F1 Confirms Abu Dhabi Grand Prix — Events Calendar Is Propping Up Tourism
Skift Take
F1’s decision splits the Gulf calendar into two tiers: Abu Dhabi keeps its finale, Bahrain and Saudi lost theirs.
Formula One has confirmed the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will go ahead as scheduled — the final race of the 2026 season — despite months of uncertainty over whether the U.S.-Iran war would force it off the calendar.
CEO Stefano Domenicali told Formula One’s official website on Sunday that the calendar remains unchanged, with preparations for the season finale nearing completion.
“And the calendar, as I said, is confirmed so there are still a few tickets to be sold in Abu Dhabi, so everything is progressing well and we stay focused on delivering the calendar we promised at the beginning of the year.”
In March, F1 called off races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. The race scheduled for Bahrain will now take place in Malaysia from October 2 to 4.
The total commercial cost of deferring the F1 races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia – including hotel occupancy, international flight bookings, and local hospitality spend – could exceed $200 million, Gloria Guevara, president and CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council, told Skift in March.
On July 29, Domenicali said on a call with F1 media that although the races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi were confirmed, the season would end in Europe if the war continued. “If the situation will not be cleared the way that we believe it should be, before the middle of September, we will take the decision. If this will not be possible, the end of the season will be in Europe, because we cannot go in other places,” he said.
The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix creates “meaningful opportunities” for tourism, hospitality and events sectors, Saood Abdulaziz Al Hosani, undersecretary of the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, said Sunday following the calendar confirmation.
Abu Dhabi hotels hit 93% occupancy during the 2022 F1 race and matched that figure again in 2025 — but the two years tell very different stories on rate. ADR jumped roughly 80% over that span, from about $500 in 2022 to nearly $900 in 2025, STR’s Sarah Duignan, director of client relationships, told ‘The Upgrade: EMEA Hospitality News’ podcast in February. Outside race week, ADR in the market runs closer to $200.
Abu Dhabi has benefited from stronger domestic demand and events-led tourism activity compared to Dubai, according to a CBRE report that cited CoStar data. Abu Dhabi’s occupancy fell 13.5 points, to 66.8% from 80.3% in the first half of 2026, according to CoStar. Dubai’s decline was nearly double this.
Abu Dhabi leans more heavily on domestic and regional demand, plus a calendar of fixed, high-value events like F1, Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open tennis tournament, Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, and World Future Energy Summit.
The UAE’s capital is also adding demand drivers that Dubai doesn’t have in its near-term pipeline. The DCT Abu Dhabi has announced The Sphere on Yas Island, the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi museum will open in December, while Frank Gehry’s Dar Al Funoon Abu Dhabi performing arts centre will open in 2030. Disney remains “fully committed” to seeing its theme park project through in Abu Dhabi, CFO Hugh Johnston said during an earnings call Wednesday.
The DCT also announced free visas for Indian visitors booking an Abu Dhabi holiday of at least three nights, targeting one of its top international source markets. The entity said Monday that Abu Dhabi will host the Euroleague Basketball SuperCup, a new competition that will open the European club basketball season, on September 18 and 19.
The DCT Abu Dhabi has still not released visitor data since the beginning of the year.
Reporting originally appeared via Skift Travel News. Read the full source for additional context.