Downtown Dubai

Downtown Dubai is the district Emaar built around Burj Khalifa, Dubai Mall and the Dubai Fountain lake. It sits right on Sheikh Zayed Road, with DIFC across the road and Business Bay wrapped around its other side. For residents it works more like a city centre than a suburb: a supermarket, a gym, dozens of restaurants and the mall are all within walking distance, and the metro station is at the edge of the district.

The district grew in stages from the mid-2000s. Old Town, with its low-rise, Arabian-style buildings and quiet courtyards, was among the first parts finished. The towers along Mohammed Bin Rashid Boulevard followed, and the newer Opera District filled in around Dubai Opera. Most of Downtown is now complete, with a few newer towers still being finished, so construction is limited to particular plots rather than whole streets.

The trade-off is the crowd. Downtown is the city's main tourist draw, so the boulevard, the mall and the fountain area are busy most evenings and packed over New Year's Eve and long weekends. Internal roads back up at peak times and around big events. People who choose to live here usually accept that in return for being able to walk to almost everything they need.

• 01

  Burj Khalifa and the fountain

  Many apartments look onto the tower or the Dubai Fountain lake, where shows run every evening. Views vary a lot between buildings and floors, so check exactly what a unit faces.

• 02

  Dubai Mall on foot

  Supermarkets, cinemas, an ice rink and a huge range of shops are a short walk away, and a few towers connect to the mall directly.

• 03

  Metro at the edge

  Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall station on the Red Line links to the mall through a long air-conditioned walkway, which makes commuting without a car realistic.

• 04

  Beside DIFC and Business Bay

  Two of the city's biggest office districts are a few minutes away, which is why many tenants here are professionals who work nearby.

Daily life revolves around Mohammed Bin Rashid Boulevard, the loop road lined with cafés, small supermarkets, gyms and restaurant terraces at the foot of the towers. Souk Al Bahar, across the footbridge from Dubai Mall, has quieter restaurants with fountain views, and Dubai Opera puts on concerts, ballet and touring shows. Burj Park, next to Burj Khalifa, is a lawn used for events and evening walks.

For the weekly shop, Dubai Mall has a large supermarket, but the district is not the place for big parks or beaches. The nearest public beaches are in Jumeirah, about 15 minutes by car, and Zabeel Park is a short drive away.

Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall station on the Red Line sits on Sheikh Zayed Road at the edge of the district and connects to Dubai Mall through an enclosed, air-conditioned walkway. Inside Downtown, most people walk or take short taxi rides. By car, Sheikh Zayed Road, Al Khail Road and Financial Centre Road all feed in, but the internal roads and mall car parks get congested in the evenings, at weekends and around big events.

Apart from a few nurseries, there are no schools inside Downtown, so families with school-age children usually drive 10 to 20 minutes. GEMS Jumeirah Primary School in Al Safa and the Swiss International Scientific School in Dubai Healthcare City are among the closest. For hospital care, Mediclinic City Hospital in Dubai Healthcare City is about 15 minutes away, and there are GP and dental clinics in Dubai Mall and along the boulevard.

Almost every home here is an apartment, from studios to large penthouses, plus serviced residences run by hotel brands such as Address and Vida, where owners pay higher service charges in return for hotel-style services. Layouts and finishes differ a lot between the first towers, completed in the late 2000s, and the newer ones, so compare floor plans and service charges building by building.

Buyers are a mix of people who want to live centrally and investors letting to professionals or running holiday homes, which are common here. Check the exact view (fountain, Burj Khalifa or the side of another tower), noise from the boulevard and events, parking, and whether the building allows short-term letting. Emaar still releases occasional new towers, but most of the choice is on the resale market.