Dubai Horse Racing 2026-2027: Racing Carnival Dates, Tickets & More

Dubai Horse Racing 2026-27

In this guide, you will find what the Racing Carnival is, all 16 race dates, the tickets and which area to pick, the big nights and the prize money. Then come the race times, the dress code, the betting rule, children and how to get to Meydan, with the Dubai World Cup at the end.

What Is the Dubai Racing Carnival?

The Dubai Racing Carnival is the season of horse racing at Meydan Racecourse, run by the Dubai Racing Club. From November to March, there is a race night at Meydan on most Fridays. Horses, trainers and jockeys come from the UAE and from around the world, and the season builds up to the Dubai World Cup at the end of March.

You do not need to know anything about racing to enjoy a night there. This is how a race night works:

• Six or seven races take place each night, about 35 minutes apart.
• Before each race, the horses walk around the parade ring, a small ring near the stands, so you can see them up close.
• The race itself lasts only a minute or two. The horses run on grass (turf) or on dirt, and the first past the finish line wins.
• Between races you eat, talk and walk around. The next race is never far away.

Before each meeting, the club publishes the race card, with every race, horse, jockey and start time. After each race, the results and a replay go up on the club's website.

Horse racing is a big part of life in Dubai. Families, groups of friends and racing fans fill the stands every Friday of the season.

Dubai Racing Carnival 2026-27 Dates

The 2026-27 season has 16 race nights, from Friday 6 November 2026 to Friday 12 March 2027. All of them will be at Meydan, and most are on a Friday. Here is every date, month by month:

Three dates are worth noting before you plan:

• There is racing on New Year's Day, Friday 1 January 2027.
• Ramadan 2027 is expected to start around 8 February, depending on the moon sighting. So the February and early March nights will probably fall in Ramadan, and the races may start later. Last season, the club sold an Iftar at the Races package for those nights.
• Two nights are on a Saturday: Emirates Super Saturday on 27 February and the Dubai World Cup on 27 March.

Dubai Horse Racing Tickets

General admission costs from AED 10, the Paddock Garden from AED 75 and hospitality packages from AED 345. Prices are per person, per night.

This is how the three areas compare:

Here is what each area gets you:

• General admission: you stand or sit by the rail, close to the track, and buy food and drinks at the casual stalls. Last season, children shorter than 120cm went in free, and taller children paid AED 10.
• Paddock Garden: a lawn with food stalls and bars. The new stalls this season are Flip Smash Burgers, Pull Me Pizzeria, El Chapos Tacos and Berry Dip, and McGettigan's, Ration'd and Little Fox by Rowley's are back. Last season, children up to 12 paid AED 50.
• Hospitality: a seat, food and a view of the track in a lounge, brunch or restaurant. The choices include the Parade Ring Lounge, the Finish Line Brunch, Silks (a five-hour buffet with reserved seats on the third floor of the Grandstand), Bisou, Alba and Himitsu.
• Membership: one ticket for all 16 nights in the Horsemen's Lounge on level 1, with premium viewing and five hours of hospitality each night.

The 2026-27 prices for each restaurant and for the membership are on the ticket site. As a guide, these were last season's prices:

How to buy tickets for horse racing in Dubai

You buy tickets online, from the club's own ticket site. It takes a few minutes:

1. Open the ticket site. Go to dubairacingclub.com and press "Book Tickets", or go straight to Dubai Racing Club's ticket site. Ticketmaster runs it for the club this season.
2. Choose your night. Pick the race date, then the area: general admission, Paddock Garden or a hospitality package.
3. Pay online. The prices on the site are for online booking, and the price at the gate can be different. All sales are final, so check the date before you pay.
4. Ask about groups or packages. For hospitality and group bookings, write to ticketoffice@dubairacingclub.com or call +971 4 327 0077.

Which ticket to pick

Most first-timers do well with general admission or the Paddock Garden. Here is a simple way to choose:

Festive Friday, Fashion Friday and Emirates Super Saturday

Three feature nights stand out in the season: Festive Friday on 18 December, Fashion Friday on 22 January and Emirates Super Saturday on 27 February. They have the strongest races before the Dubai World Cup, and each has its own theme, so they draw the biggest crowds. Book these early.

Entry costs the same as on any other night, from AED 10 for general admission. What changes is the racing, the dressing up and the extras around the track. The season also opens with a big night on Friday 6 November, and it ends with the Dubai World Cup on Saturday 27 March, which has its own tickets.

Festive Friday

Festive Friday on 18 December 2026 is Meydan's Christmas race night, and the first feature night of the season. Last season, the racecourse put up Christmas trees across the grounds and turned the Paddock Garden into a Christmas grotto. Santa Claus, dancing elves, gingerbread characters and tin soldiers walked through the crowd, and saxophonists, a jazz trio and a marching band played festive music all evening. It is the most family-friendly of the feature nights, so bring the children.

The racing is strong too. Last season the card was led by two Group 2 races, the Al Maktoum Mile and the Al Rashidiya.

The extras book out fast. Last season, the restaurant The MAINE took over Suite 401 for a five-hour dinner with drinks for AED 1,195, and the Finish Line Brunch started from AED 395. The club has not yet announced the 2026 packages, so watch its events page from late November.

