Many have heard on TV about the construction of three islands in the Persian Gulf. In 2008 the architects created the fourth island. Now let's learn more about each of them. All peninsulas (connected to the coast) are shaped like palm trees, which are considered the national trees in the United Arab Emirates. On each of the palms, a crescent moon is visible from above. It has several meanings. Firstly, the crescent is a symbol of all Muslims, and secondly, on the peninsulas they play the role of breakwaters. Barrier reefs have also been created for 100% protection. Surprisingly, the reefs repeat Arabic inscriptions - quotes from works written by the ruler of Dubai.

The ruler of Dubai, Mohammed, personally supervises all stages of construction. How did it all start? Everyone knows that the entire economy of the UAE is based on oil production. But the sheikhs were not satisfied with this alignment. Therefore, Dubai began to turn into the best resort in the world. If you look at the whole situation from the outside, it is clearly seen that finances are not spent in vain. Dubai is considered to be one of the most fashionable tourist destinations in the world today.

Palm islands have conquered the world with their uniqueness. This is the only project of its kind in the world, on which more than $7 million has been spent. An interesting fact is that the Palm Islands, second only to the Wall of China, are visible in space.

Jumeirah Island

The very first was the Palm Jumeirah (2001). It is a trunk with a top of 17 branches. Crescent - breakwater has a length of 11 km. It is planned to build 28 hotels on it. The project has been implemented for five years. The main buildings were built and the infrastructure was formed. To date, the construction of residential buildings and landscaping of the Island is underway. 1,400 mansions and 2,500 apartments have already been commissioned in the first phase. There are plans to build 32 hotels. The most popular place on Jumeirah was the Atlantis complex. It consists of two huge towers, between which a bridge is laid. The length of the beaches is 78 kilometers. The construction of villas and mansions has not yet been completed, but most of them have already been sold out. The island is very popular among residents of the UK. Jumeirah can be called an elite place. Many celebrities consider it a huge success to buy property here. Immediately after the buildings were settled in the first stage, the problem arose of delivering residents to their homes. But today it was successfully solved by moving people on a special airship and along a monorail. Despite its size, this palm tree was the smallest of the four.

Jebel Ali Island

The project began to be implemented a year after Jumeirah Island. Jebel Ali is 50 percent larger than her sister and has an unusual shape. There are no real estate sales yet, as it will take quite a long time to wait. Therefore, they plan to focus on recreation and tourism here. A large number of houses and villas for tourists are planned to be built on Jebel Ali. Also in the project is the creation of houses for individual orders. According to forecasts, 1.7 million people will be able to live simultaneously on the Island in 2020. Now infrastructure is being built first. Residential buildings will be built last. It is planned to build four recreation parks on the crescent. In one of them, a marine aquarium will be erected, where it will be possible to watch whales, dolphins and other inhabitants of the sea. Jebel Ali is located 20 kilometers from Jumeirah. You can get there by boat. The designers want to build a road line between the Islands, which will connect not only the Islands, but also the Dubai shopping center.

Deira Island

In 2004, construction began on the Palm of Deira. This project plans to build the largest man-made Island in the world. He is many times larger than the size of his older sisters. The designers calculated that by the end of construction, a million people could live on the Island. Deira consists of a rather thick trunk and 41 branches. The top is also bordered by a breakwater - a crescent. Due to the large scale, the construction was divided into several stages.

Mir Island

This is the last project for now. It was completed in 2008. Why Mir? The project consists of 300 islands, repeating the outlines of different world countries. Together, they make up a whole world map. You can see it, of course, only from a great height. Mir is located near Palms. Each Island embodies the traditions of the country it depicts. So this complex is a small copy of the world. There is all the infrastructure necessary for a person, villas and houses have been built. Flowers are blooming and trees are growing all around. "Mir" is a corner of paradise on Earth. The ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed, conceived to build such a large-scale project. Officially, the construction is carried out by a Dubai company, but in fact, foreign construction companies run everything. The only way to get to the Islands is by air and water. But that's not such a problem. After all, if a person can afford to buy a house for 20 million, then it is quite possible that he will buy himself either a yacht or a helicopter. Tourists will also be able to visit the Islands on a high-tech airship of the latest design.

