When the real estate market reached unprecedented heights in the 2000s, Dubai's Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem had a crazy but seemingly ingenious idea: to build new land on which he could construct more villas and houses to sell.
His idea quickly became a reality and led to a staggering increase in the city's population and visitors. Suffice it to say, it went from 4 million visitors to 15 million in just a few years.
But how did the Sultan create new kilometers of coastline? With the same project that gave rise to Dubai's most iconic symbol worldwide.
Dubai is known worldwide for its majestic architecture, large-scale engineering feats, and the charm it exudes. Here you can find the most famous and modern buildings on the planet, like the incredible Burj Khalifa, the tallest skyscraper in the world, which holds many records.
However, the most incredible works designed in this extraordinary city in recent years are not related to the use of reinforced concrete, steel, or other building materials, but rather to sand. Indeed, the most captivating attractions in this city located in the heart of the United Arab Emirates are the numerous artificial islands built to increase the city's coastline.
The most famous archipelago is the Palm Islands, of which the famous Palm Jumeirah is a part. This is an artificial island shaped like a palm tree with a trunk and leaves (17) located in the middle of another island placed in a half-circle.
The Sultan's idea, as expected, was to increase Dubai's coastline which, thanks to the work of top engineers, was able to stretch for 56 kilometers. To build the large artificial island, 94 million cubic meters of sand from local seabeds and about 5 million cubic meters of rocks were used to create the protective barrier that would shield the island from waves and erosion.
For the record, the first Palm Island, Palm Jumeirah, was completed in 2004.
- Palm Jebel Ali, twice the size of Palm Jumeirah and already completed;
- Palm Deira, which is still in its early stages.
But there is not only the Palm Island archipelago. In its vicinity, there is indeed another extraordinary group of luxury artificial islands, still largely uninhabited, called The World.
300 small islands arranged to represent a world map: The World Islands is an archipelago whose construction began in 2003 by the same company that created Palm Jumeirah. These small parcels of private land are divided into four categories:
- Private residences
- Real estate homes
- Resorts
- Community islets.
Each islet is oval-shaped and accessible by sea. Additionally, each island is named after the country it represents. With the World Island project, buying a private island in the sun becomes possible. The dream.
The secure complex covers an area of 6 million square meters with underwater apartments and luxury hotel complexes. The market primarily targets second home buyers from the UAE and other countries from around the world.
Currently, the plan includes over 4,000 vacation homes and more than 13 hotels and hotel complexes. Currently, completed properties are for sale at Heart of Europe, including hotel apartments, residential apartments, and villas with private beach views.
The World Island archipelago includes:
- Ten waterside palaces on Sweden Island
- About 78 floating villas on St. Petersburg Island
- 32 homes on Germany Island
- Most villas are on St. Petersburg Island, a few on neighboring islands.
For example, a typical two-bedroom villa costs around AED 20-21 million, and a luxury five-bedroom villa for sale in the heart of Europe for AED 29 million.
Europe is the largest island, inspired by Rome, the French Riviera, Vienna, and Andalusia. It mainly features leisure activities such as clubs, shops, cafes, and hotels, containing architectural elements from Italy, France, Switzerland, Spain, and other regions of the continent. Residential real estate in this area mainly consists of apartments for sale.
Ranging from 457 to 840 square meters, these apartments are perfect for singles as well as couples. Studio prices start at AED 990k, while one-bedroom apartment prices range from AED 1.75 million to AED 2.2 million. One-bedroom hotel apartments are available for around AED 2.3 million.
World Island: How Big Are the Islands?
In the World Island archipelago, each island has an area ranging from 223,226 to 83,613 square meters, with 50 to 100 meters of water between each island. The island covers a total length of 9 kilometers and a width of 6 kilometers, surrounded by an oval-shaped breakwater. The only mode of transportation between the islands is, of course, maritime transport via yachts and speedboats.
The World Islands Dubai are primarily composed of sand dredged from shallow coastal waters. To accomplish this project, 300 workers were employed, and it took five years to transport and place 320 million cubic meters of sand to construct the 300 islands for an estimated total cost of $14 billion.
Ten years ago, building Dubai's World Islands was an impossible dream. Today, the project is a success, and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's idea has become a reality.
Visit to World Island in Dubai
A tour of World Island costs approximately €120 per person. This price includes access to the beach, towels, swimming pool, etc. Families can access World Islands Dubai during the day, from 10 am to 6 pm. In the evening, access to World Islands Dubai is reserved for adults, from 6 pm to 11 pm.
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