Up to nine months of preparation goes into lighting Dubai’s biggest Christmas trees

Arts, Musuem & Culture

Up to nine months of preparation goes into lighting Dubai’s biggest Christmas trees

Each December, towering Christmas trees rise across Dubai’s malls, hotels, and entertainment destinations, transforming public spaces into festive landmarks and popular gathering points for the city’s multicultural population. While the final displays appear seamless, industry insiders reveal that months of meticulous planning and preparation are required to bring these large-scale installations to life.

Some venues begin preparations as early as nine months in advance, allowing time for creative development, design approvals, production, logistics, and safety planning. This year, Global Village installed two Christmas trees, each standing 21 metres tall—roughly the height of a seven-storey building—making them among the largest festive installations in the city.

Dubai Festival City (DFC) unveiled a 15-metre Christmas tree constructed around a reinforced metal frame and decorated with approximately 3,000 metres of warm LED lighting, more than 3,200 decorative ornaments, illuminated snowflakes, deer figures, and a 1.5-metre star topper. The installation process at DFC took around three weeks and included site inspections, power coordination, and overnight work to minimise disruption to visitors.

At Global Village, more than 75 professionals were involved in delivering the two trees, including designers, installation technicians, electricians, operations teams, and safety specialists. According to a spokesperson, the assembly process—from initial structure to final decorative elements—took approximately four weeks, with the primary challenges centred on transporting large components, working at height, and maintaining strict safety standards while keeping park operations running smoothly.

Some destinations adopted a more creative approach. Luxury hotel The Lana partnered with Spanish designer Manolo Blahnik to create a fashion-inspired Christmas tree, with preparations beginning around nine months ahead of the festive season. The five-metre installation featured bespoke baubles illustrated with the designer’s signature shoe designs and wrapped in a distinctive pink ribbon. Assembly was carried out overnight to surprise guests while navigating the challenges of working within a live luxury hotel environment.

In Dubai’s historic Deira district, the Accor Dubai Deira and Dubai Gold District Cluster installed a 4.5-metre tree styled in warm golden tones to complement the area’s heritage setting. The installation was accompanied by a Christmas tree lighting ceremony, festive parades, live music performances, a seasonal market, and a gala dinner. The tree installation itself took approximately four days and involved a dedicated team of six people, with transportation and safe positioning cited as the main challenges.

Across all locations, safety inspections, structural checks, lighting tests, and careful site preparation were key components of the process. Weather conditions, night-shift work permits, and space constraints were also factors requiring careful coordination.

Once the festive season concludes, dismantling timelines range from a few hours to up to two days, depending on the size and complexity of the installation. Decorations and structural elements are carefully removed, packed, and stored, with many venues reusing or refreshing components for future years in line with sustainability and responsible production practices.

The scale and complexity behind Dubai’s Christmas tree installations highlight the extensive behind-the-scenes effort required to create the city’s festive displays—turning months of planning into moments of seasonal wonder for residents and visitors alike.