Afterlife
Abu Dhabi gets a taste of the premium electronic music festival founded in 2016 by the Italian music production and DJ duo Tale Of Us. The Afterlife brand has evolved from a club night into an event series and record [ ... ]
From AED 655
27 events found.
Festival
Events
Yas Gateway Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Quoz Arts Fest
Alserkal Avenue Al Quoz 1, DubaiQuoz Arts Fest returns for its 12th edition, filling Alserkal Avenue with music, food and family-friendly fun from 10am to 11pm for the weekend. It looks like the biggest and best Quoz Fest yet; there's a lot of music (Bull [ ... ]
Weekend pass AED63
Al Hosn Festival
Al Hosn Abu DhabiTwo weeks of Emirati culture, past and present – "a living expression of Abu Dhabi’s cultural heritage" – in what is probably the traditional heart of Abu Dhabi. Building on the success of the last festival, the 2025 event sees [ ... ]
AED 35
Emirates Airline Festival of Literature
Festival City DubaiThe UAE’s biggest and best literary event is back at the newly renovated InterContinental Dubai Festival City, with the usual cornucopia of writers, creators and thought leaders – a total of around 150 events. That's slightly fewer than usual, and [ ... ]
[Various prices]
Sikka Art and Design Festival
Al Shindagha Dubai Creek, DubaiThe latest edition of what is being presented as one of Dubai Culture's flagship initiatives is back in Al Shindagha Historic District. We're not sure exactly what you'll get this year – the website wasn't working when last we tried [ ... ]
FreeBlock Barty
421 Arts Campus Mina Zayed, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates"Better than the art afterparty" claims 421. "We’re ramping up the art season with pop-up vendors, independent brands, eclectic workshops, diverse entertainment, neighbourhood walks, and obviously, more art ... Block Barty is for the 'art' people, the non-art art people, [ ... ]
Free
L’ÉCOLE Festival
L'ÉCOLE Middle East, School of Jewelry Arts Building 10, Dubai Design District, Dubai, United Arab Emirates“An immersive celebration of jewellery arts” with “an exciting lineup of engaging experiences” that showcase the school’s expertise across its three pillars: art history, 'savoir-faire', and gemology. The jewellery school’s director, Sophie Claudel, describes it as “a celebration of everything [ ... ]
Free, but pre-registerL’ÉCOLE Festival
L'ÉCOLE Middle East, School of Jewelry Arts Building 10, Dubai Design District, Dubai, United Arab Emirates“An immersive celebration of jewellery arts” with “an exciting lineup of engaging experiences” that showcase the school’s expertise across its three pillars: art history, 'savoir-faire', and gemology. The jewellery school’s director, Sophie Claudel, describes it as “a celebration of everything [ ... ]
Free, but pre-registerBluewaters Art Festival
Bluewaters DubaiThe inaugural Bluewaters Art Festival runs 4pm to midnight from 12 to 20 April, featuring a theme ("Re:Connect") and "designed to transform the island into a vibrant open-air gallery". Expect murals, installations, large-scale inflatable art, outdoor sculptures, and indoor exhibits [ ... ]
FreeMini Festival by Vinyl Souk
25hours Hotel Dubai One Central Trade Center Street, DubaiVinyl Souk's Mini Festival is back, a day of live music, records, audio gear, merch, art, DJs, bands, workshops, and kids' activities – "a celebration of local and regional talent and good vibes for all". There's tasty street fare at [ ... ]
AED 180Sharjah International Film Festival for Children & Youth (SIFF)
Vox Cinema, City Center Al Zahia University Road, Al Zahia, SharjahThe 12th Edition of SIFF takes place 6 to 11 October at VOX Cinemas in City Centre Al Zahia with what looks like a strong lineup – 76 films (chosen from 1,740 submissions!) representing 26 countries. South Korea is participating [ ... ]
tbc
Dubai Design Week 2025
The region’s leading (only significant?) design festival returns for its 11th edition with the usual hectic mix of commissions, exhibitions, installations, talks and live events. Natasha Carella, DDW’s Director, said this year the programme was taking a more reflective approach [ ... ]
Free
Sharjah Film Platform 8
[various Sharjah locations]Sharjah Art Foundation’s annual celebration of indie/experimental cinema returns for its eighth edition from 14 to 23 November 2025 with an expanded lineup of films, talks and artist development programmes. Screenings and events will take place at Mirage City Cinema, [ ... ]
Per screening: AED 15Fujifilm Short Film Festival