Cons of the Palm Islands

Unlike the creators, biologists do not share the enthusiasm for such large buildings in the bay. There are fears that the construction will negatively affect the flora and fauna. The Dubai government listens to the opinions of scientists and tries to create favorable living conditions for aquatic life.

More recently, the Arab Emirates were known to the world for their deserts and the presence of such valuable raw materials as oil. But some time passed and everything changed. Now everyone is fascinated by the images of Arab beauties and secretly dreams of getting there, seeing these cosmic wonders with their own eyes, and world celebrities and tycoons are fighting for every square meter in Dubai. The reason for everything is the gigantic buildings of indescribable beauty. All the largest that is on our planet (fountains, hotels, towers, parks) is located in the UAE. One of these wonders is considered to be artificial islands in the form of date palms on the coast of the Persian Gulf - Jebel Ali, Jumeirah and Deira.

Palm Jumeirah in the UAE is located in the Dubai Marina area, see how it is located on the map relative to other artificial islands:

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The construction of Jumeirah Palm began in 2001. A dozen and a half thousand builders were involved in the work, who also lived there. Work did not stop for a minute, shift after shift, day after day, month after month, and in 2006 the island was ready. The material used was stone and sand, which was mined from the bottom of the bay. The whole island consists of the main trunk and 17 palm leaves. A crescent moon was also built around the palm tree - a symbol of all Muslims, which also serves as a breakwater and protects the island from high waves and storms, its length is 11 km. Thus, the total area of ​​Jumeirah exceeds 25 sq. km., which is equal to 800 football fields.

After the work on the island was completed, the architects began building up the territory. Soon, chic villas, hotels, shopping centers, not to mention palm trees and other plants, grew on the sand. Most of the Palm Jumeirah real estate has already been sold and occupied. The architecture is made in different styles: from Arabic to European.

Atlantis The Palm is the most luxurious hotel in the world.

Jumeirah Island is actually a peninsula, since it is connected to the mainland by a 300 m long bridge. A tunnel under water was built so that the inhabitants of the island could quickly move around the territory. And for the implementation of transport links between Jumeirah and the mainland, a monorail road was built.

The scale of the island is so large that you can even see it from space.

To leave lines on the water requires insight.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum

We were lucky enough to witness the implementation of a grandiose project of the 21st century, which can rightly be called the eighth wonder of the world. This is a man-made archipelago of artificial islands in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) under the general name "Palm Islands in Dubai" (Palm Islands in Dubai, or in short - The Palms). Surely, most of us have already heard about the construction of three islands in the Persian Gulf - Palm Jumeirah, Palm Jebel Ali and Palm Deira. In addition to this "trilogy", in January 2008 another archipelago was completed off the coast of the Emirates called "The World", imitating the outlines of the continents of the planet Earth, but we will talk about it a little later.

So, the islands, or rather the peninsulas (since they are connected to the coastline) are made in the form of date palms traditional for Arab countries (by the way, very revered in Islam). Each island is crowned with a crescent moon at the top. It performs the function of a breakwater and at the same time is a Muslim symbol. Also, the islands are surrounded by protective barrier reefs. At the Palm Jebel Ali, they are inscriptions in Arabic, namely, quotes from the poems of the ruler of Dubai, Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum:

“In order to leave lines on the water, insight is needed; Great people set themselves great goals. Draw wisdom from the one who has it; Not everyone on a horse is a rider."

"Take wisdom from the wise, It takes a man of vision to write on water, Not everyone who rides a horse is a jockey, Great men rise to greater challenges."

