Observation Decks

Dubai · 1h 30m

Burj Khalifa Tickets

At 828 metres the Burj Khalifa is the tallest building in the world, and At The Top puts you on its 124th and 125th floors. The ascent is part of it: one of the fastest lifts in service covers the distance in about a minute, opening onto an outdoor observation terrace with high-powered telescopes that let you look at the city in real time or switch to archive views of the same spot in the 1990s, when most of what you are looking at was desert. From here the geometry of Dubai reads clearly - Sheikh Zayed Road running north, Palm Jumeirah offshore, the Creek curving inland, and the desert closing the picture on the far side. Directly below, the Dubai Fountain performs on the lake, and the view from this height is unlike the one from the promenade. Allow around ninety minutes including security and the queue. Sunset slots sell out well in advance and cost more; book early if that is what you want.

Dubai · 35m

Entry Tickets To Sky Views Dubai

Sky Views Dubai sits on the 52nd and 53rd floors of the Address Sky View hotel in Downtown, and it offers a different proposition from the Burj Khalifa: instead of looking out from the tallest building, you look across at it. The Observatory is a glass-floored corridor suspended between the hotel's two towers, so the city is directly beneath your feet - the Burj Khalifa on one side, the Dubai Fountain lake below, and Sheikh Zayed Road running out to the horizon. The Glass Slide is the part people book for: a transparent tube that spirals from level 53 to level 52 on the outside of the building. There is also an Edge Walk, harnessed and hands-free along an open ledge, available as a separate add-on. Visits are short - allow around thirty to forty-five minutes. Closed shoes are required, and the glass floor is genuinely unnerving if you dislike heights, so go with that in mind.

Dubai · 1h 30m

Dubai Frame Entrance Ticket

The Dubai Frame is the new addition to the marvellous architecture the city boasts of. Consisting of two vertical towers of 150 meters in height connected by a 100-square-meter bridge, the Dubai Frame is a highlight of the Dubai skyline. A tour of the Dubai Frame is a must if you do not have much time for sightseeing and also if you want to see the entire city at once.

Dubai · 30m

The View At The Palm

The View sits on the 52nd floor of The Palm Tower, and it is the one place you can see Palm Jumeirah as the shape it was designed to be. From ground level the Palm is effectively invisible - just ordinary streets and villas. From up here the whole thing resolves at once: the fronds, the trunk running back to the mainland, the crescent closing it off, and Atlantis at the far end. The observation deck runs a full 360 degrees, so the same visit also gives you the Marina towers, the Burj Al Arab and the coastline stretching away in both directions. There are enclosed and open-air viewing sections separated by a movable glass partition, so you can step out into the air when the weather suits. Half an hour is enough to see it, though most people stay longer around sunset.

★4.8(46)

Dubai · 1h 30m

Burj Khalifa SKY (Level 148 +125 + 124) Entry Ticket

SKY is the premium way up the Burj Khalifa, and the difference is not only the height. You check in at a dedicated lounge, skip the main queue, and ride to Level 148 - at 555 metres, the highest observation deck in the building and one of the highest in the world. Up there the terrace is open to the air, refreshments are served, and Guest Ambassadors are on hand to point out what you are looking at across a view that reaches from the Gulf to the desert. You then come down to Levels 125 and 124 at your own pace, where the interactive stations and the outdoor terrace are, and where the Dubai Fountain show plays out directly below you after dark. The whole visit runs about ninety minutes. Prime and non-prime slots are priced differently, and the sunset slots are prime - they sell out first.

Dubai · 2h

Burj Khalifa and Dubai Aquarium Combo Admission Ticket

Downtown Dubai's two headline attractions on one ticket, and they sit a few minutes' walk apart, which is what makes the pairing work. At the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building, a high-speed lift reaches the At The Top observation decks on levels 124 and 125 in about a minute, opening onto an outdoor terrace with telescopes and an uninterrupted view over Downtown, the coast and the desert beyond. On the ground floor of Dubai Mall, the Dubai Aquarium holds ten million litres of water and more than 140 species, including around 300 sharks and rays and one of the largest sand tiger shark collections anywhere; the ticket covers the 48-metre walkthrough tunnel and the Underwater Zoo above it, home to penguins, otters and King Croc. Allow around an hour for each. Both are indoors and air-conditioned, and evening slots at the tower are worth booking ahead - they sell out first.