How Yas Island Built a Brand That Actually Feels Like Entertainment
There's a moment in every marketer's career when you realize: your marketing should feel like the experience you're selling.
Most brands miss this entirely. They sell a product but deliver content that feels like... corporate static. Yas Island Abu Dhabi? Different breed.
I just listened to a killer interview with Badr Burgji, SVP Marketing at Yas Island & Miral Destinations[1] on the Campaign Middle East podcast, and honestly — this is the playbook every brand in the Middle East should study.
The Brand Promise That Actually Stuck
Here's the wild part: Yas Island has been running high-profile campaigns for years. Ryan Reynolds. Shaq. Kevin Hart. Millie Bobby Brown. They didn't just pick celebrities randomly — there was a thread running through all of it.
That's the promise. Not "come to our theme parks." Not "we have rides." It's simpler: we make entertainment. Our marketing is an extension of that.
Think about it — if the actual theme parks give you butterflies, your marketing should give you butterflies too. Not a boring brochure. Not a list of attractions. Butterflies.
Nostalgia: The Secret Weapon Nobody's Using
Here's where it gets interesting. Yas Island didn't just chase viral moments. They found a through-line that connects across cultures, generations, and borders.
Nostalgia.
It started in 2021, post-COVID, when everyone was traumatized and needed a win:
But here's the thing — it worked. Why? Because the parents of today were the kids of yesterday. That song connected generations. Both parents and kids were on social media. Both could vibe with it.
Then they did "Yas Baby" with Vanilla Ice's "Ice Ice Baby." Another '90s classic with universal appeal.
But the real magic? Miami Band.
In 2023, they brought back this Kuwaiti-Egyptian band from the '90s. People lost their minds. The results wereInsane:
80,000 likes + 110,000 shares in 48 hours.
That's the metric that matters. Not vanity metrics. Share rate — because every share is a personal recommendation.
Fast forward to 2025 — they tapped into Bollywood nostalgia with "Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara" (the 2010 Indian cult classic). Made the call in less than 24 hours when the agency presented it.
The Global-Local Balance
Here's what most brands get wrong: they think "local" means translation. Wrong.
Yas Island operates in a wild space — they're appealing to global tourists and regional audiences simultaneously. How do you do both without losing your voice?
Same core. Different packaging. The nostalgia theme works whether you're in Kuwait, Saudi, India, or anywhere else. It's universally human.
Agencies Aren't Vendors. They're Your Team.
One thing that hit hard: how they treat their agency partners.
They work with Momentum, Weber Shandwick, Initiative, and others. But the relationship is partnership, not transaction.
That line alone tells you everything about why their campaigns hit different.
The Takeaway That Actually Matters
Most brands are chasing the next viral moment. Yas Island built a narrative ecosystem that spans years.
That's it. That's the whole thing.
1. Know your core promise
2. Find a theme that transcends demographics (nostalgia, in their case)
3. Execute consistently across years, not just campaigns
4. Treat your agency like your team
5. Don't chase every trend — stay authentic to who you are
Yas Island just wrapped 2025 with 195+ awards and recognitions, including "World's Leading Theme Park Destination" at the World Travel Awards[2]. Not bad for an island that was basically desert two decades ago.
Their Harry Potter-themed land at Warner Bros. World drops soon — that's going to be massive[3].
But the lesson isn't about theme parks. It's about building something that feels like what you sell.
Your marketing should give people the same feeling your product gives them. If your product is boring, fix the product first. If your product is exciting — why is your marketing so dry?