The Burj Khalifa is known as the tallest building in the world since 2009. The Burj Khalifa is located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The building is 829.8 metres high. The name of the building comes from the president of the UAE, called Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The UAE government helped the Dubai government to pay for several bills. By naming this building after him, the president was honoured. The development of the Burj Khalifa began in 2004, and the building was opened in 2010 and therefore became part of a new district in Dubai named Downtown Dubai. The reason behind the development of the building is that the UAE and Dubai government wanted to make Dubai more as a tourist place, so that the economy is not only based on their oil incomes. Another reason was to make Dubai a more popular on a world scale. The Burj Khalifa is in the middle of the new district called Downtown Dubai and is surrounded by several hotels, residences, parks, the Dubai Mall and ofcourse the Dubai Fountains. Outside the Burj Khalifa, the Dubai Fountains are located. The Dubai Fountains give a beautiful fountain show several times on one day. The Burj Khalifa is not only popular for tourists, but also for the film industry. The Burj Khalifa has been featured in several movies. The building is featured in the movie Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, that came out in 2011. The building was also featured in the movie Independence Day: Resurgence, that came out in 2016. The Burj Khalifa is definetely a must see when visiting Dubai. At the highest level op the Burj Khalifa, the visitor has a magical view of Dubai.
The Dubai Fountains are one of the most popular tourist activities in Dubai. The Dubai Fountains are located next to the Dubai Mall and besides the Burj Khalifa, in the centre of the dsitict Downtown Dubai. The opening of the Dubai Fountains was in May 2009. The Dubai Fountains is the biggest fountain system in the world. The fountain system is 275 metres long, and the water goes up to 152 metres in the air. The development of the Dubai Fountains costed around 218 million american dollars. The fountain shows that are presented several times a day, go along with typical Arabic music and is enjoyed by many tourists when visiting Dubai. In 2010, a year after the official opening, the element fire was introduced to the fountain shows. During the fountain show, the water is able to dance around and shoot in different ways caused by the high pressure water jets. Several types of water jets are used. One water jet is able to shoot the water 240 feet in the air. The other water jet is able to shoot the water 500 feet in the air, since this type of water jet is able to put the water under more pressure. The Dubai Fountain show is a beautiful show to visit when in Dubai. The Dubai Fountains are surrounded by several restaurants that have a view of the Dubai Fountains.
The Palm Islands are three islands that are located on the coast of the state Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. The three islands are Palm Jumeirah, Deira Island and Palm Jebel Ali, and development began in 2001. The Palm Jumeirah is the only island that is finished with the development, and therefore the most popular island of the three. On the Palm Jumeirah, one of the most popular hotels in the world is located, hotel Atlantis. The islands were developed since the government of Dubai wanted to create more tourist activities and incomes. Incomes were an important reason for the development of the island since the oil incomes of Dubai were decreasing every year. The plan for the islands was to install lots of houses on the island, but also to develop many new leisure activities. The Palm Jumeirah is shaped into a tree, with sixteen different fronds. In 2006, houses were built on the Palm Jumeirah. Nowadays, the houses on the Palm Jumeirah are popular with many international celebrities. People like Eddie Murphey and David Beckham own a house on the Palm Jumeirah, and all have a private beach. The Palm Islands offer many tourists activities. Having a walk next to the beach or enjoying a day at the Atlantis hotel are only a couple of examples of what the Palm offers for tourists.
The Dubai Mall is another tourist activity in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The Dubai Mall is the world’s biggest shopping mall located in the district Downtown Dubai. The Dubai Mall offers 1200 different shops. The Dubai Mall is a very popular place to visit in Dubai, it even was the ‘’most visited building on the planet’’ in 2011. In that year, the Dubai Mall captivated an approximate 54 million visitors. With this amount of visitors in one year, the Dubai Mall outweighs other international leisure activities like Times Square, Central Park or Niagara Falls. The Dubai Mall’s official opening was in 2008. Inside the Dubai Mall, more activities are offered than only shopping. The Dubai Aquarium and the Discovery Centre are also popular activities, with selling more than 60,000 tickets in the first week after the official opening. The Dubai Mall is divided into different parts. One part of the Mall consists of the ‘’Dubai Mall’s Gold Souk’’, where lots of jewelery stores are located. Another part of the Mall is Fashion Avenue, where the clothings shops are located. Within the Dubai Mall, several food courts, cafés and restaurants can be found. The Dubai Mall was mentioned by Forbes as ‘’one of the top shoppng malls in Dubai’’ in 2017. The Dubai Mall is the perfect place when you want to buy clothes or souvenirs when in Dubai. With 1200 shops in the Mall, the diversity is huge and the architecture in the Mall is beautiful as well.
The Dubai Zoo is a big zoo in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. The development of the Dubai Zoo started in the sixties, and is therefore the oldest zoo in the UAE area. Since it is the oldest zoo in the UAE area, man acknowledges the zoo as a Dubai landmark. The zoo is 1.5 hectares and has 230 different animals under their home. Animals like hyenas, chipanzees, monkeys, bears and hippos can all be found in the Dubai Zoo. Also more endangered animals like the gorilla, Siberian tiger and the Gordon’s wildcat are housed at the Dubai Zoo. The Dubai Zoo is a popular tourist activity in Dubai and numerous people visit the zoo every year. Ever since 2003, the Dubai government has stated to build a brand new zoo in Dubai. In 2013, the Director General of Dubai Municipality finally stated that the construction of the new zoo has started and that the first stage of the construction is finished. He also stated that the construction of the new zoo will be finished in 2014. The new zoo will be bigger and will offer activities like a safari, a botanical garden, a golf course and a resort. The new zoo will also house hundreds of animal species. When the new zoo opens, the old Dubai Zoo will be bulldozed.
The Dubai Marina is a beautiful district in the state Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. The Dubai Marina consists of an artifical canal, residential buildings and hotels. The Dubai Marina consists of different phases. The first phase of the Marina is 100,000 m2, and contains apartment buildings and the Dubai Marina Towers. The Dubai Marina also consists of the Dubai Marina Walk. The Marina Walk is seven km long and basically is a walk next to de Dubai beach. Many restaurants, souvenir shops and cafés can be found on the Marina Walk. The second phase of the Dubai Marina contains many tall buildings. The nickname of this phase is ‘’Tallest Block in the World’’, since the buildings are incredibly high. Examples of those buildings are the Princess Tower, Marina 101 and the Pentominium. Another part of the Dubai Marina is the Jumeirah Beach Residence, which was developed and completed in 2007. The Jumeirah Beach Residence consists of 35 residential towers and five hotels. Next to the Jumeirah Beach Residence is the popular The Walk. The Walk is a boardwalk where many restaurants and shops can be found. The Walk attracts many visitors every year, because the night life of Dubai can be found there.
