Al Marjan Island commercial property: how Ras Al Khaimah’s island is changing around the UAE’s first casino resort

Ras Al Khaimah is the UAE's northernmost emirate, around a hundred kilometres from Dubai, squeezed between the Gulf and the Hajar Mountains. A few years ago it was known mainly for beaches and mountain tourism. Today it is building the country's first integrated resort with a casino.

What this changes

The UAE already ranks among the most visited destinations in the world, and adding a gaming segment to beach holidays widens the audience: a resort of this kind has a different average spend and a different seasonality.

It is all going up on Al Marjan, a reclaimed island that until now has been developed with hotels and housing. An anchor project of this scale changes the economics of the whole territory: the room count grows, visitor flow grows, and with it demand for everything around.

Where the shortage is

For an investor, the island's most striking feature is the near-total absence of commercial space on the open market. Retail here is built mostly as part of hotel and residential complexes and stays with the owner rather than being sold.

As a benchmark from the rare offers: units of roughly 241 and 275 m² were priced at AED 10.4 million and AED 11.8 million respectively — around $11,700 per square metre. Such lots were offered on a 10/50/40 payment plan.

The only alternative on the horizon is a future shopping centre whose concept has not been confirmed and in which no units were planned for sale.

How to read it

• The upside: scarce supply against growing footfall — the classic set-up for rising rents.
• The downside: it is a narrow market. There are many times fewer buyers and tenants for commercial space in Ras Al Khaimah than in Dubai, and exiting the asset takes longer.
• What to check: actual footfall once the resort opens, not the forecast, and which activities are permitted in the specific unit.

Based on reports on the construction of the integrated resort in Ras Al Khaimah and materials on commercial property on Al Marjan Island, February 2025.