Cinema Akil Warehouse 68, Alserkal Avenue, DubaiThis first festival of its kind by Fujifilm Middle East, created with Cinema Akil and Gulf Photo Plus, aims to "foster bold ideas, nurture fresh perspectives, and champion the next generation of storytellers". More than 2,000 submissions were whittled down [ ... ]
Free
Dubai Motorcycle Film Festival
Warehouse Four Al Quoz, DubaiThe fifth edition of the only film festival in Dubai "exclusively dedicated to screening short films focussed on motorcycles" (it expanded in 2025 to London and is planned to launch in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur next year). It kicks off [ ... ]
AED 75Sharjah Festival of African Literature
University City SharjahThe second edition of the festival brings together 20 African and nine Emirati authors for around 20 Library sessions, book talks and panel discussions – and a series of African cooking sessions. The theme is “The African Way”, which is [ ... ]
Free, but pre-register
Ras Al Khaimah Art 2026 Festival
Al Jazeera Al Hamra Ras Al KhaimahIn the last few years the Ras Al Khaimah Art Festival has grown into a solid contributor to the UAE’s arts and culture scene, with a community-oriented twist to the mix of exhibitions, performances, workshops and film screenings. There’s always [ ... ]
Free
Al Hosn Festival
Al Hosn Abu DhabiThis living expression of Abu Dhabi's Culture is always worth a visit. The emphasis is on heritage, so the Al Hosn programme includes traditional souks, performances (lots of ayyalah), food, coffee, kids’ workshops and more. It runs 4pm to 11pm [ ... ]
AED 35
Emirates Airline Festival of Literature
InterContinental Hotel Dubai Festival City, DubaiLitFest is back with the usual rich brew of panel discussions and conversations, talks, workshops, family activities and the LitFest After Hours programme. It looks like the biggest and most varied yet, so that probably means it will be the [ ... ]
Sikka Art and Design Festival
Al Shindagha Dubai Creek, DubaiThe 14th edition of what has become one of Dubai Culture's flagship initiatives is back in Al Shindagha Historic District, this year with the theme ‘Imagining Dubai: Identities of the Future’. The festival promises "a diverse array of artworks" in [ ... ]
Free
Quoz Arts Festival
Alserkal Avenue Al Quoz 1, DubaiQuoz Arts Fest returns to Alserkal Avenue on 24 and 25 January with a mix of experimental art installations, live music, exhibitions, “food experiences”, and “encounters designed for all ages”. Basmah El Bittar, Director of Alserkal Avenue, reckons the 2026 [ ... ]
Per day: AED 100Mini Festival by Vinyl Souk
25hours Hotel Dubai One Central Trade Center Street, DubaiThe third Mini Festival promises to transform 25hours Hotel One Central into a vibrant hub for alternative music, creativity, and community – six rooms, live bands, DJs and vinyl selectors, workshops and talks, film screenings, a record fair, and a [ ... ]
AED 200Sharjah Light Festival
[various Sharjah locations]magpie has long been a fan of the Sharjah Light Festival, the 14th edition of which runs 3 to 15 February. By contrast with the newer Manar Abu Dhabi and Dhai Dubai light art festivals, SLF generally takes a more [ ... ]
Free
Animenia Abu Dhabi
Manarat al Saadiyat Abu Dhabi, United Arab EmiratesAnimenia returns to Manarat Al Saadiyat with five days of cosplay, music, food, and J-pop culture – “step inside a world inspired by the hidden corners of Neo-Tokyo, where glowing signs, colourful characters, and offbeat discoveries bring anime culture to [ ... ]
AED 95Alserkal Art Month: weekend 1
Alserkal Avenue Al Quoz 1, DubaiAlserkal Avenue's Art Month (18 April to 19 May) includes a raft of individual events, mostly at the weekends, alongside the usual gallery opening hours – most of those we have listed separately in the Agenda. Here’s the schedule for [ ... ]
FreeFinal Draft
ERTH Khor Al Maqta Al Khaleej Al Arabi Road, Abu DhabiThis interesting-looking event by the Ripple Collective, a group of multidisciplinary designers and design-led retailers based in Abu Dhabi, has been running for four years now with little fanfare. It offers a day of “the things we love most: good [ ... ]
Free, but pre-registerAlserkal Art Month: weekend 1
Alserkal Avenue Al Quoz 1, DubaiHere’s the schedule for the first Sunday of Alserkal Avenue's Art Month (18 April to 19 May): 3-4pm Project Space KIDS' WORKSHOP Animal Comic Creations Participants (aged 7+) design their own comic-style story, inspired by an animal of their choice [ ... ]
Free
