New areas in Dubai (2026): the newest communities, where they are and what is being built

Most of Dubai's new homes are not being built in the places visitors know. They are going up in communities that did not exist ten years ago: islands off Deira and Jebel Ali, the old port, the airport corridor in the south-west, and villa belts inland along the Dubai to Al Ain Road.

This guide explains Dubai's newest areas for buyers: where each one is, who is building it, how big it is planned to be and what you can buy there. Each section has a live table of the off-plan projects we track, which changes as we add projects.

Jump to: the map, how big they are, the coast, the port and creek, the south-west, inland villa communities, announced next, how to choose.

They sit in four groups: islands on the coast, the old port and creek, the south-west around Al Maktoum International and Expo City, and inland villa belts in Dubailand and along the E66.

A note on names. An area is a named part of the city, such as Dubai South or Dubailand. A master community is a planned development inside an area by one master developer, such as Emaar South inside Dubai South. Many of the new places in this guide are master communities. Our guide to Dubai's areas and districts explains how they fit together.

Some are the size of a small town. Dubai Islands covers 18.6 sq km and Emaar South is planned for 22,700 homes, while a community such as Grand Polo Club is planned for a few thousand.

Size matters in two ways. A large community can carry its own schools, clinics and retail, so daily life stays inside it. It also takes longer to finish, so the first residents live beside construction for years.

Two: Dubai Islands off Deira and Palm Jebel Ali off Jebel Ali. Both are Nakheel island projects, both are freehold, and both sell beachfront and lagoon homes in phases.

Dubai Islands

Dubai Islands is Nakheel's five-island waterfront off the Deira coast, renamed from Deira Islands in 2022. It covers 18.6 sq km with about 57 km of coastline, 21 km of it beachfront, and is planned for 49,000 homes and more than 231,000 residents.

Three bridges connect it to the mainland through the Al Shindagha Corridor. Dubai International is about 10 km away and Downtown Dubai about 15 km, and the nearest Metro is the Green Line along the Deira waterfront. Nakheel awarded an AED 527 million infrastructure contract for Island B in April 2026, and a 3 km shoreline upgrade with 320 metres of new beach is due in the fourth quarter of 2027. Full details are on our Dubai Islands page.

Palm Jebel Ali

Palm Jebel Ali is Dubai's second palm island: seven islands and 16 fronds, about twice the footprint of Palm Jumeirah, with more than 90 km of beachfront and a target of about 35,000 families. First launched in 2002, it was relaunched by Nakheel in 2023.

It sits about 30 km south-west of Palm Jumeirah, with a causeway onto Sheikh Zayed Road and the Red Line stations at Jebel Ali a short drive away. Homes are mainly beachfront villas, such as the 44-villa Frond F release of August 2026, and Palm Central Private Residences. The island's first retail centre, The Yard, is due in 2027. See Palm Jebel Ali.

Three: Rashid Yachts & Marina at Mina Rashid, Dubai Maritime City on the peninsula beside it, and Dubai Creek Harbour upstream. They are the closest of the new areas to the old city and Dubai International, and they are almost all apartments.

Rashid Yachts & Marina

Mina Rashid is Dubai's original port, opened in 1972. Its container operations moved to Jebel Ali, and Emaar is turning the estate into Rashid Yachts & Marina: a 400-berth marina for yachts up to 100 metres, six district parks, a retail promenade and the QE2 floating hotel.

The nearest Metro is Al Ghubaiba on the Green Line, and the RTA completed the Al Shindagha Corridor in May 2025, which improved the road approach. Emaar's newest building here is Fior 1. See Rashid Yachts & Marina.

Dubai Maritime City

Dubai Maritime City is a 249-hectare reclaimed peninsula between Port Rashid and the Jumeirah coast, run by DP World. It is a working ship-repair and maritime business district first, with an Industrial Precinct and a Commercial Precinct, where the new homes are.

