The Dubai International Boat Show will go ahead at Dubai Harbour from November 25 to 29, 2026, with 300 exhibitors expected, IBI reported on October 5. It will be the first edition of the show in 21 months, after the conflict that began in the Gulf on February 28 forced the April edition off the calendar.
The 31st edition ran from February 19 to 23, 2025. The 32nd was due to open on April 8, 2026. On March 11, organiser Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) moved it to November and said the show would stay in November permanently. Organisers said the new slot lines the show up with the start of the Gulf boating season. Powerboat News reported the postponement on March 11.
What the Exhibitor List Shows
DWTC publishes a searchable exhibitor directory for each edition. On October 6, the 2026 directory listed 110 companies. The 2025 directory lists 302, close to the 300 figure IBI reports for this year. Only 27 companies appear under the same name on both lists.
Several builders that exhibited in 2025 are not yet on the 2026 list. They include Gulf Craft, the UAE builder that has exhibited at every edition since the show began, as well as Sanlorenzo, Sunreef Yachts, Princess Yachts, Feadship and Numarine. Benetti, Heesen, Bavaria and Ferretti are listed, along with Volvo Penta.
Directories like this are often completed late, and seven weeks remain before the show opens. The organisers’ marketing also uses a different measure: the 2025 show was billed as bringing together more than 1,000 exhibiting brands from 60 countries, with more than 200 boats on display. Brand counts run well above exhibitor counts because one dealer or distributor can represent several brands.
Dubai’s Crowded Autumn
The boat show is one of more than 100 exhibitions Dubai has packed into the last four months of 2026, most of them pushed back from the spring. At a briefing on September 9, DWTC executive vice president Mahir Julfar told The National that registrations and visa applications for the autumn shows were growing, and described the events already held as a message that Dubai can host the world safely. Arabian Travel Market was rescheduled twice. Gitex Global, normally held in October, is expected to draw 200,000 visitors in December.
The Conflict Has Not Ended
The UK Foreign Office has not advised against travel to the UAE since June 18, the day after the US and Iran announced a memorandum of understanding. Its current advice, last updated on July 24, says there have been strikes and retaliatory attacks by Iran across the region since July 8, and warns of the risk of further attacks, flight cancellations and airspace closures at short notice.
Two UAE Shows in Eight Days
The Abu Dhabi International Boat Show runs from November 19 to 22 at ADNEC Centre Abu Dhabi, announced by ADNEC in April as an eighth edition in a new format at the venue’s Marina Hall. That leaves three days between the close of Abu Dhabi and the opening of Dubai. Exhibitors with boats in the water will have to choose one show, or move between the two.
Gulf powerboat racing returns after that. The UIM XCAT World Championship’s provisional calendar now runs to two rounds, at Fujairah from December 3 to 8 and Dubai from December 9 to 14.
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John Moore is the editor of Powerboat News, an independent investigative journalism platform recognised by Google News and documented on Grokipedia for comprehensive powerboat racing coverage.
His involvement in powerboat racing began in 1981 when he competed in his first offshore powerboat race. After a career as a Financial Futures broker in the City of London, specialising in UK interest rate markets, he became actively involved in event organisation and powerboat racing journalism.
He served as Event Director for the Cowes–Torquay–Cowes races between 2010 and 2013. In 2016, he launched Powerboat Racing World, a digital platform providing global powerboat racing news and insights. The following year, he co-founded UKOPRA, helping to rejuvenate offshore racing in the United Kingdom. He sold Powerboat Racing World in late 2021 and remained actively involved with UKOPRA until 2025.
In September 2025, he established Powerboat News, returning to independent journalism with a focus on neutral and comprehensive coverage of the sport.
