Mall of the Emirates Unveils The Hangout with 2,500 m² Explorers

 October 8, 2026 | Industry news and Dream Garden project perspective

On October 1, 2026, Majid Al Futtaim announced The Hangout at Mall of the Emirates in Dubai. The planned indoor-outdoor precinct brings four entertainment concepts together with 18 food and beverage experiences. It forms part of the mall's wider AED 5 billion transformation; that figure is for the broader redevelopment, not a disclosed budget for The Hangout alone.

For indoor playground and family entertainment center (FEC) developers, the most relevant element is Explorers: a planned 2,500 m² family venue for children aged 1–12. Scheduled to open in the first quarter of 2027, it will combine suspended net climbs and STEM-focused water play with cooking, woodworking, and arts workshops. The operator describes a mix of free play and expert-led activities.

One precinct, several reasons to visit

The four concepts are scheduled to open in phases. Activate, an interactive team gaming venue, is planned for October 2026. The 2,700 m² SOCO social entertainment space is expected in the fourth quarter of 2026, with bowling, simulators, AR darts, karaoke, dining, and party rooms. Explorers and a reimagined Magic Planet are planned for 2027. The precinct also includes restaurants, kiosks, and an outdoor dining courtyard.

This configuration is significant because it addresses different age groups and visit occasions within one connected part of the mall. A family might come for children's play, a workshop, a meal, or a celebration; older visitors can choose social games. Whether the completed precinct achieves longer stays or repeat visits remains to be measured after opening. The design intent, however, is clear from the announced mix.

How Dream Garden connects this news to real projects

Dream Garden's own projects operate at different scales, and none is part of The Hangout. The comparison is useful because it shows how the same planning questions appear in smaller commercial spaces.

In Craigieburn, Australia, Dream Garden delivered a 500 m² indoor playground with a play café concept. Soft play and interactive areas were planned alongside seating for accompanying adults. Blooloop covered the project as an example of a suburban venue combining children's play with a café. Its scale and business context differ from the Dubai development, but both highlight the need to plan the family visit as a whole.

Dream Garden's themed indoor playground at Alturas Mall in Guatemala and its Belamionix mall project in Bosnia and Herzegovina offer another connection: a children's attraction must fit the host shopping center's circulation, family audience, and visual identity. These projects demonstrate themed design and buildable play zones; they do not establish a measured uplift in mall sales or dwell time.

Four questions for the next FEC brief

1. Who uses each zone? Define age groups, accompanying adults, and the visibility parents need before selecting attractions.
2. What happens beyond free play? Decide whether workshops, parties, cafés, or other programming fit the local market and the operator's staffing capacity.
3. How does the space connect? Plan arrival, queuing, supervision, exits, and access to food and seating around the complete guest journey.
4. What can be delivered and maintained? Match the design to the site, installation plan, equipment categories, applicable safety standards, spare parts, and daily operations.

A 2,500 m² destination is not a template for every operator. The right mix depends on catchment, floor area, budget, local demand, and operating capability. Dream Garden supports customized layout planning, equipment manufacturing, packing, and installation guidance. Selected equipment has third-party testing or certification references, including the TÜV Rheinland certificate AK 60175900 for the stated indoor playground product scope; compliance for a mixed FEC should be assessed by attraction and market.

Planning a family entertainment space? Share your floor plan, ceiling height, target age groups, and intended activities with Dream Garden. We can turn those inputs into a project-specific layout and equipment proposal.

Source: Majid Al Futtaim announcement, October 1, 2026. Project references are linked above. Dream Garden is not a participant in The Hangout.