It is about 1 km from Jumeirah Beach Road, 3 km from Sheikh Zayed Road and 10 km from Dubai International. Planning and building permits are handled by Trakhees rather than Dubai Municipality, and sales are registered with the Dubai Land Department. See Dubai Maritime City.

Dubai Creek Harbour

Dubai Creek Harbour is Emaar's community on the bank of Dubai Creek, beside the Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary and its flamingos. Emaar plans 7.4 million sq m of residential space and 500,000 sq m of parks, with a marina, promenades and branded hotels.

Its centre will be Dubai Square, a 2.6 million sq m retail, hospitality and commercial destination expected to be completed about three years from December 2025. The Metro Blue Line is planned to serve the community. See Dubai Creek Harbour and our guide to new malls in Dubai.

The south-west is Dubai's largest growth corridor, built around Al Maktoum International Airport and Expo City Dubai. The airport's AED 128 billion expansion was approved in April 2024, with a first phase of about 150 million passengers a year expected in 2032.

Dubai South is the freehold district around the airport, served by the Expo 2020 station on the Red Line. By car, Al Maktoum International is about 10 minutes away, Dubai Marina about 25 minutes, Downtown Dubai about 35 and Dubai International about 45. Times vary with traffic.

Emaar South

Emaar South is Emaar's golf community inside Dubai South, beside Expo City Dubai and the airport. Emaar plans 22,700 homes, including 15,360 apartments, around an 18-hole championship course, with neighbourhood parks and 53,000 sq m of retail and dining. See Emaar South.

Expo Valley

Expo Valley is one of five residential districts inside Expo City Dubai, the site of Expo 2020, and the one furthest along. It is built around a landscaped wadi and a nature reserve, with Shamsa Townhouses, Yasmina Villas, the completed Maha Villas and the four-building Expo Valley Views collection.

The Expo Valley Views buildings are scheduled to hand over on 31 October 2029 and keep 25% of the price until after handover. See Expo Valley.

Grand Polo Club & Resort

Grand Polo Club & Resort is Emaar's equestrian community in Dubai Investments Park. It covers 5.54 million sq m, with 1.59 million sq m of open space and 340,000 sq m of polo fields and stables, and is planned for 5,599 homes around a clubhouse. See Grand Polo Club & Resort.

The Heights Country Club & Wellness

The Heights Country Club is Emaar's wellness-led villa community of about 7.5 million sq m at the junction of Emirates Road (E611) and Expo Road (E77). Expo City Dubai and Al Maktoum International are about 10 minutes away by car, Dubai Hills Estate about 20 and Downtown Dubai about 30.

The plan centres on a wellness centre and clubhouse, lakes, a private beach and walking and cycling trails. See The Heights Country Club.

Palm Springs, Hessyan

Hessyan is a mainland district of Jebel Ali on the inland side of Sheikh Zayed Road, opposite Palm Jebel Ali. Nakheel's new master community there, Palm Springs, is planned with townhouses and villas around a lagoon. Prices and the launch date are on request. See Hessyan, Jebel Ali.

In Dubailand, along the Dubai to Al Ain Road (E66) and near Meydan. These are townhouse and villa communities built around lagoons, parks and clubs, a short drive from the city's main roads rather than on the Metro.

The Valley

The Valley is Emaar's townhouse and villa master plan at the junction of the E66 and E77, on the Dubai to Al Ain Road. It is laid out as 24 named clusters around a 47,000 sq m beach, a 32,000 sq m town centre and a 25,000 sq m sports village, and the first clusters are built and occupied. See The Valley and the Dubai to Al Ain Road.

The Oasis

The Oasis is Emaar's villa and mansion community of about 100 million sq ft in Dubailand, built around man-made lagoons and canals and planned for about 2,600 villas. It is reached from Sheikh Zayed bin Hamdan Road (D54), with the extension of Al Khail Road (E44) planned to serve it, about 18 minutes from Al Maktoum International and 20 from Dubai Hills Estate. See The Oasis.

