Dubai Fountain Show

Dubai Mall Fountain Show

Dubai is the land of many firsts in the world. This progressive city has redefined luxury and is continuing to do so on an international level.

Besides the world’s tallest frame, the Dubai Frame, and the Burj Khalifa, the globe’s tallest building, the city of skyscrapers and beaches is also home to a magically beautiful fountain show – a symphony of music, lights, and water.

The Dubai Fountain Show is the planet’s second-tallest choreographed fountain. This ensemble rises to over 450 feet and spreads over 900 feet, corresponding to two football grounds. If you are in this luxurious jet-set holiday beach city, you cannot miss this marvelous work of art and science.

About Dubai Fountain Show

Considered the second-biggest performing music fountain, the fountain is located in Downtown Dubai, submerged in the 30-acre man-made Burj Lake, overlooking the Burj Khalifa, and surrounded by the Dubai Mall, the Souk Al Bahar, and the Burj Park. The fountain covers about 8 acres and was inaugurated when the Mall was opened to the public.

The captivating musical show, performing various melodies in the background, has been choreographed by Peter Kopik of WET Design. The show features classical Arabic and international music to the latest and the most contemporary songs. There are pop songs too sung by iconic stars like Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, and more.

About 6,600 WET Superlights with 25 colored projectors assist in the performance with 1,000+ water patterns and expressions. There are 50 color projectors producing about 1.5 lumens, helping create a complete spectrum of eye-catching colors.

The fountain’s design consists of five circles and two arcs of water nozzles that shoot up water to varying heights. At a given time, about 22,000 gallons of water rise in the air for the mystical performance.

Every show has a duration of about 5 minutes. When operational, the gigantic light and music show are visible from almost 20 miles away from the place. In the evenings, there are laser shows accompanying the fountain performance.

Every building near the lake stands witness to the outstanding performance every night. Overwhelmed spectators can enjoy the beauty of the dancing water from the Lake promenade and various other strategic points mentioned below.

Dubai Fountain Show Timing

Afternoon Show

Saturday to Thursday: The show starts at 13:00, 13:30, and 14:00 hours.

Friday: The show starts at 13:30, 14:00, and 14:30 hours.

Evening Show

Saturday to Friday: The show starts at 17:45 hours and continues till 23:30 hours. There’s a show at an interval of 30 minutes.

The duration of every show is 5 minutes.

During Ramadan

• Afternoon Shows are canceled during the entire Holy month.
• Evening Show timings are as follows:

Sunday to Wednesday: The show begins at 19:30 hours and continues till 23:00 hours.

Thursday to Saturday: The show begins at 19:30 hours and ends at 23:30 hours.

There’s a performance every 30 minutes.

Public Holidays

Extra shows during the afternoon may be held. Kindly refer to the official website of the Dubai Fountain for more information regarding this.

Dubai Fountain Show Tickets

The best part is the numerous vantage points from where you can enjoy the extravaganza. A few of the points can be accessed without paying any money. However, if you wish to get very close to this fantastic musical performance in  Downtown Dubai and enjoy it as a one-of-its-kind experience, you will need to buy tickets to enter the viewpoints.

As a visitor who wants to watch this man-made wonder up close on a paid basis, you have four options to pick from. These are:

Option 1: The Dubai Fountain Lake Ride

Timing (Prime hours): 17:45 hours to 23:30 hours

Ticket Price (Prime hours): AED 68.25 per person

Ticket Price (Non-prime hours): Free

Special Instructions for Visitors: The last Abra leaves for the ride at 23:00 hours

Option 2: The Dubai Fountain Boardwalk

Timing (Prime hours): 17:45 hours to 23:30 hours

Ticket Price (Prime hours): AED 20 onwards

Ticket Price (Non-prime hours): Free

Visitors need to make advance bookings to enjoy either of the options, especially for the prime hour shows.

Option 3: At the Top Observation Deck, Burj Khalifa

The Sunset Tickets offer visitors a panoramic view of the Fountains from the top.

Ticket Cost for Adults: AED 234 per person

Ticket Cost for Kids (between 4 and 12 years): AED 137 per person

Option 4: At The top SKY Observation Deck, Burj Khalifa

Sunset Ticket Cost: AED 543 per person. It’s the same price for adults and kids.

