The Burj Khalifa is the world’s tallest man-made structure, at 2,722 feet tall. The skyscraper is located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The building took five years to complete and is part of a development known as downtown Dubai. The mixed use area will have apartments, offices, restaurants and recreational facilities.
There are already several hotels and restaurants in the tower. Burj Khalifa is named for the president of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. It was designed by architect Adrian Smith, whose other work includes the Willis Tower in Chicago and One World Trade Center.
The building cost an estimated $1 billion U.S. dollars to complete. Plans are already underway to add an additional $3 million to complete the total project. The Burj Khalifa’s height is impressive, rising 162 floors above the ground. The views, often from floor to ceiling windows, can be dizzying. It offers an unparalleled view of the UAE and the desert landscape.
Construction of the Burj Khalifa is impressive. It used more than 34,000 tons of steel rods, enough to stretch nearly a quarter of the way around the world if laid end to end.
The building includes the world’s highest occupied floor, at 1918 feet off the ground. Burj Khalifa broke the world record for highest restaurant, the At.mosphere, located on the 122nd floor.
For those who want an original and spectacular experience, the Observation Deck, called At the Top, provides unobstructed views which originate from two floors. One of the unique aspects of the observation deck is the Tellscope electronic telescope, which is an augmented reality device.
The electronic telescope allows visitors to view the surrounding landscape in real-time, which means visitors can view images that were saved at earlier times of the day. The deck area is as record-breaking as the rest of the tower, as the world’s highest observatory. It includes a chic lounge area where the most prestigious parties in the Middle East take place.
The dazzling Armani hotel provides sophistication and elegance inside the glass structure.
The hotel is inspired by legendary Italian designer Giorgio Armani, who supervised the details for his only namesake property. The hotel includes a luxurious spa with the most state of the art treatments and facilities.
Burj Khalifa includes several swimming pools throughout the hotels and apartments. The world’s second highest swimming pool is located on the 76th floor of the tower.
The pool is designed to mimic beach entry, with an edge that gradually slopes into the deeper water as it is in the ocean. There are also many spas and hot tubs with amazing views.
The building has been used by people who do base jumping and climbing. In May of 2008, two base jumpers infiltrated the building and jumped from the 158th floor. They dressed as engineers for the unauthorized jump.
French BASE jumpers Vince Reffet and Fred Fugen got permission to jump on April 21, 2014, when they made the Guinness Book of World Records for the highest BASE jump. They jumped down from a platform built at the top of the pinnacle, a height of 2,717 feet.