Here is last season's Festive Friday in one minute:

Fashion Friday

Fashion Friday on 22 January 2027 is the style night of the season, when racegoers come in their best outfits and hats. Last season, stilt walkers in floral gowns greeted guests at the gates, and many people wore hats made for the night. Families brought picnic mats to the lawns and joined the free prediction games between races.

If you do not own a race-day hat, this is the night to find one. Last season, the Dubai Racing Club ran a millinery exhibition in Concourse 3 for the weeks before Fashion Friday, and the night itself was its last day. You could try on hats by milliners such as Bee Smith, Sarah Cant and the Dubai-based Evelyn McDermott, or buy one for the Dubai World Cup.

The racing matters as well. Last season every race on the card was a Group race, led by the Group 1 Al Maktoum Challenge, worth US$1 million, which is a key step towards the Dubai World Cup.

This short film shows Fashion Friday 2026:

Emirates Super Saturday

Emirates Super Saturday on 27 February 2027 is the dress rehearsal for the Dubai World Cup, four weeks before it. Trainers use it to test their horses on the same track, and many of the World Cup runners race here first. It falls on a Saturday, not a Friday.

This is the night for serious racing fans. Last season it had nine races and about AED 10.3 million in prize money, roughly a third of the World Cup's purse. Godolphin's Rebel's Romance won the Dubai City of Gold that night, his 21st win.

The MAINE oyster bar will open again on this night.

Here is Emirates Super Saturday 2026:

Dubai Horse Racing Prize Money

The richest night of the season is the Dubai World Cup on 27 March 2027, when nine races will share US$30.5 million, about AED 112 million. The Dubai World Cup race alone is worth US$12 million, which makes it one of the richest horse races in the world. The money builds up through the season, so the feature nights carry far bigger purses than an ordinary Friday:

• Fashion Friday: last season the card was led by the Group 1 Al Maktoum Challenge, worth US$1 million.
• Emirates Super Saturday: last season its nine races shared about AED 10.3 million.
• Dubai World Cup night: US$30.5 million across nine races, split as below.

The prize money goes to the owners of the horses, shared down the first few places. For you as a racegoer, it simply means the bigger the purse, the better the horses on the track.

What Time Does Horse Racing Start at Meydan?

The club has not published the 2026-27 race times yet. Last season, the gates opened at 4pm and the first race started at 5:30pm. Those times are the best guide for opening night. This is how the evening ran:

With six or seven races, the racing is usually over by about 9pm. The race card gives the exact start time of each race, so check it on the day before you leave home. On the big nights, come early, because the roads and car parks fill up.

Dress Code for Horse Racing in Dubai

Meydan has a smart dress code: dress as you would for a nice dinner out. Men wear smart clothes or national dress. Women wear modest dresses or skirts of a suitable length, or national dress. These are the clothes the club allows, and the ones it does not:

Hats are part of the fun on the big nights. The club encourages hats and fascinators, especially on Fashion Friday and at the Dubai World Cup. For outfit ideas for the biggest night, see our Dubai World Cup dress code guide.

Can You Bet on Horse Racing in Dubai?

No. Betting and gambling are against the law in the UAE, so you cannot bet at Meydan. There are no betting counters at the racecourse. This surprises many visitors who know racing from the UK or Australia.

Instead, the club runs a free prediction game. You pick the winners of the night's races, the best scores win prizes, and it costs nothing to enter. Last season it was called Pick 7, and racegoers could also win cash prizes and cars through the club's competitions. The club has not announced the 2026-27 version or its prizes yet, so ask at the racecourse on the night.

Can Kids Go to Meydan Racing?

Yes. Children of any age can go to the races with an adult, and race nights are popular with families. Every child needs a ticket, but last season the general admission ticket was free for children shorter than 120cm.

There are two things for children at the racecourse:

• The Kids' Zone: an outdoor play area with games and activities for ages 3 to 12. It is in the Paddock Garden, near Gates 3 and 4. The club lists it for hospitality guests, so ask when you book.
• Stable tours: guided visits behind the scenes, where you see where the horses live and train. They started again in October, before the season.

Race nights run late, until about 10pm, so with young children, plan to watch the first few races and leave before the crowd. Dress the children neatly too, like the adults.

How to Get to Meydan Racecourse

Meydan Racecourse is on Al Meydan Road in Nad Al Sheba 1, about 10 km from Downtown Dubai. By car or taxi it takes about 10 minutes from Dubai World Trade Centre and about 20 minutes from Mall of the Emirates. Type "Meydan Racecourse" into your maps app:

• By car: parking on site is free, and there is a lot of it. Last season the car parks opened at 3:30pm.
• By taxi: a taxi or ride app is the easiest way if you plan to have a drink.
• By Metro: there is no Metro station at the racecourse, so you will need a taxi for the last part of the trip.

Dubai World Cup 2027

The 31st Dubai World Cup will take place at Meydan on Saturday 27 March 2027. It is the last and biggest night of the season. Nine races share US$30.5 million in prize money, split as shown in the prize money section. Magnitude won the race in 2026.

The club sells Dubai World Cup tickets separately from Carnival tickets, and it has not announced the 2027 prices yet. Expect hats, a full house and more traffic than on any other night.

Things to Know Before You Go

• Check the race card on the club's website the day before. It has the exact race times.
• Results and replays go up on the club's website after each race.
• You must be 21 or over to buy alcohol at the bars.
• For questions, call the Dubai Racing Club on +971 4 327 0077.