It is he, the absolute monarch of the Emirate of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed, who is in charge of all this amazing construction. Actually, it is known that the economy of the UAE is based on oil. And 3% of all oil reserves of the emirates are located in Dubai. But the sheikhs of Maktoum did not want to put up with such a situation, realizing that the entire economy should not be based on oil alone. And so they began to make Dubai the best tourist resort in the world. And even now we can say that they competently disposed of the money received from natural resources. It is expected that when all the currently planned islands of Dubai are built, this will add more than half a thousand additional kilometers of territory.

Palm Islands became the first major projects that conquered the world with their uniqueness - the state company Al Nakheel Properties, their construction cost $ 7 billion.

By the way, the Palm Islands is the second man-made structure on Earth (along with the Great Wall of China) that can be seen from the moon with the naked eye. They have become a symbol not only of the city of Dubai, but of all the Arab Emirates. Especially after their picture was taken by Russian cosmonauts from the ISS station.

The Palm Jumeirah project was launched first in June 2001. Palm Jumeirah consists of a "trunk", from which 17 "branches" extend, forming a crown. The breakwater that protects the island from waves at sea has a length of 11 km. It took 7 million cubic meters to create it. m. sand. There will be 28 hotels on the crescent surrounding the island. The total area of ​​the island is 25 sq. km.

In 2006, the main work on the construction and formation of the infrastructure of Palma was completed. Then the newly appeared islanders were able to see their possessions. Currently, work is in full swing on the construction of residential buildings and landscaping. After the completion of the first stage of construction on the Palm Jumeirah, about 1,400 villas have already been built, 11 in each of the “branches” and about 2,500 apartments located in 20 buildings located in the eastern part of the “trunk”. There are plans to build 32 hotels on Jumeirah. The main attraction and dream for tourists is the Atlantis complex, consisting of two pompous towers connected by a bridge. Palm Jumeirah can be proud of 78 km. magnificent beaches.

Most of the villas are currently sold out. Special demand for "marine" real estate is in the UK. Buying a home on Jumeirah is sought not only by celebrities, but also by wealthy inhabitants. Currently over 500 villas are occupied.

The problem of delivering tourists and islanders to Palma is practically solved. It is planned to carry out movement on ultra-modern airships of the Skyship 600 model, as well as launch a 5.5 km long monorail. The latter will start functioning already in April 2009 and will connect the city with the palm island, and tests of the monorail in real operating conditions will begin in October this year.

Monorail cars from Japan will run on the line. The system is fully automatic, however, the driver will be constantly present in the cab. It is planned to transport up to 2.4 thousand passengers per hour in one direction in 4 separate trains, each of which consists of 3 cars. At the same time, the monorail will be integrated with the Dubai Metro.

Palm Jumeirah is the smallest in comparison with sisters - Jebel Ali and Deira.

Following Jumeirah, in October 2002, the Palm Jebel Ali project was launched. Jebel Ali is larger than Jumeirah by about 40-50% and has a more exotic shape. While the sale of real estate on this island is sluggish - supply exceeds demand. Most likely, this is due to the fact that before the completion of all construction work, you need to wait several years, and rich people do not want to rest at a construction site. It is possible that the main bet in Jebel Ali will have to be made on tourism, and not on private housing.

More than 1,000 bungalows will be erected on the "second palm" of the waterfront, supported by Polynesian-style pilings. It is planned to build more than 2,000 villas of different layouts. To attract wealthy investors, even the creation of houses on individual projects is proposed. It is predicted that the so-called "palm" of Jebel Ali by 2020 will accommodate about 1.7 million inhabitants. The infrastructure is currently under construction. Residential complexes will be built last. At 30.000 sq. m. it is planned to rebuild a complex of buildings made of glass and concrete, which in shape will resemble the sails of yachts. The crescent surrounding Palm Jebel Ali will host 4 theme parks - SeaWorld, Aquatica, Busch Gardens and Discovery Cove.

Here it is planned to build the first marine aquarium in the region, where world-class water attractions will be demonstrated, where you can watch dolphins, killer whales and other inhabitants of the underwater world. The Sea Village will become one of the most visited tourist destinations in the Middle East.

