Epic private sands are a substantial addition to the Dubai coastline, embracing an innovative approach to beach-life that blends Mediterranean vibes with perfect UAE weather as part of a unique year-round vacation experience. 

Destination beachfront will embrace three distinct themes and connect The Heart of Europe’s showpiece hotels, including Côte d’Azur’s rainbow-coloured architecture, Marbella resort and the region’s largest, most sustainable swimming pool.

One of the planet’s longest beaches is receiving its finishing touches ready for the first guests at The Heart of Europe – the huge US$5 billion hospitality and second home destination approaching completion in the waters off Dubai.

Rainbow Beach will take its place alongside legendary ocean-hugging playgrounds such as Rio’s Copacabana and Miami’s South Beach as it adds about 800 metres of pristine shoreline to The Heart of Europe’s 3,580 metres of white sandy beaches and the emirate’s celebrated coast whilst it introduces playful and relaxing lifestyle concepts to the spectacular mega-project amid The World, Dubai.

Taking its name from the quartet of brightly coloured hotels at the Côte d’Azur, this beautiful stretch of beach is a golden gateway linking the French Riviera-inspired resort with other major hotels that will help put The Heart of Europe on the global tourism map.

Rainbow Beach also forms an idyllic buffer between the Arabian Gulf and Grand Azur, the record-breaking lifestyle pool that weaves between the Côte d’Azur hotels – Monaco, Nice, Cannes and St Tropez – themselves taking their distinctive colour inspiration from a rainbow. 

Rainbow Beach is designed to be more than simply a place for sun loungers and sunset strolls, however. Like everything within The Heart of Europe, the sandy haven has been conceived with a sustainable lifestyle experience at its core; with access to seven carefully crafted F&B outlets, seven bars and seven swimming pools, Rainbow Beach is set to be a destination in its own right, incorporating the unmistakable European inspiration that curates all six Heart of Europe islands.

“There are some stunning and famous beaches around the world, and then there is the next generation of superior waterfront…Rainbow Beach,” says Josef Kleindienst, Chairman of Heart of Europe master developers The Kleindienst Group.

“This sumptuous sandy strip will be the longest stretch of uninterrupted, private beach in Dubai and is key to linking our prime hospitality resorts and some of the fantastic F&B they will offer.”

Mr Kleindienst adds: “Like everything on our beautifully developed islands, this epic beach is the result of an innovative approach which has enabled us to evolve the way a beach is designed and deliver another world first off the Dubai mainland.”

Monaco will become the first of the boutique properties to welcome visitors seeking French Riviera chic, sounds and flavours when it stages a ‘soft’ opening in June 2021 (subject to government Covid-19 restrictions).

All four uniquely-located, upscale Côte d’Azur hotels are scheduled for an official public launch during EXPO this autumn, adding 893 unique keys to the Dubai hospitality portfolio. Various elements elevate Rainbow Beach as a fresh template in seafront design, shifting the focus from standardised areas in favour of an adaptive concept that takes its cue from the smart hotel themes it embraces – and then delivers that lifestyle on the beach.

That means something for everyone, from families re-connecting to hedonists seeking the latest Instagram moments.

Flanking the stunning Marbella hotel and resort, Couple’s Beach is about relaxation with a Spanish twist.

Whether aspiring romantic sophistication or vibrant distraction, this section of Rainbow Beach offers bungalows for privacy, access to a decadent pool, refreshments at the Sangria beach bar and a stylish al fresco restaurant.

Underlining the Spanish experience, watch out for our tempting tapas festival of small dishes packed with big flavours – think stuffed mussels, fried squid and much more – as well as regular Flamenco shows around a beach bonfire with flaring cocktails demanding a snapshot of their own.

Couple’s Beach will deliver wellbeing experiences, including aqua gym activities ranging from water weight lifting and a sea-located climbing wall beside ‘beach rebound’ trampolines to hydro cycling, cardio water swings and even a floating parcours challenge.

If that sounds too animated, our Health Retreat Camp is a one-month tailored programme of spiritual and physical therapies. Guided by health and fitness experts, courses will focus on personal healing and renewal so guests can truly escape the pressures of the outside world.

With a name like Rave Beach, we are rightly predicting the soft sands fronting the Cote d’Azur hotels to be the heart and soul of the party on our epic shoreline. Expect social media feeds to be awash with scenes from our three party DJ-sound-tracked lagoons, a must-see private pool, bowing palm trees, and on-trend beach furniture, including inviting sea hammocks.

