Qasr Al Watan!

A cultural landmark in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, the Qasr Al Watan Presidential Palace was nominated for the 2020’s World Travels Award as the main tourist attraction. With its gorgeous landscape and what it offers to the world, this award hit the mark.

Though it is a tourist attraction, it is more than what it implies. The Palace houses the President, the Vice President, and the Crown Prince of the UAE, and for this reason, much of the Qasr Al Watan Presidential Palace remains closed to the public.

And with its grandeur, it invites the people into a blinding journey enriched with the culture of its people, a true sight to behold for those who want to experience this enlightening journey.

Key Takeaways

• The Qasr Al Watan is a beautiful attraction in the United Arab Emirates, winning an award in 2020.
• The Palace houses the President, Vice President, and Crown Prince.
• The great hall welcomed well-known people, including the Pope and the Chinese President.
• It comes with eight rooms, each befitting that of a royal.
• The banquet hall comes with its history lessons.
• The library offers knowledge of Arab history to the rest of the world.

Architecture

In its glory!

• Huge murals.
• Richly designed ceilings.
• Gorgeous chandeliers.
• Domes are larger than life itself.
• Halls decked with marble floors.

Truly, Qasr Al Watan is dripped in glittery gold, a place fit for the kings and royalty to come, touched by Midas himself.

What else, other than the Arab-inspired designs, does the Qasr Al Watan offer?

The Great Hall

A magnificent view from the inside!

Much like everything else, the hall of the Presidential Palace is bathed in gold, paired off with eye-catching designs and sparkling chandeliers. The great hall of Qasr Al Watan is known as the heart of the building, and certainly not without reason.

Paired off with domes larger than 37 meters in diameter—significantly larger than what Abu Dhabi has offered before—the grand hall never fails to astonish. The floors are made from soft marble, with their designs breathtaking and difficult to remove eyes from. Not only that, but it is truly spacious, its dimensions 100 by 100 meters.

The hall also offers mirrors to radiate light off its surroundings, a finishing touch to the already magical glow of the building. And to show off its metaphysical structure, it has housed people of grand stature, such as the Chinese President, Xi Jinping, and the Pope.

The Eight Rooms 

Visitors are given the option of visiting eight other rooms from the Grand Hall. And, of course, the experience is made more magical at night, where they can witness a daily light show with video projections. The entirety of these eight rooms works wonders to show off what comes with being of royal stature.

What better way to show off what the Qasr Al Watan offers than to include gifts given to the UAE by countries worldwide? These gifts include samurai armor from Japan, falcon masks gifted by the Federal Republic of Germany, medals, and coins from different countries, and a set of swords and shields from Kazakhstan.

The Royal Banquet

Aesthetic Banquet Hall!

The Royal Banquet offers hand-painted plates to show off what the hosts have contributed to the world. The food correlates with the UAE’s rich culinary history, and one of the most popular dishes served is an entire lamb on rice.

This hall also offers an in-depth introduction to the protocols and customs of the Emiratis—such as the tables at the front being half-empty so guests do not turn their backs on the hosts. The Banquet Hall also offers collections of silver, china, and crystal, making this experience more of an out-of-this-world phenomenon.

The Knowledge

A glimpse of the library!

Visitors, in general, will also be able to visit the library and be exposed to more history and knowledge. The Library of the Qasr Al Watan dives deep into human civilization. It shows off to the world the UAE’s contributions to subjects such as astronomy, science, art, literature, and many more.

This library features 50,000 books from various moments in Arab history, preserving Arabian knowledge from different moments worldwide.

The Palace offers many things to visitors, from the viewing of a beautiful hall to more opportunities to learn about the Arab culture at the library and to experience the culture first-hand with its banquet halls and the eight rooms of wonder.

So, what are you waiting for? Give yourself a chance to explore more of Arab history, purchase that ticket, and visit a landscape that can give you a magical experience!