Dubai Municipality starts Dh80 million Dubai Creek Lights project

Lighting, public-space upgrades and architectural displays will bring the Creek's history into focus after dark. The project is built as one visual and urban experience for residents and visitors. It will highlight the Creek's historical, architectural and cultural identity. It should also add more life to its promenades, traditional markets and waterfront walkways.

The project covers six areas:

• Creek Quay
• The Creek Promenade at the Gold Souq
• The Creek entrance at Infinity Bridge
• Al Shindagha Historic District
• Bur Dubai Souq
• Al Seef Marina

Each area gets a lighting scheme built around its own buildings, landmarks and character.

What the project will add

More than 5,000 lighting units will go in across the six areas. The lighting will be visible from over 1,500 feet above ground. That gives the Creek a new nighttime profile, seen from the waterfront and from higher up.

The works will also upgrade lighting along promenades, Creek entrances, building façades and waterfront walkways. The goal is simple: make these spaces more attractive after dark, and safer to walk through.

The six areas won't all look the same. Traditional markets, historic buildings, waterfronts and landmarks each keep their own character under the new lighting. There's no single scheme stretched across the whole Creek.

The project also uses lighting designed to limit its impact on marine life. That's a real balance on a working waterfront: brighten the public space without turning the Creek's wildlife into an afterthought.

Linking the Creek's past with its future

Dubai Creek has been central to the city's trade for generations. Emirates 24|7 reported that for decades, ships and traditional trading dhows relied on lights along the Creek's banks to guide their journeys and move goods through the waterway at night.

The new project puts that old function to a different use. Light returns to the Creek as part of a public experience built around heritage, architecture and evening activity. The aim is to support tourism and business along the waterfront while keeping the area's history visible.

Eng. Marwan Ahmed bin Ghalita, Director General of Dubai Municipality, said: "Through the Dubai Creek Lights project, we are bringing part of that journey back to life along its banks. The project will celebrate the Creek's cultural heritage, showcase its urban identity and present it through a distinctive nighttime experience for residents and visitors."

Bader Anwahi, CEO of the Public Facilities Agency at Dubai Municipality, said: "Dubai Creek Lights is a landmark project that will transform the Creek into an exceptional nighttime destination combining architectural beauty, history and culture. The lighting has been designed to highlight waterfronts, traditional markets and historic buildings while ensuring visual comfort, enhancing pedestrian safety and elevating the overall nighttime experience."

When will Dubai Creek Lights be ready?

Work has already begun. Dubai Municipality expects to finish in the first quarter of 2027.

There's no separate public opening date yet. The completion target is clear. Residents will need a later announcement for exactly when the full nighttime experience opens to visitors.

The project sits inside Dubai Municipality's wider push to upgrade waterfronts and public spaces across the city. Its effect will show up most after sunset. That's when the Creek's promenades, entrances, façades and historic districts read as one connected experience, not separate stops.