Best Place to Watch Dubai Fountains

As mentioned earlier, there are several viewpoints for visitors to watch the magical show. Four points have paid access, while the rest are all free for the common public.  

Paid Viewpoints

Boardwalk: If you really wish to enjoy the water show, this is the place to be. The Boardwalk is a floating wooden platform, about 272 meters wide, offering visitors one of the closest views of the colorful and captivating aqueous spectacle.

The pathway is for guests who wish to walk from Burj Park or start from the Fountain Promenade to the Walk Bridge. Enthusiastic guests can watch the performance from as close as 9 meters from the fountain.

The entrance to the Boardwalk is down the Waterfront Promenade. It opens about 15 minutes before the start of the first show. This is a front-row table experience. It is less crowded; hence, there’s a lot of space. It is advised for families with kids and older people. It is an excellent place to watch the show during the weekends when the free-to-access places are overcrowded.

The Lake Ride: This is a fabulous way of being a part of the musical show. Seated on a traditional Arabic boat, Abra, you can take a ride on the Burj Lake and also get the front row tables to watch the musical dancing fountain. It’s an extraordinary sensation and, of course, a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The first boat leaves at 17:45 hours, followed by one Abra leaving every 15 minutes. This is a paid experience. The tickets are available at the Burj Khalifa Ticket Counter or the Top Will Call Counter, located inside the Dubai Mall on the lower ground floor. To reach the counter, you need to go to the lakeside Mall entrance, next to Burj Khalifa. The entrance to the Abra rides is on the Waterfront Promenade.

Observation Decks, Burj Khalifa

The Observation Decks, At the Top, at levels 124 and 125 of the world’s tallest building, offer an absolutely exclusive view of the fountain. These are sunset tickets starting from 16:00 hours and continuing till 1830 hours. The timing is perfect for watching the first show of the fountain at 18:00 hours.

At The top SKY Observation Deck, Burj Khalifa: At Level 148 of the Burj Khalifa, the Sunset Tickets permit you to catch the Fountain Show at 18:00 hours. There are refreshments included in the ticket price.

Free Access

The Waterfront Promenade: One of the best places to catch a glimpse of the fountain is the Waterfront Promenade. It is located right when you exit from the Dubai Mall from the central exit point going around the base of the Burj Khalifa at the south. It offers a view of the show upfront and is absolutely free. Just be careful – this spot can be extremely crowded during peak hours. It makes for a top spot for Instagram-worthy clicks in Dubai with the frontal view of the happening water show.

Burj Park: The other interesting place to watch the show is Burj Park, where access is free for all. It is towards the east of Burj Lake, where it connects to the Promenade. It is a side view and not a frontal view. This is why it is not as crowded as the Waterfront Promenade.

Dubai Fountain Restaurants

Dubai Fountain Restaurants is a fantastic way to enjoy your gourmet affair – satiating your taste buds and delighting your visual senses by watching the musical performance alongside a culinary treat.

The good part is that there is a plethora of restaurants around this water show venue, offering mesmerizing views while you enjoy your food. Since there’s a high demand for tables at restaurants, it is advisable that pre-booking is done in advance, especially if you want to get the best view tables.

There are two types of views of this majestic water event that can be enjoyed from the restaurants close by:

Lateral Views

A table at a restaurant in Dubai Mall gives you sideways views of the performance. Ground-floor restaurants are not the best option because the crowd at the Waterfront Promenade blocks the view. Higher-floor restaurants are a much better option.

Some of the best ones with amazing views are – Tribes offering an African menu, Open Flame Kitchen on Level 1, serving international cuisine, Tulum – known for its Mexican seafood delicacies, TGI Friday, serving American food at Level 2; and Huqqa, a Turkish cuisine place with shisha lounges.

Frontal Views

The restaurants at Burj Khalifa offer momentous frontal views of the fountain. Some of the famous restaurants are – At.Mosphere at Level 122, Amal – an (Indian restaurant on the third floor of the Armani Hotel, Mediterraneo located in the lobby of the Armani Hotel serving Mediterranean cuisine, and Ristorante, an Italian restaurant at the lobby of the Armani Hotel.

