The third edition of the Dubai Dates Festival, organised by the Hamdan bin Mohammed Heritage Centre at Qasr Al Rmaal on the Dubai–Al Ain Road, launches the day after tomorrow and runs until 26 July, featuring a wide range of competitions, events, and institutional and community participation.
The third edition builds on the success achieved over the past two years, with a clear expansion in the scope of participation and diversity of content. The Dubai Dates Festival brings together palm growers, farmers, government entities, national institutions, and organisations specialising in palms and dates, as well as families and young people, within a programme designed to offer each group a different gateway into the world of the date palm — from competition and agricultural expertise to knowledge and community experience.
The 2026 edition sees the introduction for the first time of two new rounds, "Tamrat Al Bayt – Dubai" and "Tamrat Al Bayt – General", a new addition that strengthens the family presence in the festival's competitions and spotlights the fruit of date palms grown and tended inside homes, encouraging community members to care for the date palm and make it part of their daily household life.
Dubai Dates Festival audiences can also look forward to the announcement of a new initiative on the opening day, to be added to the festival's development journey — a step that reflects the Hamdan bin Mohammed Heritage Centre's commitment to expanding the community impact of the event.
This year's Dubai Dates Festival comprises 15 rounds within a competitive framework that combines different varieties, production quality, and home and institutional participation, continuing to build on the distinctive rounds introduced in its two previous editions, chief among them "Nakhlet Al Bayt" and the government entities round.
The competitions include the "Tamrat Al Bayt – Dubai" and "Tamrat Al Bayt – General" rounds, as well as "Nakhlet Al Bayt – Dubai", "Nakhlet Al Bayt – General", the Government Entities round, "Helwat Dubai", "Nukhbat Dubai", "Akbar Oadj Dubai", "Akbar Oadj General", "Khneizi Dubai", "Khalas Dubai", "Khalas General", "Bu Maaan General", "Nukhbat General", and "Kass Al Nadar General".
Abdullah Hamdan bin Dalmook, Chief Executive Officer of the Hamdan bin Mohammed Heritage Centre, said: "As Dubai Dates Festival reaches its third edition, we look at what has been accomplished over the past two years as the beginning of a path we want to see expand and reach all segments of society. From the outset, our vision has been to bring people together around the date palm, and to give every individual, every family, and every institution a space to participate in preserving its standing and presence."