The course will host the first of 10 events of the Dubai Carnival this morning. The Carnival season culminates with the Dubai World Cup on March 27.
The Meydan complex also includes a racing museum, an IMAX cinema and a marina. It took 34 months to build.
"The vision was always that Meydan would be used 365 days a year, which is why there is so much adding that can be used outside racing times," said Frank Gabriel, CEO of Dubai Racing.
"In terms of racing you always have to be very conscious of the temperature here but in future we will definitely look at ways to expand the racing programme and add more days if that would be possible. It is still very hot in September but the temperature starts to drop around October."
Dubai is ruled by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, the biggest spender on horses in the world. He has about 700 animals in training, according to UK newspaper The Times.
