IMG Worlds of Adventure, a long-awaited Dubai attraction that stalled when the 2008 financial crash crippled the Emirate's economy, is finally ready to open.

Ilyas and Mustafa Galadari Group (IMG Group) confirmed a launch date of 15 August 2016, about 18 months behind its planned opening of early 2014.

The opening will herald what is anticipated to be a Dubai theme park boom. Within the next few years, IMG Worlds of Adventure will be joined by Dubai Parks & Resorts, including Six Flags Dubai, Fox World Dubai, Dubai Safari and the 2020 World Expo.

“The current trend seems to be Dubai becoming ‘Orlando 2.0’,” IMG Worlds of Adventure CEO Lennard Otto told Attractions Management in a recent interview. “The competitive landscape is shaping up quite nicely. There are a lot of attractions coming in which will eventually turn it into the Orlando-based model where theme parks will be one of the key attractions to drive people here.”

All of this is part of a wider strategy to boost tourism to the Middle East by investing in attractions, hospitality, leisure and entertainment, with the region hoping to draw 150 million international visitors annually by 2030.

“We are very excited to announce our opening date and look forward to IMG Worlds of Adventure coming to life in August of this year. As the first international leisure and entertainment destination in Dubai, we have designed an entire world of entertainment for our guests,” said IMG Group owners Ilyas and Mustafa Galadari.

“By offering a fully immersive indoor theme park experience in a temperature controlled environment, this enables IMG Worlds of Adventure to be open all year round. With the capacity to welcome more than 30,000 people a day we anticipate 4.5 million guests in our first full year of operation, contributing to Dubai’s position as a leading tourism hub.”

Ticket prices have also been confirmed at AED300 (US$81, €73, £57) for adults and AED250 (US$68, €60, £47) for children.

The US$1bn (€888m, £693m) themed entertainment destination will feature zones based on Cartoon Network, Marvel and Lost Valley – Dinosaur Adventure, all interconnected via the IMG Boulevard. There will be 25 retail outlets, 28 F&B outlets, over 1,600 employees and 4,500 parking spaces.