Video: This is what the Dubai exhibition centre at Expo 2020 will look like

The massive Dubai Exhibition Centre (DEC) located in the Expo 2020 site has already started receiving bookings, the event’s organisers have said.

The venue, which features 45,000sqm of flexible space spread across two campuses, will open for business on October 20, 2020, the first day of the six-month long World Expo.

A 3D animation video released on Tuesday shows a walkthrough across the DEC, which features a theatre, auditorium, several multi-purpose halls, four suites and 24 meeting rooms.

Featuring technology, onsite-catering facilities, and audio, visual and telecommunication facilities, the venue is customisable to all event needs, including large indoor concerts.

The DEC will also form a key part of Expo 2020’s legacy, where it will continue to serve District 2020, the integrated urban development that will repurpose more than 80 per cent of Expo’s built environment.

Ahmed Al Khatib, chief delivery officer, Expo 2020 Dubai, said: “By any standard, the Dubai Exhibition Centre will be a cutting edge venue that will play a pivotal role during Expo 2020. But the impact of such a unique space will stretch well beyond the six months of the Expo, boosting the region’s meetings and events industry, furthering the UAE’s reputation as a destination for major conferences, and fuelling growth in Dubai’s knowledge-based economy for many years to come.”

Shaun Vorster, VP, Strategy and Business Integration – Programming at Expo 2020 Dubai, added: “Bookings are already going well and this latest 3D animated fly-through, which gives a taster of the high-tech facilities on offer, has already sparked keen interest among the 190 countries participating in Expo 2020.”

Access to the DEC will also be directly available via the dedicated ‘Route 2020’ metro line and four major highways.

Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region.

With 25 million visits expected between October 20, 2020 and April 10, 2021, approximately 70 per cent of visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE – the largest proportion of international visitors in the 168-year history of World Expos.