The Dubai Shopping Festival is the city's biggest retail moment and a fixture of agency calendars from December. As of early October 2026, though, the dates for the 32nd edition had not been announced. Blogs quoting firm dates are guessing.
Last year as a guide
- DSF 2025 to 2026, the 31st edition, ran from 5 December 2025 to 11 January 2026. It is organised by Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment, known as DFRE, part of the Department of Economy and Tourism.
- Drone shows ran nightly over the water between Bluewaters and JBR at 8pm and 10pm.
- New Year's Eve fireworks took place at Bluewaters, JBR, Hatta and Al Seef.
- Shoppers had raffles and campaigns such as the DSF Lucky Receipt and scan and win, discounts of up to 75% across more than 1,000 brands and 3,500 stores, and 12-hour flash sales.
- January brought an Auto Season, and the festival market, e& MOTB, ran at Dubai Design District from 1 to 11 January 2026.
How retailers take part
DFRE works with the department's consumer protection sector so that retailers hold a valid DFRE promotion certificate of participation before running any promotion during the festival, covering discounts, offers, raffles, pop-up kiosks and seasonal sales, according to Gulf News. The department lists a retail promotion certificate service, but we could not open the page to confirm current fees or lead times, so start early.
The rest of Dubai's winter
- Global Village Season 31 opens on Wednesday 14 October 2026 at 6pm and runs to May 2027, under the theme A More Wonderful World.
- Dubai's 2026 retail calendar has the Dubai Home Festival from 16 October to 1 November, Diwali promotions from 2 to 12 November and the Dubai Fitness Challenge from 31 October to 29 November.
- The UAE National Day campaign runs from 30 November to 3 December.
- GITEX Global moves to 8 to 11 December 2026 at the Dubai Exhibition Centre in Expo City, close to the likely start of DSF.
- For reference, Dubai Summer Surprises ran from 2 July to 30 August 2026.
What brands can do now
- Plan around a December start, but hold firm bookings until DFRE confirms the dates.
- Prepare offers that can switch on quickly: flash sale mechanics, raffle partners and creator content.
- Apply for the promotion certificate as soon as the window opens.
- Expect GITEX week in December to compete for attention, venues and media.
- Note that some blogs still place the festival market at Burj Park. Last edition it was at Dubai Design District.
The GCC marketing calendar on this site lists Dubai's main retail and public dates for planning, and the ad metrics calculator compares channel costs once the budget is set.
