Extra shopping hours at Dubai malls for DSF

Major Dubai malls have extended their shopping hours to accommodate the huge influx of Saudi and other tourists expected in the city over the mid-term school holidays. The extended hours will be in effect from January 16th until the end of the Dubai Shopping Festival DSF on February 2nd, according to the Riyadh branch of the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing Office. Retail outlets at Dubai Mall will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. and food outlets from 10 a.m. to 3 a.m. throughout the period. The Mall of the Emirates, Deira City Centre, Mirdif City Centre and Dubai Festival City Mall will extend their hours from 10 a.m. to 1 a.m. during weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. on weekends. Food outlets at these four malls will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. during weekdays and 10 a.m. to 3 a.m. at weekends. The new hours will mark a departure from their regular mall timings of 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and are expected to provide shoppers with the chance to get items with discounts of up to 75 percent and make use of the various entertainment facilities. Laila Mohd Suhail, Chief Executive Officer of the Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment, said the city was trying to enhance the shopping experience for tourists. The extended mall hours will be a boost for the retail sector, which has enjoyed high sales every year during the festival. In 2012, DSF attracted 4.3 million visitors to the city who spent a total of AED14.7 billion. Of this, spending on shopping alone accounted for AED8.9 billion. There are 70 malls and over 6,000 retail outlets across Dubai.