Dubai’s most outlandish hotel to date is set to welcome its first guests in October

Also on Main Europe Island, the Côte d’Azur will come to life. Four hotels named after the famous Monaco, Nice, Cannes and St. Tropez resorts will elevate the offering with premium suites and penthouses, French dining, high-end boutiques, white sandy beaches and plenty of water sports including pearl diving – though in this phase only the Monaco Hotel will open, and possibly the Nice Hotel. There’s a climate-controlled street where visitors will be able to experience inclement European weather (rain), plus a swish replication of Monaco Marina.

Elsewhere, the rest of the Heart of Europe is taking shape and by the end of 2023 visitors will be able to explore such places as Venice and Switzerland. Floating Venice, Dubai’s take on the Italian City of Water is billed as the world’s first underwater resort. 

Above water, guests will be able to enjoy views of the Dubai skyline from one of the 411 airy rooms or nine restaurants and bars, jump onto a gondola, moor up at the yacht club and witness the odd masked carnival or opera. Below the surface, the unprecedented views of coral and marine life are the big draw. Three of the bars and restaurants are submerged, so is the spa, plus 180 cabins.