Here’s What We Know About Disney’s New Theme Park

Topline Disney will build a new theme park in Abu Dhabi in conjunction with local company Miral, the company announced Wednesday, becoming the global media giant’s seventh theme park around the world. Disney and Miral will build a new theme park on Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island. Key Facts The new park, referred to by Disney CEO Bob Iger as “Disneyland Abu Dhabi,” will be designed by Disney and its team of Imagineers, but will be operated and funded by Miral, which operates other immersive experiences in the area. There is no opening date yet announced for the new theme park, which will be located on Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island, which is already a hub for other local theme parks like Ferrari World, Seaworld and Warner Bros. World. The park “will be authentically Disney and distinctly Emirati,” Iger said in a statement Wednesday, describing it as “blending contemporary architecture with cutting edge technology to offer guests deeply immersive entertainment experiences in unique and modern ways.” Disneyland Abu Dhabi will be Disney’s first theme park venture in the Middle East, joining the company’s global suite of parks that already includes locations in Florida, California, Paris, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo. What We Don’t Know Disney has provided few details so far about the new theme park, such as what attractions it will feature, when it will open and how much admission will cost. What Involvement Will Disney Have In Its Abu Dhabi Theme Park? Disney and its Imagineers will be responsible for the “design and development” of the Abu Dhabi park, but the company will not use any of its own money to build the theme park, and will only make money from royalties from licensing its characters and intellectual property to Miral, Iger said on an earnings call Wednesday. Miral will operate the Abu Dhabi park, Iger said, though Disney will have some “oversight” over the operations to make sure they’re “up to the level that we offer in the other six locations that we operate.” Big Number $23.6 billion. That’s Disney’s revenue for the second quarter of 2025, the company announced Wednesday, which is up 7% from Q2 2024. Revenue for Disney’s Experiences division, which includes its theme parks, was at $8.9 billion last quarter, up 6% from 2024, with the company reporting higher theme park attendance and spending at its domestic parks, while attendance fell slightly at its international properties. Disney’s stock price jumped Wednesday morning in response to the company’s earnings, rising 7% ahead of the markets opening. Key Background Disney’s announcement comes as its theme park division has become a key moneymaker for the media giant, with The New York Times noting it makes up roughly 60% of the company’s annual profit. The new Abu Dhabi park is part of a broader slew of major updates to the theme parks that the company has announced in recent months, part of a broader $30 billion investment in its U.S. parks. The company unveiled plans last summer for new additions like new Disney villains and “Cars”-themed lands in Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, along with a new “Tropical Americas” land featuring an “Indiana Jones” attraction in Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park at its Florida resort. Disney’s agreement with Miral mirrors other partnerships the company has taken up with foreign companies and governments in order to build its theme parks abroad: Tokyo Disneyland is operated by the Japan-based Oriental Land Company, for instance, while Shanghai Disneyland is jointly operated with the Shanghai Shendi Group, which is controlled by the Chinese government. Further Reading Forbes Disney’s Expansion Plans: Everything We Know About Villains Land, ‘Cars’ Replacing Tom Sawyer, And ‘Monsters, Inc’ Roller Coaster By Alison Durkee Forbes How Disney Dominated The Global Theme Park Industry In 2023 By Suzanne Rowan Kelleher Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2025/05/07/disney-is-building-a-new-theme-park-in-abu-dhabi-heres-what-we-know/