The Sheikh Zayed Festival opened its doors at the Al Wathba region of Abu Dhabi for the start of its run until the 1st of April 2022.
The Festival is being organised under the kind auspices of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, the wise guidance of H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, and with the guidance of Sheikh Sultan bin Hamdan Al Nahyan, Adviser to the UAE President and President of the Camel Racing Federation and Chairman of the Organising Committee.
The Festival is providing thousands of recreational, educational and cultural events that welcome visitors to a great atmosphere of joy and entertainment for the whole family, with many folkloric performances, cultural experiences and typical products.
The Festival has 21 international traditional neighbourhoods which will feature folkloric shows and performances, attracting more than 22,500 participants, entertainers and exhibitors from all over the world.
More than 4,500 international cultural events will take place during the Festival, with over 650 performances and major celebratory events, as well as more than 130 workshops for children designed to develop their talents and expand the horizons of their young creative minds.
The Festival is hosting a series of events to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of the Federation’s founding, including the “Year of the 50th Zone”, which showcases the UAE’s incredible journey over the past 50 years, underlining the role of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan in the nation’s development.
The Festival features dedicated pavilions, major exhibitions and popular neighborhoods to highlight the UAE’s civilisation and various aspects of its culture and popular heritage, including events, songs, traditional markets and live showcases of ancient handicrafts and traditional Emirati industries that show the tools of life in the past.
The Festival gives millions of visitors the opportunity to interact with a wide spectrum of events that reflect the original Emirati customs and traditions alongside the cultural, human, artistic, intellectual and historical components of the participating countries through a range of international educational and entertaining events and activities, all of which have something to suit every age-group that the whole family can enjoy.
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Festival visitors can enjoy hundreds of major daily and weekly performances, most notably the Emirates Fountain Laser Show to which new performances have been added to its scheduled shows due to popular demand.
There will also be major weekly fireworks displays, while huge fireworks shows will light up the skies during National Day and New Year celebrations.
The Festival, which opens daily at 4:00 p.m., has many activities throughout the evenings, including Arabian horse shows, the Miracle Garden, and a military marching band playing traditional music that roams around the Festival pavilions at various times.
To entertain the little ones, many events have been dedicated to children, especially the fun educational workshops that help develop their skills, encourage them to explore their talents, improve their creative skills and teamwork capabilities, in addition to the exciting and entertaining events dedicated to their enjoyment.
Festival attendees can also indulge in a world of daily fun and entertainment at the “Funfair City”, which features a wide range of games and thrilling rides such as the epic roller coaster, the Ferris wheel and many more, which have been designed, built and equipped to the highest standards of safety.
For classic and modified car enthusiasts, there is the Al Wathba Custom Show with a series of events dedicated to enthusiasts of classic and customised cars, including car modification garages and car specialists.
The public will also get a chance to enjoy the “Glow Garden”, and marvel in its delightful ambiance of colour and light.
The Festival also gives visitors thousands of opportunities to win valuable prizes through its many heritage competitions and draws, such as the H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan International Festival for Arabian Horses Prize Draw, the Sheikh Zayed Dhow Sailing Race, the Zayed Grand Prize for camel riding, and the Sheikh Zayed Falconry Competition, in addition to the fascinating Saluki Show, which introduces visitors to the age-old traditions related to keeping and caring for these desert hounds and their training for hunting purposes.
To celebrate the UAE’s 50th National Day, the Festival has dedicated the 2nd of December 2021 as a day to mark this special occasion with surprises and events for the whole family, which will include dozens of UAE, Gulf, Arab and international folklore shows and performances.
The Festival also features a range of local and international restaurants and food trucks that offers visitors a variety of cuisines of the world. In addition, multiple family and child care services will be provided, such as a crèche, strollers, clinics and much more, as the Festival’s administration takes into account the needs of all visitors, which also include dedicated passages and corridors facilitating movement around the Festival for people of determination and the elderly.
The Sheikh Zayed Festival highlights the UAE’s culture and heritage, rich in authentic customs and traditions, showcasing the different stages the Emirati people have lived through on this good land and the foundations that were laid to become the current prosperous and developed society.
Paying great attention to families and children, the Festival is dedicated to providing a cultural, educational and recreational atmosphere in an exciting and entertaining setting, filled with activities and events that introduce them to the differences in heritage and authentic values of countries around the world.
It presents many aspects of popular culture of the UAE, Gulf, Arab and international countries through replicas of traditional neighbourhoods that reflect different aspects of these cultures, including architectural heritage, street markets, traditional products, handicrafts of each country, as well as numerous daily performances by international folkloric music, song and dance groups from different countries and civilisations, performed on the Festival’s stages.
