Tag: dubai frame

Tall buildings

It must be every inch a proud and soaring thing, rising in sheer exultation….

Louis Sullivan

  • Dubai Marina

I prefer to stand on the ground and look up at tall buildings than to climb to the top and look down. In Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities to do both. The city is packed full of skyscrapers and they really are marvels of architecture; twisting, shining and soaring.

Dubai Marina is a scenic spot for a stroll, with a back drop of water, boats and tall buildings. The promenade extends for 7km and at certain times of year is populated by food and drink trucks. We jumped on a RTA ferry at Marina Walk which is a great value boat ride, stopping at Marina Mall and out to Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR) for a short hop across to the beach.

  • Burj Khalifa

Dubai is home to the tallest building and tallest free-standing structure in the world. The Burj Khalifa was officially launched in 2010 and stands at over 828m. There are many extraordinary facts and figures about the construction of this vast tower. It took only 5 years from the start of excavation to completion of the spire with 12,000 workers on site daily at the peak of construction.

It is awesome to stand and look up at this immense tower, which is illuminated every night with a different light show on one of its facades. I’m sure it’s every bit as impressive on the observation decks at the top or enjoying tea in the clouds, but the experience does not come cheap and I’m saving those trips for another time.

The Dubai Frame is a less costly and more relaxed way to look down on Dubai. Standing at 150m tall and 93 m wide, the Dubai Frame is positioned in such a way that modern Dubai is on view from one side and old Dubai from the other.

We visited on a Saturday in November and bought our tickets at the gate. There is an interesting exhibit of Dubai through the ages and a quick lift trip to the top. The children particularly enjoyed walking over the long opaque glass bridge which connects the two towers of the Frame. As they stepped on the bridge, the glass cleared allowing a view to the ground below. Walking on air.