What's On Yas Island in 2026, Concerts, Comedy and the F1 Weekend
What's on Yas Island comes down to three venues. Etihad Arena at Yas Bay takes the concerts and the comedy. Etihad Live, the big outdoor amphitheatre renamed from Etihad Park in June 2026, takes the festivals. Yas Marina Circuit takes the Formula 1 finale on 3 to 6 December. We last went through this calendar on 18 October.
Dates move and shows get added. We stamp the date we checked, so you can see how fresh this is before you book a flight around it.
Stay on Yas Island, view the apartment →The calendar
| Date | Event | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| 24 Oct | UFC 333: Volkanovski vs Evloev | Etihad Arena |
| 25 Oct | Russell Peters, comedy | Etihad Arena |
| 6 Nov | Mo Amer, comedy | Etihad Arena |
| 7 Nov | Maz Jobrani, comedy | Etihad Arena |
| 13 Nov | Hans Zimmer Live | Etihad Arena |
| 14 Nov | Real American Freestyle, wrestling | Etihad Arena |
| 19 Nov | Amine Radi, comedy | Etihad Arena |
| 21 Nov | Anubhav Singh Bassi, and Aries Spears (two shows) | Etihad Arena |
| 22 Nov | Comedy: Jose Manalo and Wally Bayola, Nemr, and Mina Nader (three shows) | Etihad Arena |
| 24 Nov | Mohamed Helmy, Plus One | Etihad Arena |
| 27 Nov | Tarkan | Etihad Arena |
| 28 Nov | Ramy Sabry, live | Etihad Arena |
| 29 Nov | Ghostly Kisses | Etihad Arena |
| 2 Dec | Andrea Bocelli, Yasalam Classics, doors 6:00 PM (separate ticket, see below) | Etihad Arena |
| 3 to 6 Dec | Abu Dhabi Grand Prix + Yasalam After-Race Concerts | Yas Marina Circuit + Etihad Live |
| 12 Dec | Mariah Carey's Christmastime | Etihad Arena |
| 18 to 20 Dec | Film nights, live in concert: Encanto, Frozen, Home Alone 2 and The Lion King | Etihad Arena |
The F1 weekend, and the thing most guides leave out
The Grand Prix runs 3 to 6 December, and the after-race concerts at Etihad Live are the other half of the weekend. Zara Larsson and Lewis Capaldi play the Thursday. Alex Warren is on the Friday, with a second headliner still to be named. Imagine Dragons play the Saturday, and The Chainsmokers and The Script close it on the Sunday.
Here is the part that catches people out. The Yasalam concerts are not a public gig you can buy a ticket to on the night. Access comes with a Grand Prix ticket. The concerts are not sold on their own, so check which nights your race ticket covers before you buy. If you are coming for the music, buy the race ticket first, then book somewhere to sleep.
F1 weekend is the busiest of the year here and it fills months ahead. See our F1 weekend page →
Getting home after a show
This is the bit nobody writes about, and it is the whole reason to stay on the island.
Etihad Arena empties in about fifteen minutes. Everyone walks out at once, and almost everyone is heading off the island. The queue that forms is not really for taxis, it is for the bridges, because the island has a handful of them and they all fill at the same moment. During race week there are controlled access zones on top of that, and the standard advice for drivers is to park at Yas Mall and shuttle in.
If you are already staying here, none of that applies. You are inside the ring before the show starts and you never cross a bridge to get home.
From Water's Edge, where our homes are:
- Etihad Arena, 7 minutes by car
- Yas Marina Circuit, 8 minutes by car
- Yas Mall, 5 minutes by car
- Ferrari World, 5 minutes by car. SeaWorld, 3.
Every one of those is a drive, not a walk.
Where to stay for an event night
For a show night the useful part is simple. You get ready in a flat instead of a hotel room, you eat what you want beforehand, and you are home ten minutes after the encore.
We are run by two brothers, Muhammad and Ramey. ★5.0 across 25 verified guest reviews, Superhost on Airbnb.
See the apartment and check dates →See the home and check dates on Airbnb · or message us on WhatsApp at +971 58 580 2785 if your dates are around a show and you want us to sanity-check the timing.
Common questions
What's coming up at Etihad Arena?
Still to come at Etihad Arena in October: UFC 333 on the 24th and Russell Peters on the 25th. November opens with Mo Amer on the 6th, Maz Jobrani on the 7th and Hans Zimmer Live on the 13th. The run to December is in the calendar above, with the date we last checked it.
When is the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2026?
3 to 6 December at Yas Marina Circuit, with the Yasalam After-Race Concerts at Etihad Live each evening.
Do I need a race ticket for the Yasalam concerts?
Yes for the After-Race Concerts at Etihad Live. Concert access comes with a Grand Prix ticket, and the concerts are not sold on their own. Check which nights your race ticket covers before you buy. Andrea Bocelli on 2 December is a separate event, Yasalam Classics, indoors at Etihad Arena, on its own ticket. You do not need a race ticket for that one.
Is Etihad Park the same place as Etihad Live?
Yes. Etihad Park was renamed Etihad Live in June 2026. Same outdoor venue on Yas Island, and it is where the F1 concerts happen.
View the apartment →