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Hamleys Dubai opens today

Dreams become true today as the world famous Hamleys toy store opens its doors for the first time in the newly opened Dubai Mall, where it’s set to bring children joy and adults an excuse to have fun.

For nearly 250 years Hamleys has been delighting children with its magical atmosphere and now the world famous toy emporium has brought its charm to the Middle East, with a 32,000 square foot concept store opening today.

Brought to Dubai by Retail Arabia, which holds the exclusive franchise for Hamleys in the region, Hamleys is home to more than 100,000 different toys, gifts and gadgets, all of which are on display and ready to be played with in the store.

Located on the second floor, visitors to the store enter into a mini replica of London’s Regent Street, complete with performers, where they can stroll the street to the Hamleys fountain display. The entire store is a giant playground for both children and adults with a decked out car racing dome; a camel caravan; a Ferrari bike racing track; a gaming area and life sized doll’s houses.

Retail Arabia Managing Director and CEO Nabil Daud, says that the magic of Hamleys really comes alive when you step into the store where children can play with the toys and truly become part of the wondrous Hamleys world.

“Everyone loves Hamleys; it’s the toy store kids dream about. Children come to the store and are able to play with those toys they’ve always wanted,” he says. “To be responsible for bringing that dream to the Middle East is an honour for us at Retail Arabia. We have spent months preparing for this special day, getting ready to bring the Hamleys spirit to the children of Dubai.”

In celebration of today’s opening, the first 100 customers will receive a special goodie bag and be the first to enjoy Hamleys’ famous in-store entertainment and games.

“Every single day is special at Hamleys with magic shows, face painting, balloons and cool toy demonstrations and so much more; the saying goes that ‘with Hamleys there are 365 days of play’,” says Daud.

Children old and young across the Gulf are familiar with Hamleys, having either been there on family trips to London, or hearing and dreaming about one day visiting it themselves.

Debi Simcox, a British ex-pat living in Dubai with her eight-year-old son Scott, says that she’s spent the last week trying to convince Scott that no, they cannot camp outside waiting for the store to open.

“Oh he’s gone mad,” she says. “I took him to the London store about a year ago and he’s never forgotten the experience. As soon as I told him there was a new one coming to Dubai and we could go, he hasn’t talked about anything else.”

This week Kerzner is splashing out £40m on the launch of his ”billion-dollar baby”, a new hotel called Atlantis, which exceeds the previous record of £38m that Britain’s richest man, the steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, spent on his daughter’s wedding at Versailles in 2004. ”Nobody has ever done anything like this — except me, when I opened the Cove in the Bahamas last year,” says Kerzner. “I’m going to upstage myself.”

No expense has been spared for the launch of the £1 billion Atlantis, a giant hotel and water park that straddles the Palm Jumeirah, the reclaimed island in the Persian Gulf. Take the launch invitation: a blue-and-gold box containing models of global architectural icons — the pyramids, the Taj Mahal, the Empire State Building and now, of course, Atlantis. The 2,500-strong guest list mixes royalty and celebrity. Dubai’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid al-Maktoum, will be joined by the Hollywood actors Robert De Niro, Denzel Washington, Charlize Theron and Lindsay Lohan (below right), the singers Janet Jackson and Lily Allen, plus Oprah Winfrey, Naomi Campbell, Agyness Deyn and the Duchess of York. They will all stay in the Atlantis suites, the most lavish of which is the £16,000-a-night Bridge Suite, which spans the hotel’s two towers. Sheikh Mohammed has laid on Emirates’ new double-decker Airbus A380 for guests — at a cost of £4,000 per pampered passenger.

The sushi master Nobu Matsuhisa is flying in 20 tonnes of fish to make his signature black cod, and Giorgio Locatelli of Michelin-starred Locanda Locatelli in London is cooking his trademark pumpkin ravioli. Fifty tonnes of explosives will be used in a fireworks display; Kylie will perform in a black-and-gold dress specially designed by Jean Paul Gaultier; and later, Samantha Ronson will be on the decks.

More Dubai Mall photos:

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If buying look at the rental yields, 15%+ rental yield is quite easy to get now.

 

An artist's impression of the QE2 in its new Dubai home

The new owners of the QE2 have unveiled their plans for the ship when it arrives in Dubai next week.

The liner will be transformed into a floating luxury hotel alongside the Palm Jumeirah, an artificial island built off the Dubai coast. Connected by a bridge, she will form the centrepiece of a luxurious marina complex, with restaurants, private homes, other hotels and a theatre where full-scale West-end and Broadway productions will be staged.

The complex will also house a heritage museum displaying QE2 artefacts and maritime exhibits.

Dubai World, the parent company of property developers Nakheel, who will take over ownership of the ship on November 27, have promised to maintain the ship's rich heritage.

Manfred Ursprunger, chief executive of QE2 Enterprises, said: "We are proud to be the custodian of such a magnificent British icon and will use our resources to maintain the integrity and spirit of QE2, as envisioned by her original design team led by Dennis Lennon, and usher in the next exciting chapter of her rich and dignified life."

The liner arrives at Dubai's port Mina Rashid on November 26, where she will be greeted by a flotilla of yachts, boats and dhows, led by a Royal Navy Frigate. The boat will then be moved to her permanent home on the eastern side of the palm-shaped island.