The restaurants at Souk al Bahar in the Downtown area offer the best frontal views of the lyrical performance. You can book a table at the Time Out Market with 17 restaurants, Karma Kafe with Asian-fusion cuisine, The Meat Co. with African cuisine, Baker & Spice for titbits, and BiCE Mare with Italian seafood cuisine.

Restaurants at the Palace Downtown Hotel are also the perfect spots for an engrossing session of the musical extravaganza. The restaurants that are worth trying include Ewaan serving Oriental and Arabic buffet spread, a Thai restaurant called Thiptara, and Asado, which is Argentinian cuisine.

Best Way to Travel to Reach The Venue

The best way to reach the fountain is either by taxi, a self-driven car, or by Dubai metro. The closest station is the Dubai Mall Metro Station which takes about ten minutes by foot to reach the venue after alighting from the metro. You can get down at the Business Bay Metro Station, but it will take you about 15 minutes to walk down to the spot. You can buy a Nol Red Card as a visitor and maintain the required balance to travel conveniently by metro or bus.

Facts about Dubai Mall Fountain

The Dubai Fountain was inaugurated on 8th May 2009.

1. The water can dance because of water robots fitted in the circles and arcs of the structure. Some high-pressure shooters are responsible for ejecting the water upwards. There are Super shooters and Extreme shooters. The shooters create a loud noise once the water is thrown out.

2. The extreme height that the water can reach is about 500 feet, almost as tall as a 50-storied building.

3. The entire layout has been designed by WET Design, the company that designed the Las Vegas Bellagio Fountains.

4. Some of the iconic songs played during the performance include – “I will always love you” by Whitney Houston, “Thriller” by Michael Jackson, “Power” by EXO, “Time to say goodbye” by Andrea Bocelli & Sarah Brightman, “The Magnificent Seven” by Elmer Bernstein, “All night long” by Lionel Ritchie, and “Baba Yetu” by Christopher Tim.

5. Music from Bollywood songs is also played at times. One such song is “Dhoom Tana” by Vishal-Shekhar (an Indian musician duo).

6. You can reach the venue from the airport in precisely 33 minutes by metro.

7. The best time to visit Dubai and be a part of this out-of-the-world experience is between November and March when the weather is tourist-friendly.

8. The best time to see the extravaganza is during the evening, as the light show adds to the performance.

9. The name of the Dubai Fountain was decided via a contest organized by Emaar Properties, the developer of Downtown Dubai. The results were declared on 26th October 2008.

10. The building cost of the structure was approximately AED 800 million.

FAQs

Is the Dubai Fountain Show free?

The performances are free and can be witnessed from various places in downtown Dubai. However, if you wish to get a closer look from strategic points, the musical performance is not free.

Which days are the best to watch the water spectacle?

The best days are from Monday to Thursday, as there is a big rush every weekend at Burj Lake for the spectacle. By going on weekdays, you can watch the water dancing at ease with a fewer number of people visiting the site.

What are the other names of the Dubai Fountain?

It is also known as the Burj Khalifa or the Dubai Mall Fountain since it is in very close vicinity to these iconic structures.

Is Dubai Fountain the highest in the world?

It is the highest musical fountain in the world. Another popular fountain in Dubai is The Palm Fountains which was inaugurated near the Pointe at Palm Jumeirah.

Is there any particular song/music mandatorily played during the musical performance?

Yes, UAE’s National Anthem is played mandatorily daily during the performance.

Tips when visiting the fountain

If you are planning to view the magical medley from close quarters, you should carry a waterproof coat with you as the water spray can get you wet, especially on a windy day. You can fully enjoy the show if you watch it after sunset. While driving down, you can park your car at the Dubai Mall. If you are planning to see the show free of cost, then opt for the Souk Al Bahar walkway rather than the Dubai Mall Promenade, as the latter gets too crowded, especially on weekends.

Conclusion

Amidst the deserts of the Middle East, Dubai has set a precedent for the way it has transformed from a desert city to a high-end cosmopolitan destination. The Dubai Fountain Show has been a pioneer in its niche and is one of Dubai’s key centers of attraction. If you are visiting this majestic city, remember to stop by and be a part of the planet’s best-choreographed water music and dance performance.

Disclaimer: The mentioned timings and pricing can vary. Please check the official website for the latest information.