Dubai Shopping Festival 2026 to 27: a content plan for retailers, restaurants and hotels
The 32nd Dubai Shopping Festival runs 4 December 2026 to 17 January 2027. A 45-day content plan for retailers, restaurants and hotels.
The 32nd Dubai Shopping Festival runs from 4 December 2026 to 17 January 2027, a 45-day season announced on 14 October by Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment. For a retailer, restaurant or hotel it is the longest promotional window of the year, and the brands that plan their content as one 45-day campaign, not forty-five separate posts, spend less and look better.
The full festival programme was still to be announced when we checked on 25 October, so this plan is built around what the organisers have confirmed and what a brand controls: its own offers, shoots and calendar.
What has been announced for DSF 2026 to 27?
The organisers announced the dates and the returning highlights. According to the press coverage, they include etisalat DSF Nights concerts at Dubai Festival City, DSF x Hatta Wadi Hub, DSF Auto Season and etisalat MOTB, alongside raffles, retail promotions and mall activations across the city. A first beach canteen is new this year, though outlets name different venues for it. Discount levels, retailer offers and prizes had not been published.
Treat the dates as firm and the rest as provisional. Check the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism and Visit Dubai announcements before you print or publish anything that names a programme item.
Why plan DSF as one campaign?
Forty-five days is long enough that a brand's feed can drift into several voices, and short enough that a planned shoot covers all of it. A system built first (a fixed grid, type and layouts) turns volume into assembly. Offer creative is templated, so a price change is an edit, not a redesign. And photography and video for the whole festival are batched into one production block, shot in November before the rush. We call that approach a content sprint.
What should the 45 days look like?
| Phase | Dates | What to publish |
|---|---|---|
| Build-up | Now to 3 December | Teaser reel, "festival offers start 4 December" posts, email and WhatsApp announcements, the offer templates tested |
| Launch | 4 to 7 December | The hero film, a reel series of the first offers, stories from the store, the venue or the kitchen |
| Peak | 8 December to about 5 January | Weekly offer drops, gift guides, Christmas and New Year moments, restaurant specials, hotel packages |
| Last call | 6 to 17 January | "Final days" offers, countdown stories, a thank-you post and a results recap |
Need content that keeps coming?
Tell us what you publish and where. We reply within one working day with a scoped plan.
What content does each type of brand need?
- 01Retailers.Product photography on one consistent set, a templated offer system for carousels and stories, a hero film for the launch and short reels of what is new each week
- 02Restaurants and cafes.A food shoot of the festival menu, reels of preparation and plating, and offers built as simple stories. Our cafe and restaurant page shows how we shoot and run food content.
- 03Hotels.A short film of the stay, the festive dining and the room, plus reels and photography for packages and a gift-card push
- 04Malls and venues.Coverage of activations and events as they happen, with same-week edits for social
Whatever the sector, shoot in a single block with the cutdowns planned first, so the same footage becomes the film, the reels and the stories.
What does it cost?
Prices at Steer Media start from the figures below, and each project is scoped to the brief.
| What | Starting price |
|---|---|
| Reel, shoot only / shot and edited | AED 1,000 / AED 1,500 |
| Food and product photography | Quoted per brief |
| Corporate or brand film | From AED 35,000 |
| Social media marketing | From AED 8,000 a month |
A festival that runs 4 December to 17 January spans two calendar months, so a social plan for it is usually two months of work. Booking the shoot and the plan together keeps both cheaper and more consistent than buying them separately.
What do you need to prepare before the shoot?
Send us those and we reply within one working day with a scoped plan. With 4 December less than six weeks away, the shoot has to happen in mid-November to leave time for editing and approvals.
Need content that keeps coming?
Tell us what you publish and where. We reply within one working day with a scoped plan.
Dubai Shopping Festival questions: dates, content and cost.
When is the Dubai Shopping Festival 2026 to 27?
The 32nd edition runs from 4 December 2026 to 17 January 2027, a 45-day season announced on 14 October 2026 by Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment.
Has the full DSF programme been announced?
Not as of 25 October 2026. The dates and returning highlights are announced, but discount levels, retailer offers and prizes had not been published, so check the official announcements before naming any programme item.
What content does a retailer need for the Dubai Shopping Festival?
Product photography on a consistent set, templated offer creative for carousels and stories, a hero film for the launch and short reels of what is new each week, all shot in one block before the festival starts.
How much does social media marketing cost for DSF?
At Steer Media social media marketing starts from AED 8,000 a month, and a festival that spans December and January usually needs two months. The final price follows the volume of content, the platforms and the shoots.
When should we shoot content for the festival?
In mid-November. That leaves time for editing, approvals and permits before the festival opens on 4 December.
Can you shoot and run our festival campaign together?
Yes. We plan the shoot, the cutdowns and the social calendar together, which keeps the campaign consistent and the cost lower than buying each piece separately.