The Palm Jebel Ali is approximately 22 kilometers and 17 minutes by boat from the Palm Jumeirah. It is assumed that a separate road junction will lead to the island, through which it will be possible to get to Palma directly from Shaikh Zayed Road. This is the central street connecting the Dubai Mall and the capital Abu Dhabi - it has 5 lanes in each direction and stretches for 55 km.

The first 27 km were built between 1993 and 1998. Shaikh Zayed Road is the most important highway in Dubai. It connects with such highways as Al Ain Road (Al Ain Highway), Hatta Road (Hata Highway), Emirates Road (Emirates Circuit Highway), and others. To facilitate the flow of cars - and it reaches 200,000 cars daily - 13 junctions have been created on this central street.

The construction of the Palm Deira started in October 2004. Deira is planned to be eight times the size of the Palm Jumeirah and five times the size of the Palm Jebel Ali. This project is the largest and longest-term one. After its completion, the “third palm” will become the largest man-made island in the history of mankind, which will serve as a habitat for 1 million people. The work is planned to be fully completed by 2015, however, due to the large volumes and costs, most likely, the significant date will again be postponed for several years.

Deira is an exotic palm tree with a wide, massive "trunk" and 41 branches. The anthropogenic structure is crowned with a crescent - a breakwater. Due to the size of the object, its construction was divided into several stages. Deira island will be located between Dubai Creek and Al Hamria Port. Palm Deira is designed to revive the old district of the same name in Dubai.

"The World" (The World)

And, finally, the last to date, the island project of the Arab sheikhs called The World. Its construction was completed on January 10, 2008. These are 300 man-made islands, each of which is a mini-copy of one of the countries. Together they form a geographical map of the world, which can be seen from a bird's eye view. The complex is located a few kilometers from the coast, between the Palm Islands. The archipelago does not just repeat the shape and outlines of the continents - each of the islands corresponds to the national color and traditions of the country it symbolizes. Thus, the Mir complex will indeed become a miniature copy of the globe. An improved copy, because the idea of ​​creating the most comfortable living conditions here will be brought to perfection. Comfortable villas, developed infrastructure, serene landscapes around, parks and lakes. All islands are up for sale. The offer is really tempting: to live in personal Cuba or in Africa. Therefore, the excitement around The World does not subside.

The idea to build a "copy of the globe" belongs to the ruler of Dubai, one of the most influential and richest people in the world, already mentioned at the beginning of our story, Sheikh Mohammed. Officially, the construction is carried out by the same Nakheel company, but in reality, foreign contractors hired by the Dubai government are more involved in the construction of the islands. The materials for the islands are local. The sand for the islands was taken from the Persian Gulf, the rock mass was also mined in the UAE.

The World archipelago is located 4 kilometers from the coast of Dubai. Communication between the islands of the "Mir" and the continent is supposed to be only by water and air. Recall that the Palms will be connected to the coastline of the metropolis through bridges. However, this difficulty does not particularly worry the newly-minted owners of the islands, the rich man, who allowed himself to buy a plot of "water paradise" for 20-40 million dollars, is quite capable of buying a yacht, or even a helicopter. Delivery of tourists to the islands is planned to be carried out on the latest models of airships, as well as pleasure ships (ferries).

At present, for the most part, the large islands are sold out, for example, "Australia", "New Zealand", "Ireland". There were also buyers for Finlandia and Brunei, which investors plan to turn into capitals of luxury and fashion. "Greenland" was ranked among his possessions by Sheikh Maktoum, who built a luxurious villa surrounded by tropical gardens on its territory.

Nakheel has retained the right to dispose of 20 islands located in the "North America" ​​of the Mir archipelago. This resort was called "Coral Islands". Here it is planned to build magnificent hotels, parking for yachts, as well as picturesque villages.

