Where to Stay & Dine For Abu Dhabi’s Coldplay Concerts in January 2025

Well, if you’ve gotten this far, we’re guessing you’re one of the lucky few who actually managed to score some genuine Coldplay tickets for January 2025?

Congratulations!

Now, we can’t guarantee just how easy logistics will be on your concert night (let’s hope they’re far better than the ticketing arrangements), but let’s help you understand the lay of the land in Abu Dhabi, including where exactly Zayed Sports City Stadium is and where out-of-towners should stay and dine for their Abu Dhabi Coldplay concert.

First, the Coldplay Concert Basics

Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres World Tour will be in Abu Dhabi from 9 to 14 January 2025, with shows on:

• Thursday, 9 January 2025
• Saturday, 11 January 2025
• Sunday, 12 January 2025
• Tuesday, 14 January 2025

Where is the Concert Being Held?

The venue is Zayed Sports City Stadium. Zayed Sports City is on the main Abu Dhabi Island, approximately 15-20 minutes from the new Zayed International Airport.

Where to Stay for the Coldplay Concert

It’s important to note that there is no immediate accommodation in Zayed Sports City, but a few places are within walking distance (how much do you like walking?)

It is mid-winter in the UAE, though, so walking from one of these nearby hotels is quite feasible. – pack your flats, ladies! Most are located near ADNEC.

• Millenium Al Rawdah (14 minutes)
• Premier Inn Abu Dhabi Capital Centre (20 minutes)
• Centro Capital Centre by Rotana (23 minutes)
• Capital Centre Arjaan by Rotana (23 minutes)
• Pearl Rotana Capital Centre (24 minutes)
• Aloft Abu Dhabi (26 minutes)
• ANDAZ Capital Gate Abu Dhabi (34 minutes)

For peace of mind when booking Abu Dhabi accommodation, we always look for Booking.com options that are often fully refundable. However, given the popularity of the concert dates, you are likely to find only non-refundable options available with Booking and VRBO.

Many more hotels are close by, though you’d still need a taxi/Careem to get to the venue. Some examples include:

• Erth Abu Dhabi Hotel – (formerly known as Officers Club but greatly changed), this is a great choice with a country club-type feel for a weekend escape
• The Ritz-Carlton is a 5-star choice on the Grand Canal, tres posh, lovely if its within your budget!
• Park Rotana is not far away via back roads

Please note if you’ve been to Abu Dhabi before, the venue is NOT the indoor Etihad Arena on Yas Island, nor is it the Cricket Stadium in Khalifa City; this is an entirely different venue in the city, most famous for when the Pope held Mass in the UAE in 2019! If you stay on Yas or anywhere off island, allow 25 minutes into town by taxi

Where to Dine Near the Coldplay Concert

Once you’ve got a place to stay for the night, you’ll no doubt be looking for a bite and a drink before and after the concert.

Choices are pretty limited as the stadium is NOT near any of the city’s major entertainment districts, but there are a few options in walking distance, we highly recommend reservations as they will be PACKED!!

• The Sportsman’s Arms – the only gastropub within Zayed Sports City. It’s located within the International Tennis Centre ZSC and has views back to the concert venue, less than a 1 km walk.
• Noodle Bowl – Cheap Chinese at the ZSC bowling alley. This is no thrills stuff, but seriously yummy food! (Dry)
• King Pin and Summer Breeze – again very small casual dining only, but will undoubtedly satisfy for a quick bite within a 15 minute walk (dry

Nearby dining options

• Victors located under Millenium Al Rawdah (around a 15-minute walk)
• Inca Pool & Bar Restaurant on the roof deck at Millenium Al Rawdah
• Hysteria Lounge & Terrace – open until late at night after the show at Millenium Al Rawdah
• We’re still finishing up our list of dining spots around Capital Centre to give you an accurate list here plus dining deals that are sure to be on, please check back soon!
• KFC Airport Road – this place is seriously a late-night Abu Dhabi institution (plug it in your phone now; you’ll thank us for this tip at 11pm, staggering around waiting for a taxi!)

Further afield but only a very short taxi ride away, you’ll find areas such as:

• Al Qana – a busy waterfront district with multiple dining options open until late in the evening (Dry)
• Souk Qarayat Al Beri – beautiful views back to the mosque and a wide range of bars and restaurants

Transport in Abu Dhabi

Within the city of Abu Dhabi, there are several car booking options you can try (but not nearly the same range as you might find in Dubai)

• Download the new YANGO app for AD taxi booking, or you can hail one at your hotel or off the street. However, expect them to be extremely scarce around concert time—have a backup plan or come early, gates open 5pm.
• Careem and Uber both work in Abu Dhabi, but expect surge pricing
• Zofeur chauffer service works in Abu Dhabi too (they’ll drive your car home for you), but expect availability to be scarce
• We cannot confirm yet, but suspect many hotels may put on transit services to help traffic flow, we’ll update this when we learn more
• We awaiting car parking announcements from the organisers. There is a large car park at Zayed Sports City but you can expect it to be beyond capacity on the concert nights so alternative shuttles may be put in place from other parts of the city

ABU DHABI TOLL ROADS! If you’re driving your own car from Dubai, don’t be caught out by this. Abu Dhabi has DARB tolls on 4 major highways into the city, which are different to SALIK. They will be operational in the early evening and again in the morning, coming on/off the main Abu Dhabi island where the stadium is located.

We highly recommend you read up here on registering your vehicle for Abu Dhabi tolls. It’s all done through number plate recognition, so you must be organised ahead of time, or expect a fine.

If you’re planning to use public transport from Dubai to Abu Dhabi, there are several bus options. The E100 and E101 buses are the most obvious choice, terminating at Abu Dhabi Central Bus Station. From there, you’ll need to take a 15-minute taxi back to Zayed Sports City or look for interconnecting local bus services.

You can find our complete guide to Abu Dhabi transport here, from local buses to trams, scooters, bikes, ferries and more!

Take me back to the Abu Dhabi Travel Blog

Please note we are not a travel agency. This site is a travel blog to help newcomers to the UAE self plan their trip, we cannot book your flights, hotels, visas or connections for you. We may make a small commission if you click on any of our hotel or tour recommendation links.

Abu Dhabi Travel Planner