A computer-graphic-soaked advertisement featuring Australian actor and Hollywood heartthrob Chris Hemsworth (“Thor”) beckons the world to Dubai’s upcoming Expo 2020, promising a “world of pure imagination” as children without facemasks race across a futuristic carnival scene. Delayed a year over the coronavirus pandemic, Dubai’s Expo 2020 opens on Friday (Oct. 1), pushing the city-state all-in on its bet of billions of dollars that the world’s fair will boost its economy.
The sheikhdom built what feels like an entire city out of what once were rolling sand dunes on its southern edges to support the fair, an outpost that largely will be disassembled after the six-month event ends in March.
But questions about the Expo’s drawing power in the modern era began even before the pandemic. It will be one of the world’s first global events, following an Olympics this summer that divided host nation Japan and took place without spectators. Though Dubai has thrown open its doors to tourists from around the world and has not required vaccinations, it remains unclear how many guests will be coming to this extravaganza.
Modern wonders are what makes the expos shine since their creation in the 1850s. Paris unveiled its Eiffel Tower at the 1889 fair. Chicago became the “White City” in 1893 as electric lights bathed its world’s fair site, which also boasted the first Ferris wheel. Telephones, television broadcasts and X-rays also wowed crowds.
In recent decades, however, many expos have not received the same attention — or at least not the positive kind. The 1984 world’s fair in New Orleans went bankrupt and required a government bailout. Expo 2000 in Germany drew 18 million visitors, well short of the 40 million expected. Milan’s 2015 Expo saw rioting over corruption allegations.
Dubai, which won the rights to host the Expo in the years after FIFA awarded Qatar the 2022 World Cup, will be the Arab world’s first. It had banked on the Expo providing a needed boost to its economy after its real estate market crashed during the Great Recession.
Auditors EY estimated in 2019 that Dubai would spend US $7 billion alone on construction projects for the Expo. Relying on a projection of 25 million visitors, EY estimated a $6-billion boost during the event.
But that was before the coronavirus pandemic forced Dubai’s long-haul carrier Emirates to ground its fleet of jumbo jets as lockdowns and quarantines seized the world. While the airline is restarting more flights and hiring thousands of cabin crew members, worldwide travel is still ailing.
The UAE, which has grown closer to China in recent years, likely counted on Chinese visitors to the Expo. Shanghai’s 2010 Expo saw over 73 million visitors, a record. But betting on China seems out at the moment as those returning to the country face weeks of quarantines and testing that can include anal swabs.
In recent weeks, Expo officials have begun referring to an expected “25 million visits” to the site, including those watching events online.
“It’s become ‘How do we do the biggest, the best Expo to the world’s ever seen in the Middle East’ to ‘How do we put on an Expo for a very different world?’” said Robert C. Mogielnicki, a senior resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. “Getting to 25 million visitors under the current circumstances seems like a pretty difficult target to meet.”
The Emirates also planned splashy announcements around the Expo, perhaps none bigger than its diplomatic recognition of Israel. After delaying the Expo, the UAE last year went ahead with the recognition anyway.
Expo
Meanwhile, on the ground, visitors to the six-month-long international festival, which officially runs Oct. 1 to through March 31, 2022, will find 190 country and thematic pavilions (including one from Canada), and highlights ranging from innovative and inspiring architecture to the world’s largest passenger lift, travel beneath a forest, and music in the gardens of the signature Al Wasl Dome.
Based on the theme “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future,” Expo 2020 aims to inspire people by showcasing the best examples of “collaboration, innovation and cooperation from around the world through experiences designed to suit all ages and interests, including an extensive line-up of themed weeks, entertainment, and edutainment. Art and culture fans, as well as food and technology enthusiasts, can explore exhibits, workshops, performances, live shows, and more.
Tickets
One-day tickets to Expo are priced at AED 95 (CDN $33; multi-day tickets, offering unrestricted entry for 30 consecutive days, are priced at AED 195 ($67). Seniors (60-plus), those under the age of 18, and students holding a valid student ID from any academic institution in the world will be given free entry. Tickets include access to all pavilions, events, and live performances, featuring up to 60 live events each day, from world-class music, dance and art to insightful talks and colourful national day celebrations. They can be purchased via authorized ticket resellers around the world (including online travel agents, tour operators, hotel groups and airlines), or by visiting the expo2020dubai web site.
Emirates
One of those ticket vendors, Emirates airline, is offering travellers to or through Dubai a free Emirates Expo Day Pass for use during the fair. And to further encourage travellers to maximize their time in the city and during the Expo and the concurrent UAE Golden Jubilee, Skywards loyalty program members will be eligible to earn one Skywards Mile for every minute spent in Dubai with the airlines’ special ‘Mile-A-Minute’ offer.
Emirates currently operates five weekly passenger flights from Toronto to Dubai.
Watch the video: