Dubai Creek Tower 2026: Status, Height and What You Can See Today

The short answer: Dubai Creek Tower is not finished, and there is nothing to go up. Its foundation was completed in 2018, the project was shelved at the end of 2020, and work restarted on site in March 2024 around a new design that Emaar says will be lower than the Burj Khalifa. In January 2026 Emaar's chairman said the main construction tender was three months away; in June 2026 it was reported as delayed again. No contractor has been named and no opening date has been announced. The tallest building you can actually visit in Dubai is still the Burj Khalifa, and the best view of the Creek Tower site is from the waterfront at Dubai Creek Harbour, which costs nothing.

Most of what is written about this tower online dates from 2019 and 2020, when it was going to be the world's tallest building at something like 928 metres, finished in time for Expo 2020. None of that holds any more. We sell Dubai holidays for a living and get asked about the Creek Tower often enough, usually by people who have read one of those old pieces, so here is where the project actually stands on 24 October 2026, what the tower is likely to be, and what is worth your time at Dubai Creek Harbour in the meantime.

Where the project stands in October 2026

When	What happened
October 2016	Groundbreaking at Dubai Creek Harbour, with an opening then planned for 2025
May 2018	The foundation is finished by Six Construct, on a grid of deep barrette piles
July 2019	The main construction tender is still out; no contractor appointed
April 2020	Emaar stops work during the pandemic
December 2020	The project is put on hold indefinitely
August 2023	Mohamed Alabbar confirms the tower is being redesigned
February 2024	Reports say the new design will be shorter than the Burj Khalifa
March 2024	Work restarts on the site
January 2026	Alabbar says the tender will go out within three months
June 2026	The tender is reported delayed, with Emaar revisiting pricing
October 2026	No main contractor, no published height, no completion date

In plain terms: the hole in the ground is done and has been done for years. What has not started is the tower itself. The piece that matters is the main construction tender, because the building cannot rise until a contractor has it, and that tender has now slipped twice in 2026.

How tall will Dubai Creek Tower be?

Emaar has not published a height for the redesigned tower. Every figure still circulating belongs to the old design:

• About 928 metres, the number widely reported when the project launched in 2016, chosen to edge past the Burj Khalifa.
• At least 1,300 metres, which appeared in later Emaar material and in the tall-buildings databases.
• Below 828 metres, which is what Emaar indicated after the 2023 redesign, since 828 metres is the Burj Khalifa and the new tower is meant to sit under it.

Until Emaar publishes a number, treat anything you read as the old plan. It is also worth knowing why the first figures were argued over: a structure only counts as a building in the rankings if a good share of its height is occupied floor space. The Creek Tower was always closer to a slender observation mast than to a tower full of offices and apartments, which is why some of the early coverage called it the world's tallest structure rather than the world's tallest building.

Will it be the world's tallest building?

No. On the current design it will not even be the tallest building in Dubai, because it is planned to come in under the Burj Khalifa's 828 metres.

The building actually chasing the record is Jeddah Tower in Saudi Arabia, planned at over 1,000 metres. Work there resumed in 2025 and it passed its 116th floor and roughly 466 metres in October 2026, with completion now aimed at late 2028. If nothing changes, that is the building that takes the title from the Burj Khalifa, and Dubai Creek Tower becomes a landmark rather than a record.

Who designed it, and what was the plan?

The design came from Santiago Calatrava, the Spanish architect and engineer, chosen from an international field by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. The shape reads two ways on purpose: the outline of a minaret, and the bud of a lily about to open. Rather than a conventional concrete core, the tower was to be held by cables running down its length, anchored into the foundation.

From the engineering outline published in 2016, the top was to hold around ten observation decks, including a room at the summit with views across the whole city, planted terraces inspired by descriptions of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, and a beam of light that would make the tower visible at night from far across the desert. The early cost estimate was around one billion US dollars.

Keep in mind that all of this describes the first design, the one that was shelved. Emaar has confirmed a redesign but has not published it in detail, so the decks, the gardens and the lighting may or may not survive into whatever is finally built.

What you can see at Dubai Creek Harbour today

The district itself is finished enough to be worth an evening, and it is the one place where you can stand on the spot and see what the tower is aimed at. It sits about fifteen minutes by taxi from Downtown Dubai, on the inland side of the creek. There is no Metro station in the district, so a taxi or a car is the simple way in.

• The Viewing Point. A raised walkway that runs out over the water, facing Downtown. Free, open air, and at its best in the hour before sunset, when the whole skyline including the Burj Khalifa stands against the light. This is the photograph at the top of this page.
• The promenade and Creek Marina. A long waterfront stretch of cafes and restaurants, with the oversized flamingo sculptures that everyone photographs, and boats on the water in front of you.
• Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary. The wetland next door, and the reason the flamingos are a local symbol rather than a decoration. Entry is free, Dubai Municipality runs the bird hides, and the birds are easiest to see from November to March, early in the day. Check the municipality's site before you go, as individual hides close for maintenance.
• The tower site. Honestly, not much. It is a fenced construction site with the foundation and site works inside it. There are no tours, no viewing gallery and no way in.

Seeing Dubai from the top while you wait

If what you actually want is the view from a very tall building, the city already delivers that today:

• Burj Khalifa At the Top puts you on the 124th and 125th floors, which is the standard visit. Our Burj Khalifa ticket guide explains the difference between the levels and which time slots are worth paying more for.
• Burj Khalifa SKY adds level 148, a separate lounge and a shorter queue.
• The Dubai Frame is the cheaper, quieter view, and the one that makes the city's history legible: old Dubai on one side of the glass, new Dubai on the other.

For the creek itself rather than the skyline above it, a dhow cruise on the Creek or a guided walk through old Dubai covers the stretch of water where the city began, a few kilometres upstream from where the new tower is going.

Planning a trip to Dubai

We are a travel agency in Dubai, not a construction news site, so the practical part: if you are putting a few days together, our Dubai holiday packages bundle hotels, transfers and attraction tickets on one booking, and the city tour guide and best time to visit Dubai cover the two questions that come up first. If family are coming over, we also handle the UAE visit visa. Message us on WhatsApp at +971 4 589 0001 or use the contact page, and we will put the right pieces together.

Frequently asked questions

Is Dubai Creek Tower finished?

No. The foundation was completed in May 2018, but the tower above ground has not been built. Work on the site restarted in March 2024 after a redesign, and as of October 2026 the main construction contract has still not been awarded.

How tall will Dubai Creek Tower be?

Emaar has not published a height for the redesigned tower. The old design was reported at about 928 metres and later at a minimum of 1,300 metres, but both belong to the version that was shelved in 2020. Emaar has indicated the new one will be below the Burj Khalifa's 828 metres.

Will Dubai Creek Tower be taller than the Burj Khalifa?

Not on the current plan. The 2023 redesign was explicitly described as shorter than the Burj Khalifa, which remains the tallest building in the world at 828 metres until Jeddah Tower is finished.

When will Dubai Creek Tower open?

There is no announced opening date. The original plan was 2025, then the project was paused. Emaar has not given a new completion date, and the construction tender was reported delayed in June 2026, so any date you see quoted is an estimate rather than a commitment.

Can you visit Dubai Creek Tower?

No. It is an active construction site with no public access, no observation deck and no tours. You can walk the Dubai Creek Harbour waterfront beside it for free, and the Viewing Point there gives you the view across the creek to Downtown.

Who designed Dubai Creek Tower?

Santiago Calatrava, whose design was selected from an international competition in 2016. Whether the redesign keeps his concept has not been spelled out publicly.

Where is Dubai Creek Tower?

In Dubai Creek Harbour, the Emaar district on Dubai Creek beside the Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary, roughly fifteen minutes by taxi from Downtown Dubai.

Is Dubai Creek Tower the same as Dubai Creek Harbour?

No. Dubai Creek Harbour is the waterfront district, which is open and partly built, with homes, hotels, restaurants and the promenade. Dubai Creek Tower is the single landmark planned at its centre, and it is the part that has not been built.

Related guides

• Burj Khalifa tickets: Silver, Gold or Platinum?
• Dubai city tour: what's included and what it costs
• Best time to visit Dubai, month by month
• Dubai on a budget
• Places to visit in the UAE, emirate by emirate
• Global Village Dubai: tickets, timings and tips

Last checked 24 October 2026 against the project's documented history (the 2016 groundbreaking, the foundation completed by Six Construct in May 2018, the April 2020 stoppage and the December 2020 hold), Emaar's confirmation of a redesign in August 2023 and the restart of site work in March 2024, reports in January 2026 that the construction tender would follow within three months and in June 2026 that it had been delayed, and the October 2026 progress reported at Jeddah Tower. Emaar has published neither a height nor a completion date for the redesigned tower; we update this page when it does.