Four bars will serve guests as they indulge a dynamic mix of music, bubbles and bountiful bites, including signature drinks prepared at our two beach bars – and the Floating Club. Here you will find a whole new formula for partying, including from the comfort of your rented floating party platform while absorbing the latest anthems from a DJ…on a floating booth, of course.

The bubbles brigade will find more corks popping and top tipples alongside light finger food in our luxurious champagne chambers – all tastefully located inside a purpose-built lighthouse.

And shisha lovers can discover the perfect backdrop in our signature natural rain forest amid one of the lagoons, while floating cabanas will be available to rent for guests to re-charge and wake up right beside the clear blue sea.

Dubai’s latest and greatest party beach – which even includes an underwater bar accessible to divers and snorkeling visitors – will be completed and operational by June.Add to that, four fabulous food and beverage concepts surrounded by lush landscaping and a fountain in an outdoor plaza area, and this section of paradise really is going to be tough to leave behind.

Unless, of course, you crave the mellower vibes of our fantastic Family Beach. Further along the shoreline, it stretches out from the equally eye-catching Portofino family hotel and features plenty to keep the children occupied – from Italian-style floating pergolas ideal for picnics with a difference to a range of activities designed and operated for younger guests by the globally-renowned Montessori holistic approach. These will dovetail into our inspirational Kingdom of Portofino concept, taking place on the east side of the beach.

The Family Beach will also host a week-long monthly seafood festival during which local fisherman will showcase their catch of the day to international chefs arriving from European regions to apply their culinary magic.

Guests can also sample hot day treats from a lemonade kiosk and gelato station while parents make a beeline for Italian bubbles in the stylish lighthouse surroundings of the Prosecco chambers – or a range of adult refreshments at our bar beside the olive garden.

Children and parents will be able to muster more memories when they engage in a range of family-friendly activities elsewhere in Portofino’s beautifully nurtured grounds – before adjourning for lunch or dinner at the hotel’s Olympique pool, overlooking the sea.

Time it right and you can catch one of the regular aquatic ballet shows at the performance pool to complete an unforgettable, chic waterfront lifestyle experience for all-year-round fun and relaxation. Just 4 kilometres from Dubai’s mainland, The Heart of Europe is set to appeal to tourists and second home owners, as well as UAE citizens and residents, seeking European ‘travel’ without taking a flight.

Fifteen innovative hotels and associated resorts delivering a calendar of European-themed festivals, organic, authentic cuisine and countless cultural treats, will put this peerless destination on millions of holiday wish-lists.

Innovation and sustainability drive the experiential destination within The World, Dubai, including more than 500,000 square metres nurtured coral reefs and landscaping free of pesticide and fungicide, nourished with recycled water.

Clean energy, sustainable water transportation, and zero discharge and zero micro-plastics policies operate throughout, ensuring protection of Arabian Gulf marine life species – and that Rainbow Beach remains beautiful for all.

Josef Kleindienst adds: “Rainbow Beach goes way beyond just sun and sand.  This epic frontage is both a curated sanctuary and a sophisticated playground and exemplifies The Heart of Europe’s trend-setting mandate for placing innovation and sustainability front and centre of modern tourism aspirations.

“We are fast becoming renowned for normalising the unexpected and bringing the future mega-trends in our industry to the present…Rainbow Beach demonstrates that by delivering amazing here and now through beachlife experiences like never before.”

Peach of a beach at The Heart of Europe

Rainbow Beach is seven heaven. With 800 metres of sandy shore, it will be one of the longest private beaches in Dubai, bringing the total beach land area at The Heart of Europe to 4,380 metres infused with the playful and colourful attitude of the Côte d’Azur, marvellous Marbella and pretty Portofino. New lifestyle concepts will deliver an unforgettable experience, inspired by European ideas and folklore. This includes seven bars, seven food and beverage outlets, and seven pools for the ultimate dip.

Just 4km from the Dubai mainland, visitors and guests will access The Heart of Europe via sustainably-operated ferry, water taxi, sail boat, seaplane or helicopter, as well as a frequent shuttle service with assigned pick-up points. Club cars, boats and abra will provide island accessibility, alongside clearly sign-posted walking routes.

Phase I of the project incorporates five key projects in a Maldives-style setting, including Sweden Island’s multi-level Beach Palace mansions and Bauhaus-inspired waterfront villas on Germany Island. Honeymoon Island is home to the revolutionary Floating Seahorse villas and Portofino family hotel, while Marbella Hotel and the Côte d’Azur resort are on Main Europe island, largest of The Heart of Europe’s six islands.