Inside world’s largest shopping centre the size of 200 football pitches with shark-filled aquarium and 1,200 stores
FILLED to the brim with more than 1,200 stores, this mega-mall in Dubai is heaven for shoppers.
Spanning the size of around 200 pitches, it is the world’s largest shopping centre – and even features a bizarre shark-infested tank.
With the Burj Khalifa towering over, the 12million sq ft site is home to more than 200 food and drink outlets – the ideal respite from a long day of shopping.
As well as reams of retail stores, Dubai Mall is centered around its two flagship department shops – Galeries Lafayette and Blommingdale’s.
And for those looking for something a little more luxurious, there are more than 70 signature stores in its dedicated Fashion Avenue.
But as well as indulgent brands, the mall also houses UK high street favorites such as M&S, Boots and Waitrose.
A waterfall within the building is understood to act like an optical illusion, with statues of people diving said to disappear if you stare at one of them.
Hundreds of thousands of hopeful shoppers flock to the mall every week – making use of the 14,000 parking spaces.
According to the mall’s website, it is the “most visited retail destination in the world”, attracting more than 100million visitors every year.
And those guests can choose to be treated like VIPs with a valet service, shop and drop with delivery, an in-mall chauffeur service, and more.
But aside from shops, the mall even boasts its very own aquarium with more than 140 marine species.
Visitors can gawp at the incredible 270-degree walk-through tunnel as sharks, rays and fish swim by.
It offers guests the opportunity to “walk with the world’s ultimate predators wearing an oxygenated helmet that allows you to breath underwater”.
The mall’s website boasts that “there are over 400 sharks and rays in the tank, including the world’s biggest collection of sand tiger sharks”.
Last year, terrifying footage captured the moment two scuba divers came face-to-face with the world’s “creepiest” shark as they explored the aquarium.
Gripped onlookers watched as the enormous one-eyed shark with deformed gums and bizarrely-protruding teeth swam just metres away from them.
Meanwhile, guests can zoom past the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, on an open-air track, or take a spin on the Olympic-size ice rink
For film buffs, the mall’s cinema has 22 screens and can sit an impressive 2,800 guests.
Dubai Mall opened its doors in 2008 after two delays.
And the shopping centre is open seven days a week – closing as late as midnight on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
In 2019, the mall grew even larger with the opening of Dubai Mall Zabeel.
It is linked by an air-conditioned footbridge and has 3,000 parking spaces of its own.
Meanwhile, we took a look at the world’s largest office building in India’s diamond capital.
The Surat Diamond Bourse (SBD) has spared no expense on its sprawling new trade centre that is taking shape in the west of the country.
The 15-storey complex boasts 7.1 million sq ft of floor space, knocking The Pentagon off the top spot as the globe’s biggest office building.
It dwarfs the United States Department of Defense headquarters which has held the title for over 80 years.
But the architects behind the build say it was out of necessity rather than competition – as diamond companies snapped up all the offices before construction even began.
The SDB sits on more than 35 acres of land and is billed as a one-stop shop for over 65,000 diamond professionals.