made public, but it is likely to be similar, since the conditions exist to protect Warner Bros. Where the Yas Island park can differ is the setting. It is entirely indoors, which shields guests from the summer heat and lets the scenery carry more detail than anything exposed to the elements. What is inside has not been announced, but it is rumoured to be the first land anywhere to combine Hogwarts Castle and Diagon Alley.
What we know about Harry Potter Abu Dhabi so far
Miral, which runs the park, is not waiting for the land to open. A job advertisement last year for a retail product designer mentioned “the design of multi-category retail products to be developed and sold within the Harry Potter World expansion”, with the aim of “delivering best-in-class merchandise”. Potter products have already appeared in a repurposed shop in the park’s Treasures of Hollywood store, behind a standee promising “Harry Potter Wonders Await Inside”, as Forbes reported.
Site preparation began in summer last year, nearly three years after the expansion was first announced. The consultancy Entertainment + Culture Advisors said in May that the land is expected to open in 2029, though Miral has not confirmed a timeframe, per The National. There is reason for the wait. Comcast chief executive Brian Roberts told analysts in 2020 that “in some of our parks Harry Potter drove incremental attendance of about two million people”. Universal had seven parks to spread that across; Abu Dhabi would be concentrating it on one. The official Warner Bros World Abu Dhabi page describes it as “the Middle East’s first Harry Potter themed land” — one more addition to a Yas Island line-up already building a Sphere.
When will the Harry Potter land open at Warner Bros World Abu Dhabi?
The consultancy Entertainment + Culture Advisors said in May that the land is expected to open in 2029. Miral, which runs the park, has not officially confirmed a timeframe.
What will the Harry Potter Abu Dhabi land include?
The contents have not been announced. The land is rumoured to be the first anywhere to feature both Hogwarts Castle and Diagon Alley, the two most recognisable locations from the films.
Can I buy Harry Potter merchandise at Warner Bros World now?
Yes. Potter products are on sale in the Treasures of Hollywood store, off the park’s central plaza, behind a standee reading “Harry Potter Wonders Await Inside”.
