Dubai has never really stopped building malls, but the current wave feels different. This isn't just another retail centre with the usual mix of shops and food courts. Developers are chasing forest-integrated design, waterfront promenades, indoor cities the size of small towns and mixed-use communities built around lagoons and airports. The scale of ambition is bigger, the locations are more varied and the timelines stretch from later this year right through to 2028.
Recently, The Grand opened in Nad Al Sheba and is set to welcome a string of local favourite spots throughout September, giving an early taste of what's coming. From luxury retail hubs in emerging communities to a mall that will anchor one of the largest mixed-use developments in the region, here's a closer look at what's landing next.
What exactly are these new spaces promising, and which one should be on your radar first?
First Avenue Mall Jumeirah
Opening in 2026 near Mercato Beach, First Avenue Mall Jumeirah is shaping up to be a foodie favourite. The tenant list already reads like a highlight reel of the city's favourite names, including Watch House, Go Greek, Jon & Vinny's, Soraya, Jona's Burger, Nala, Rosti, Backyard, Tora Tora and Mareel. It will also become the permanent home of Lost In Tokyo, the popular dining pop-up previously based at Marsa Boulevard.
Rather than a vast regional mall, this is a focused dining and shopping destination built around a curated mix of homegrown and international names. For nearby communities such as Jumeirah and Al Wasl, that compact format tends to draw frequent local visits, boosting adjacent operators from cafés to boutique fitness studios while offering the flexible lease sizes that emerging food brands look for.
Sobha Mall
Construction is underway on Sobha Mall, a Dhs210 million luxury project from global developer Sobha Realty, with completion expected in the second half of 2026. Set within the flagship Sobha Hartland community, the mall blends retail with the calm of an urban park, bringing nature, culture, dining and recreation together in one space.
Spanning 339,000 square feet, the mall will house a supermarket, a gym, play courts and a soft play and entertainment zone, alongside a wide range of restaurants covering different cuisines. In total, shoppers can expect 35 retail and food and beverage outlets, including more than 10 dining options.
Le Meryeme Mall, Liwan
Le Meryeme Mall in Liwan is set to open in the second half of 2026 as a new luxury destination in Wadi Al Safa 2. Construction is underway across an 11,3674 square foot area, led by luxury real estate developer KeyMavens Group.
Rather than a conventional mall, the destination is built around everyday community life, bringing together boutique retail, wellness and spa spaces, dining and cafés, a hypermarket for daily essentials and family entertainment areas. Green spaces and a pool round out the offering, all wrapped in a Spanish-inspired design.
Le Meryeme Mall, The Villa
A second Le Meryeme Mall is coming to The Villa community, spread across 124,000 square feet of built-up area in Wadi Al Safa 5. It's positioned to serve nearby residential clusters while also drawing visitors from further afield.
Like its sister project in Liwan, the destination is shaped around community life rather than conventional mall shopping, bringing boutique retail, wellness and spa spaces, dining and cafés, a hypermarket for daily essentials and family entertainment together in one place. The design leans on natural light, open spaces and indoor-outdoor flow, creating a contemporary environment suited to modern family life. KeyMavens Group is delivering the project, which is currently under development and scheduled for completion in the third quarter of 2026.
The Yard
Palm Jebel Ali is starting to look less like a development in the making and more like a destination taking shape, and The Yard is a big part of that shift. Developed by Dubai Retail, the island's first retail and lifestyle hub spans around 70,000 square feet of gross leasable area and brings together 26 concepts covering retail, dining, wellness, healthcare and family services. It's expected to serve around 20,000 residents across Palm Jebel Ali and the surrounding communities when it opens in 2027.
Confirmed names so far include Waitrose, American Hospital, Piccoli, Jumeirah International Nursery, Bateel Café and Friends Avenue, mixing everyday convenience with dining, healthcare, education and social spaces. Open terraces and communal areas will connect directly to a waterfront promenade, tying the mall into the coastline rather than keeping it separate. The focus here is less about creating an occasional destination and more about becoming part of residents' daily routine, somewhere to grab groceries, meet friends, see a doctor or just spend time outdoors.
Dubai Square
Dubai Square stands as the centrepiece of the AED180 billion Dubai Creek Harbour mega-project, spanning a total retail, hospitality and commercial area of 2.6 million square metres within a development that covers over 11 million square metres in all, three times the size of Downtown Dubai. Construction is already underway, with completion expected in three years.
The project will bring breakthrough technologies and fresh concepts across retail, dining and entertainment, backed by a fully integrated transport network, pedestrian friendly streets and a world-first drive-through mall design.
Ghaf Woods Mall
Majid Al Futtaim is bringing nature and retail together at Ghaf Woods Mall, positioned on Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road at the centre of the Dhs15.4 billion Ghaf Woods community. Once complete it will become the company's new flagship shopping destination in Dubai, its 30th mall overall and its 19th in the UAE, and it stands out as the region's first forest-integrated retail space.
More than 30,000 trees are being planted across the wider development, and the mall's design is rooted in biophilic principles that blend the surrounding forest landscape with contemporary retail architecture. Shoppers can look forward to a curated line-up of retail, dining, leisure and lifestyle experiences, with the space envisioned as a gathering point that brings residents, visitors and businesses together within this new green community.
South Bay Mall
South Bay Mall will be the first retail and lifestyle hub for the South Bay community, sitting at the heart of this waterfront development in Dubai South. Announced by Dubai South Properties, it brings shopping, dining and leisure together under one roof.
Spanning around 200,000 square feet across the ground, first and rooftop levels, roughly the size of four football fields, the mall will offer panoramic lagoon views and open-air walkways. Plans include 60 retail units, two anchor stores, a premium food hall, a clubhouse, gym, spa, clinic and more than 400 parking spaces.
Construction is expected to start soon. South Bay already features over 800 villas and townhouses, more than 200 waterfront mansions and a one kilometre lagoon, and the mall is set to become the community's central hub. More details on the opening date and tenants are expected soon.
Taken together, these eight projects show a city still betting heavily on physical retail even as shopping habits shift online. What's changed is the thinking behind each development. Malls are no longer standalone destinations built purely for shopping. They're being woven into the fabric of new communities, designed around lagoons, forests, airports and waterfronts, and positioned as the social and commercial anchor for the neighbourhoods growing around them.
With openings staggered between now and 2028, Dubai's retail map is set for a steady stream of new arrivals over the next couple of years. Whichever one opens first near you, it's clear the city's appetite for reinventing the mall experience shows no sign of slowing down.
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