Nine new malls. Different corners of the city, different timelines. The Grand at Nad Al Sheba Gardens gets there first, opening August 19, 2026. Dubai Square is last, and that’s a 2028 story. In between are projects tied to newer residential pockets, Sobha Hartland, Dubai South, Ghaf Woods, so if you live near one of these or you’re thinking about it, this is the rundown.
Anyone in, or looking at, one of Dubai’s grower communities. Anyone comparing two or three neighbourhoods before signing a lease. A mall going up nearby changes how a place feels to live in, and that’s true well before the opening date, so knowing what’s coming beats finding out after you’ve already moved.
Each section covers one mall: where, what’s inside, when (for the ones that actually have a date, because a few still don’t). Skip to whichever one applies to you.
August 19, 2026. That’s when The Grand at Nad Al Sheba Gardens starts letting people in, and Waitrose & Partners leads the way as Nad Al Sheba’s first branch.
The opening comes in stages. First batch: Waitrose, MMI, Heart Cottage Lane, Maple Bear Nursery, Al Jaber Optical, Fixperts. Early September brings Tashas, Somewhere, Home Bakery, Kokoro, Blu Pizzeria, Bake My Day, Daima, Staywell Pharmacy and Tips & Toes. Fitcode and American Hospital close out the list in early 2027.
Sobha Realty hasn’t done retail before. Sobha Mall changes that. Dh210 million, 339,000 square feet, sitting inside Sobha Hartland, due in the second half of 2026.
Thirty five retail and F&B outlets. More than ten dining spots. A supermarket, a gym, play courts, an indoor entertainment area. Sobha Hartland residents are the main audience here, but a project this size will pull people from nearby areas too.
One developer, two malls, roughly the same timeline. Le Meryeme is building in Liwan (Wadi Al Safa 2) and near The Villa (Wadi Al Safa 5), both landing sometime in 2026.
Liwan’s mall runs about 113,674 square feet and leans into a Spanish-inspired design, shops, restaurants, cafés, landscaped areas, a swimming pool. Second half of 2026 for that one. The Villa’s version is slightly bigger, 124,000 square feet, due in Q3 2026, and built around shops, family dining, and wellness space that blends indoor and outdoor areas instead of separating them.
200,000 square feet, spread across ground, first and rooftop levels, open-air walkways facing the South Bay lagoon. That’s South Bay Mall, coming to Dubai South’s Residential District. No opening date has been set.
Inside: 60 retail units, two anchor stores, a food hall, outdoor leisure space, a clubhouse, a gym, a spa, a clinic. If Dubai South is on your radar as somewhere to buy, file this under coming, not built. It isn’t there yet.
Near Al Maktoum International Airport, HAYAT by Dubai South is going up around roughly 2,500 homes, and a community mall with a retail boulevard is part of the plan. The whole development covers 10 million square feet.
Construction started in Q2 2026. First phases are expected by 2028, later than most other projects on this list. HAYAT isn’t just retail either. Parks, shaded walking trails, fitness facilities, pools, gardens, lagoons, a community lake. The mall is one piece of that, not the whole point.
Dh62 billion. That’s the size of the mixed-use community going up in Dubai South, on a 22 million square foot site near Al Maktoum International Airport, and Majid Al Futtaim’s mall sits inside it. Name, size, tenant list, opening date, none of it has been announced.
What is known: the surrounding community is planned around homes, shops and leisure, connected to Dubai South’s main roads. Add it up and that’s three retail projects now landing in Dubai South, alongside South Bay Mall and HAYAT’s community mall.
More than 30,000 trees. That’s the backdrop for Ghaf Woods Mall, sitting inside Majid Al Futtaim’s Dh15.4 billion Ghaf Woods community on Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road. It becomes the developer’s 30th mall once it opens, whenever that ends up being. No date yet.
Shopping, dining, entertainment, leisure, all built into a forested layout rather than the sealed, air-conditioned box most Dubai malls use. A different format, basically, aimed at people who’d rather be outside than under fluorescent lighting all day.
Not really a mall in the usual sense. Dubai Square is closer to an indoor city, planned for Dubai Creek Harbour across roughly 2.6 million square metres of retail, dining, entertainment and tech-driven experiences. 2028 is the current target.
Parts of it are built wide enough for electric vehicles to drive through, and it links to the planned Dubai Creek Tower. Emaar announced this back in 2018, then reworked the plans in 2024. Long runway on this one.
It isn’t only new construction. Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates are both mid-expansion right now. Dh1.5 billion at Dubai Mall adds 240 luxury retail and dining outlets. Dh5 billion at Mall of the Emirates adds 100 stores, plus new dining, entertainment and social space, including an outdoor F&B courtyard covered in greenery, due early 2027.
Closer to town, City Walk already handles open-air shopping and dining well. These expansions are worth tracking alongside the new community malls. Not a replacement for them, just a parallel story.
Nothing changes for residents until doors actually open. Timing still matters if you’re choosing where to rent or buy right now, though.
Nad Al Sheba, Sobha Hartland, Liwan, The Villa: retail lands within the next year or so in all four, since The Grand, Sobha Mall and both Le Meryeme malls are 2026 projects. Dubai South and Dubai Creek Harbour play a longer game. South Bay Mall, HAYAT, the Majid Al Futtaim project, Dubai Square, none of them have firm dates, and a couple run out to 2028.
Factor retail access into a housing decision, sure, but weigh it against rental market trends in whichever area you’re eyeing. New supply and new amenities in Dubai tend to arrive in the same wave.
What new malls are opening in Dubai in 2026?
Nine total. The Grand in Nad Al Sheba, Sobha Mall in Sobha Hartland, two Le Meryeme malls (Liwan and The Villa), South Bay Mall plus a HAYAT community mall in Dubai South, a Majid Al Futtaim mall near Al Maktoum Airport, Ghaf Woods Mall, and Dubai Square in Dubai Creek Harbour.
When does The Grand mall open in Nad Al Sheba?
Phases start August 19, 2026. Waitrose & Partners first, more shops and restaurants from early September, health facilities following in early 2027.
Is there a new mall coming to Dubai South?
Three, actually. South Bay Mall in the Residential District, a community mall through HAYAT by Dubai South, and a larger one inside Majid Al Futtaim’s planned community near Al Maktoum Airport.
What is Ghaf Woods Mall?
The retail anchor of Ghaf Woods, a Majid Al Futtaim community on Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road built around 30,000-plus trees. Once finished, it’s the developer’s 30th mall.
When will Dubai Square open?
2028, going by current estimates. That’s for the indoor city planned at Dubai Creek Harbour.
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