We’ve visited some of the world’s record setters like the world’s largest pumpkin festival, the world’s northernmost city and the world’s largest wine barrel. So it should be no surprise that standing on the observation deck of the Burj Khalifa was also on our bucket list. Not only is the Burj Khalifa the world’s tallest building, it impressively breaks several other records. Here are 10 fun facts about the Burj Khalifa we learned on our visit that we hope also inspire you to head to the top of the world’s tallest building. Just don’t forget to book your Burj Khalifa skip the line tickets before you go.

10 Fun Facts about the Burj Khalifa

1. The Burj Khalifa height is a staggering 828 meters (2716.5 feet) tall, soaring over Dubai. It’s three times as tall as the Eiffel Tower and nearly twice as tall as the Empire State Building. Laid end to end, its pieces stretch over a quarter of the way around the world. It’s cloud-piercing height is certainly one of the most impressive facts about Bruj Khalifa.

2. Aside from holding the world record for being the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa holds six other world records. The Burj Khalifa is also the tallest freestanding structure in the world, has the highest number of stories in the world, has the highest occupied floor in the world, has the highest outdoor observation deck in the world, has the elevator with longest travel distance in the world, and has the tallest service elevator in the world.

3. One of the most mind blowing Burj Khalifa facts is how much the materials weigh. To put things in to perspective, the weight of the concrete is equivalent to 100,000 elephants. The total weight of aluminum used on the Burj Khalifa is equivalent to that of five A380 aircraft.

4. Burj Khalifa fun facts that you can truly applaud are its sustainability and reuse of resources. Every year 15 million gallons of water are collected sustainably. The water is used for irrigation to water the landscaping and plants, for the cooling system and to supply the Dubai Fountain.



5. Some Burj Khalifa trivia about the elevators: the building has the longest single running elevator, which is 140 floors. The Burj Khalifa elevator speed is 10 meters per second, making the elevators among the fastest in the world. The Burj Khalifa elevator time to reach the observation deck on the 124th floor is only one minute.

6. One of the lesser known and more interesting facts about Burj Khalifa is that the tip of the sphere of the Burj Khalifa can be seen from up to 95 kilometers away.

7. Fairly known Burj Khalifa information is that at the peak of construction, 12,000 workers worked on the building per day.

8. Of course, you can’t leave out how the materials and man hours measure up when talking about interesting facts about the Burj Khalifa. It took more than 110,000 tons of concrete, 55,000 tons of steel rebar, and 22 million man-hours to complete the Burj Khalifa.

9. Exactly how long did it take to build the Burj Khalifa? Excavation began in January 2004. Six years later, the Burj Khalifa finally opened in January 2010.

10. Another of the Burj Khalifa interesting facts is that it is designed to resemble the Hymenocallis flower. The central core emerges at the top and culminates in a sculpted spire.

That’s a lot of facts about the world’s tallest building. What is the Burj Khalifa used for anyway? It’s actually a multi-use building that has restaurants, a hotel, residential apartments, office space and is a tourist attraction with its observation decks. Ready to visit?

Know Before You Go

Tips Booking The observation deck is open from 10am to 10pm Sunday through Wednesday and 10am to midnight Thursday through Saturday. The last entry is 45 minutes prior to closing.

There is a free bag check near the entrance; just don’t forget to pick up your bags on the way out (thankfully I remembered before we got too far away.)

The observation deck is accessed from the lower level of the Dubai Mall near the food court. Book Now Avoid a really long wait by booking your tickets in advance . Admission is $39 per adult and $30 for children ages 4-11. Infants are free. You can also book an At the Top and Afternoon Tea package.

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