They have the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest skyscraper. They have the iconic Burj Al Arab, the iconic ship-shaped luxury hotel on a manmade island. They also have the Palm Islands, a man-made palm-shaped archipelago of mixed-use property. Naturally, the next step for the largest emirate of this small country on the Arabian Peninsula is to build the largest indoor ‘city’ in the world.
The emirate’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid, expressed in a press release that the project, dubbed Mall of the World, is part of his plans to transform Dubai into “a cultural, tourist and economic hub for the two billion people living in the region around us.”
The project will house the world’s largest mall, largest indoor park, cultural theatres and wellness resorts with a capacity to host over 180 million visitors annually. So it’s not really a city, but close enough.
The mall will occupy 8 million square feet connected to 100 hotels and serviced apartment buildings with 20,000 hotel rooms. 3 million square feet is allocated for the wellness district.
For recreation, the cultural district will have theatres built around New York’s Broadway and shopping streets based on London’s Oxford Street.
All of this inside an enclosed, air-conditioned building that is intended to allow tourists to “be able to enjoy a week-long stay without the need to leave the city or use a car.”
The Independent reports that the Sheikh, who is also vice president of the United Arab Emirates, owns the company responsible for the development, Dubai Holding.
Though details of the timeframe and the cost of the project are yet to be released, it is expected that the development will be Dubai’s main focus at the UAE World Expo trade fair in 2020.
For a better chance at visualizing the project's proportions, view the rest of the infographic from Dubai Holding here.
Related Stories
Sponsored | | Jan 3, 2018
4 networking strategies to grow your business
Follow these networking strategies to grow your architectural business with the work that you want.
BD+C University Course | Jan 2, 2018
The art and science of rendering: Visualization that sells architecture [AIA course]
3D artist Ramy Hanna offers guidelines and tricks-of-the-trade to ensure that project artwork is a stunning depiction of the unbuilt space.
Green | Dec 22, 2017
Green builders can use ‘big data’ to make design decisions
More and more, green project teams are relying on publicly available “external datasets” to prioritize sustainable design decisions, says sustainability consultant Adele Houghton.
Reconstruction & Renovation | Dec 21, 2017
Interactive map includes detailed information on historic New York City buildings
The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission launched a new, enhanced version of its interactive map, Discover NYC Landmarks.
High-rise Construction | Dec 20, 2017
Another record year for high-rise construction
More than 140 skyscrapers were completed across the globe this year, including 15 supertall towers.
Game Changers | Dec 20, 2017
Urban farms can help plant seeds for cities’ growth around them
Urban farms have been impacting cities’ agribusiness—and, on some cases, their redevelopment—for decades.
Market Data | Dec 20, 2017
Architecture billings upturn shows broad strength
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the November ABI score was 55.0, up from a score of 51.7 in the previous month.
Public Health Labs | Dec 19, 2017
10 takeaways from SmithGroup’s ‘lab of the future’ initiative
The LAB2050 initiative digs into the scientific trends, technologies, and economics that will shape tomorrow’s research laboratory environments.
Office Buildings | Dec 19, 2017
How do we measure human performance, and what does it mean for the workplace?
There are many new tools and methods that are beginning to look more comprehensively to evaluate organizational well-being.
Sports and Recreational Facilities | Dec 18, 2017
Canada’s newest funicular makes Edmonton’s largest green space more accessible
The incline elevator is located in downtown Edmonton and was publicly funded.