Sobha Sanctuary

Sobha Sanctuary is Sobha Realty's township on the Dubai to Al Ain Road, planned for around 20,000 families, with roughly half the site kept as open and green space around a park of about 800,000 sq ft. Villas and apartments sit in named enclaves such as The Woods, The Willows and The Grove, and the first handovers are scheduled from August 2029. See Sobha Sanctuary.

Tilal Al Ghaf and Ghaf Woods

Tilal Al Ghaf is Majid Al Futtaim's community in Dubailand, off Hessa Street between Motor City and Damac Hills, built around Lagoon Al Ghaf, a swimmable lagoon with a sand beach. The same developer's Ghaf Woods, beside Global Village on Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road, is an AED 15.4 billion forest community with its own planned mall. Projects from both are on our Majid Al Futtaim page.

Nad Al Sheba Gardens

Nad Al Sheba Gardens is a Meraas townhouse and villa community in Nad Al Shiba First, on the Meydan side of Nad Al Sheba. It has been released phase by phase since 2022, and its masterplan runs to 12 phases, with Phase 12 the upcoming villas-only release. Earlier phases are built and occupied, and its community centre, The Grand, began opening in phases in August 2026.

Three, as of 4 November 2026. Their first homes, prices and phase dates are on request.

Community	Master developer	Where	What is announced
Greenwoods	Aldar with Dubai Holding	Near Dubai Silicon Oasis	8,000 townhouses and villas in three phases, on the Blue Line route
Dubai South community	Majid Al Futtaim with Dubai South	Near Al Maktoum International	AED 62 billion, 22 million sq ft, anchored by a large mall
Palm Springs	Nakheel	Hessyan, Jebel Ali	Townhouses and villas around a lagoon

Greenwoods is the furthest along: Aldar plans to launch its first 1,500 homes by the end of 2026 on a 55/45 plan. A Dubai Silicon Oasis station is due on the Blue Line in September 2029. For every announced project that is not yet on sale, see upcoming projects, and for the wider pipeline, our guide to Dubai off-plan launches announced for 2027.

Start with what you need from the area day to day, then look at the projects. A new area suits buyers who can wait for it to fill in.

If you want	Look first at	Trade-off
A beach on the doorstep	Dubai Islands, Palm Jebel Ali	Higher prices and long build-outs
To be close to the old city and DXB	Rashid Yachts & Marina, Dubai Maritime City, Dubai Creek Harbour	Mostly apartments
The airport and Expo City	Dubai South, Emaar South, Expo Valley	Further from Downtown and the Marina
A villa with a garden	The Valley, The Oasis, Sobha Sanctuary, Tilal Al Ghaf, Grand Polo Club	Reached by car rather than Metro
Metro access	Dubai South and Expo Valley today; Blue Line areas from 2029	Choice is narrower

Then check five things for the specific home:

1. Which phase is it in? The first phase of a community can be finished years before the last. Ask what is already built around your plot or tower.
2. What is due by your handover? List the school, supermarket, clinic and transport you need, and ask when each opens. Our guide to family communities and schools helps with schools.
3. How will you get to work? Measure the drive or ride from the building, not from the community gate. Times vary with traffic.
4. Is it freehold, and who regulates it? Confirm the freehold status of the project. Our guide to whether foreigners can buy property in the UAE explains the rules.
5. Is the project registered with escrow? Check before you pay. The steps are in how to check an off-plan project and developer.

For homes by type, see villas, townhouses and apartments, and for handover dates, handover 2027 and 2028.

• Master community: a planned development by one master developer, with its own roads, parks and retail, such as Emaar South or The Valley.
• Master developer: the company that plans and builds the community's infrastructure and often its homes, and may sell plots to other developers.
• Reclaimed land: land built out into the sea, such as Dubai Islands and Palm Jebel Ali.
• Phase: a group of homes or buildings released and built together within a community.
• Freehold area: a zone where buyers of any nationality can own property outright.
• Trakhees: the planning and building regulator for areas under the Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation, including Dubai Maritime City.

Tell us which new area you are looking at, and we will send the homes there that fit your budget and handover date, with today's availability checked for each.