Ain Dubai: keeping an eye out on Dubai tourism

DUBAI: Dubai wants to become the most visited city in the world by 2025, said an official among those mandated to make it happen, and among the many attractions helping it in its aim is Ain Dubai, the giant observational wheel seen as a rival to the London Eye.

Standing at over 250 metres, Ain Dubai is the world’s largest and tallest observation wheel situated across the water from the popular Jumeirah Beach Residences (JBR) beachfront.

“We follow all the Covid restrictions, and really optimise for cabin because we're an enclosed space,” Ronald Drake, General Manager at Ain Dubai, told Business Recorder in an interview. “Social distancing is enforced. A big part of our offering is making sure we offer a safe environment to our guests.”

Ain Dubai offers a 360-degree views of the urban skyline in a 38-minute journey. With 48 air-conditioned passenger cabins, 1,750 visitors can take in the experience in one revolution. Its view also aids in attractions around it with the start of the Dubai Shopping Festival creating additional buzz around the giant wheel.

Drake said the landmark is ‘optimised’ for the social media-savvy, as the world moves to capture moments on their hand-held devices.

“These cabins are optimised for picture-taking and social experiences. We are another one of the iconic attractions for Dubai.”

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Offering a view of the urban skyline, a major attribute of the city, Ain Dubai is one of many attractions that is offering New Year’s packages as visitors pick up.

The emirate attracted a record 16.7 million international tourists in 2019, a record, before Covid hit. The number fell to 5.5 million in 2020, a testament to how bad the sector was hit due to the coronavirus pandemic.

However, things are now looking up with Pakistan continuing to be among the top 10 source markets.

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Meanwhile, Ain Dubai, which opened on October 21 this year, is the latest addition to the extensive Dubai Holding entertainment portfolio and plays a strategic role in supporting the long-term tourism vision. Dubai Holding has over AED 130 billion worth of assets across 10 key sectors: real estate, hospitality, leisure & entertainment, media, ICT, design, education, retail, manufacturing & logistics and science.

More than 10 countries came together to create Ain Dubai, with the steel wheel structure produced across the UAE, South Korea and Germany. The UK, France and Netherlands provided key engineering and project management expertise.

Ain Dubai’s offerings

The experiences are split into three main categories: Observation Cabins, Social Cabins and Private Cabins, with experiences starting with one rotation of approximately 38 minutes, up to two rotations of approximately 76 minutes.

The private cabins can be customised.