The other side of luxury

Unlike the builders and masterminds behind the sculpting of the islands, environmentalists do not experience great joy from such serious changes taking place in the waters of the Persian Gulf. Concerns have been repeatedly expressed about the negative impact of artificial islands on the flora and fauna of the coastal zone. Skeptics say that the islands can upset the natural balance, and increased use of the Persian Gulf bay will lead to its pollution. It should be noted that the government of Dubai listens to the remarks of the “greens”, since it is itself interested in the development of the tourism industry. In particular, artificial reefs are arranged around the islands, on which favorable conditions are created for the living of marine life. Desalination and water purification stations will be installed on the central islands of The World archipelago. It is planned to use environmentally friendly energy sources.

The next snag faced by the authors of The World project is stagnant water in the bays of the archipelago. It is difficult to deal with this, because. the complex of islands is framed by a 26-kilometer breakwater 4 meters high, which, undoubtedly, makes it safe, but interferes with the renewal of water.

There are a number of other concerns that torment potential buyers - in particular, the reliability and durability of artificial islands. A number of experts believe that as a result of climate change on Earth and an increase in the water level in the World Ocean, in half a century, anthropogenic land areas will be plunged into the abyss. Supporters of the project refute these statements, "reassuring" investors that their holdings will remain afloat for at least 800 years.

The construction of The World archipelago, however, as well as its sisters Palms: Jumeirah, Deira and Jebel Ali caused a flurry of emotions in the world community. A number of critics call Dubai's projects pompous and overly ambitious, especially against the backdrop of a looming food crisis and the catastrophic plight of developing countries. However, the Emirates, whose standard of living is one of the highest in the world, do not stop these statements at all, but rather, on the contrary, encourage them to implement more and more extravagant projects.

Only at first, the most superficial glance, it may seem that Dubai built the artificial island of Palm Jumeirah without any problems. The opinion of an ordinary layman sounds like this: they are swimming in money in the emirate, they don’t know what to do with petrodollars, and having nothing to do, they spent them on an artificial island. Of course, such an opinion implies that Palma was created as if effortlessly, for fun, without any special problems.

In reality, everything was much harder and more complicated. Palm Jumeirah turned out to be an incredibly difficult project to implement, requiring a huge concentration of forces, financial, intellectual and labor resources, at some points the question of stopping construction was even raised due to difficulties that arose. Moreover, even the money for construction at some stages was not enough. And yet, the island rose from the depths of the Persian Gulf and today has become one of the grandest works of mankind in general.

What problems did the creators face during its construction?

Erosion of the island by the sea

In accordance with the original concept, Palm Jumeirah was supposed to be an absolutely environmentally friendly island. For its construction, only stones and sand were used, and reinforced concrete structures were not used. This was the first difficulty - in the absence of metal reinforcement, sand poured even on a stone base was washed away. Therefore, it was decided to build a breakwater first, which will protect the island itself from the destructive effects of the sea.

But then another problem arose: the construction of the breakwater took time, and the time for creating the island increased. Then the builders took the risk and started sanding the island in parallel with the construction of the breakwater, hoping that nothing would happen in a few months. Fortunately, nothing really happened, and by the time the breakwater began to reliably fulfill the tasks assigned to it, the island had already been filled to a large extent.

Desert sand was not suitable for the construction of the island

It would have been easier and more profitable to import desert sand, but it turned out to be too small, the sea would wash it away even if there was a breakwater. There was a need to extract coarse-grained sand from the bottom of the bay 6 km from the coast and transport it to the island on barges. This required additional equipment, additional costs and adjustment of the timing of work.

It was difficult to control the accuracy of the shape of the island

The building itself was too large, and it was extremely difficult to keep its exact outlines when viewed from the ground. The government of Dubai had to bring in the work of the UAE orbiting satellite, which regularly took high-precision images from space and made it possible to check the compliance of the shape of the Palm with the design task.

At almost every stage of the construction, Palm Jumeirah posed difficult tasks for the builders. Nevertheless, Dubai managed to overcome all difficulties and make its man-made Wonder of the World.

Inside the circumference of the breakwater, the water stagnated and rotted.

