Things to do in Abu Dhabi: the sights compared

Visitors must pre-book an online access pass before visiting; worshippers can enter directly. The mosque is open to visitors from 09:00 to 20:30 every day except Friday. On Fridays it opens from 09:00 to 11:30 and again from 14:30 to 20:30. The mosque's Sura Night Tours run daily from 21:00 to 09:00.

The dress code asks for modest, loose clothing: women need clothes to the ankles, sleeves to the wrists and their hair covered; men should cover their legs and avoid sleeveless tops. Entry costs AED 10 for visitors from outside the UAE, AED 5 for Emirates ID holders and AED 8 through a tour operator.

Qasr Al Watan's ticket covers the palace halls, the Palace in Motion show, free WiFi, a shuttle and parking, with no re-entry once you leave; knees and shoulders must be covered. Louvre Abu Dhabi's galleries sit under a 180-metre dome; most visitors spend 2 to 3 hours there, and under-18s go free.

We sell both tickets, and a combined ticket for the palace and the museum together; our prices are on the cards above and the combo ticket is in the list below.

Yas Island has four big theme parks. Ferrari World and Warner Bros. World are fully indoor parks charging AED 345 online; SeaWorld is also fully indoor, from AED 375; Yas Waterworld, the water park, is from AED 295. Formula Rossa at Ferrari World launches riders to 240 km/h.

Each park needs most of a day, so comparing all four side by side, with children's heights and multi-park tickets, is its own guide: our Yas Island theme parks guide.

The Corniche is an 8 km waterfront promenade with family play zones and cycling and walking lanes, and more than 1,100 free parking spaces within a 5-minute walk; lifeguards cover the beach until sunset.

Heritage Village is free to enter, open daily from 09:00 to 16:00 and on Fridays from 07:30 to 12:00 and 15:00 to 21:00. It recreates a pre-modern Emirati village with a souk, a mosque and artisans demonstrating Sadu and Khoos weaving.

The Grand Mosque pairs well with either Qasr Al Watan or the Louvre, and our Cultural Heritage tour and full-day city tour are both built around that pairing. Yas Island's theme parks and water park each need most of a day on their own, so plan them as a separate trip.

If you only have one day in Abu Dhabi, go early to the Grand Mosque before the Friday midday closure, then one museum or palace, and save Yas Island and the free sights for another visit.

Qasr Al Watan charges AED 65 online and Louvre Abu Dhabi AED 70 for adults, and the four Yas Island parks range from AED 295 to AED 375. The Grand Mosque's visitor pass costs AED 10, 8 or 5 depending on who you are, and Heritage Village is free. The Corniche is also free to walk.

Our prices for Qasr Al Watan and the Louvre are on their cards above, and our combo ticket, full-day city tour and Cultural Heritage tour are in the list below.