This not only worsened the ecological situation, but also reduced the attractiveness of the project: no one wants to live on the shore of a fetid puddle. Therefore, the project had to be adjusted and artificial straits were made in the breakwater and at the junction of the “trunk” of Palma with it and with the shore. This made it possible to ensure the circulation of water, its constant renewal and purification.

In 2001, financial reserves for project implementation were sharply reduced

After the September 11 attacks, the entire Arab world fell into disgrace, reduced to a thin trickle, and doubts arose about the advisability of building such a huge tourist attraction in general. However, the Dubai government was firm in its plans and it was decided to complete the project regardless of external circumstances.

And, as it turned out, all the problems were not overcome in vain. Today, many billions of dollars have been invested in it, and the island itself has become one of the city's familiar landmarks. It is also important that all the problems at the stage of its construction were resolved promptly, because if the work had been frozen for at least a year, the Palm Jumeirah could have suffered the same fate as the Palm Jebel Ali - the latter was poured, but does not bring any dividends, but no real estate is being built on it. Therefore, the Palm Jumeirah is a good example of the fact that through thorns it is quite possible to break through to the stars, even if all circumstances seem to deliberately interfere with this.

Palm Islands (UAE) - description, history, location. Exact address, phone number, website. Reviews of tourists, photos and videos.

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The Palm Islands in Dubai is called the eighth wonder of the world. This is the second man-made structure that can be seen from space. The first, as you know, is the Great Wall of China.

The Palm Islands can even be seen from space!

The Palm Islands were created by the authorities of the United Arab Emirates specifically to attract tourists, as well as to expand their territory through the waters of the Persian Gulf. Both were brought to life with brilliance.

What to watch

The archipelago consists of three artificial islands, each of which is a palm tree: the largest is Palm Deira, the other two - Palm Jumeirah and Palm Jebel Ali - are slightly smaller.

On the coast of Dubai there is another magnificent artificial structure - the Mir archipelago, next to which the construction of the Universe archipelago is planned.

If you find fault with terminology, then the Palm Islands should have been called peninsulas, because they are connected to the mainland by a coastline - a trunk. It is no coincidence that the islands are date palms, this is a particularly revered plant in Islam. Also in the traditions of this religion, the crescent moon became the crown of each of the Palm Islands.

To protect against water, the Palm Islands are surrounded by barrier reefs. And the builders did not approach them formally. For example, quotes from the poems of Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, the current Sheikh of Dubai, are carved on the reefs of the Palm Jebel Ali.

The Palm Islands are built from sand mined off the coast of Dubai.

All Palm Islands are built from sand mined off the coast of Dubai. The breakwater of the Palm Jumeirah Island, stretching for 11 km, took seven million cubic meters of sand. And it is the smallest of the three islands. On the Palm Jumeirah, a total of 1,400 villas, 32 hotels, and beaches will stretch for 78 km.

The main attraction of Jumeirah should be the Atlantics complex, the owners promise that it will be a dream come true for tourists.

Palm Jebel Ali is built in a more exotic style. More than a thousand Polynesian-style bungalows and more than two thousand villas will be located here. Dubai authorities plan that by 2020, about 1.7 million people will live on this island. Jebel Ali will pay special attention to children's recreation: four amusement parks will appear on the crescent of the island.

In the future, tourists will come to the Palm Islands to visit the unique marine aquarium. In Jebel Ali, you can see dolphins, killer whales and other inhabitants of the sea.

And the largest and most unusual of the three Palm Islands will be Deira.

How to get there

You can get to the Palm Islands by Dubai Metro. The station is located on the coast of the Persian Gulf. Further, in order to quickly find yourself in a fairy tale, you can take a taxi.

A monorail is laid along the Palm Islands themselves. You can not only get to your destination, but also see all the beauty that the authorities and residents of Dubai have been able to put into practice.

Also, ultramodern airships are planned to be launched on the territory of the Palm Islands. And the monorails will be integrated with the main Dubai metro line.