Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
The most visited building in Abu Dhabi
The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi is the emirate's most visited landmark. It is arguably one of the most impressive religious buildings in the contemporary world. It is a monumental mosque made of white marble, decorated with delicate floral motifs, gold details and one of the largest hand-woven carpets in the world.
Mosque from the highway
The mosque is built at two important highway junctions and thanks to its monumentality it can be seen from afar. If you are on holiday in Abu Dhabi, the easiest way to get here is by Uber. Of course, there are bus tours from Dubai, or if you have a rented car, it is also easy. There are also bus stops here.
Entrance to the mosque
Visiting the mosque is not exactly straightforward. The parking lot is quite far from it and you immediately take the escalators to the underground, where there is a shopping arcade with lots of restaurants. So it's a perfect place to have lunch before or after the visit.
The good news is that entry to the mosque is free. But you need to have a visitor QR code which you can get in advance online or here at the kiosk. This is checked at several places. Then there is a security check like at the airport and be careful, there is also a clothing check – you can wear a T-shirt if it covers your shoulders and shorts if they cover your knees – this can be solved by pulling down. Then you have to walk underground for quite a while before you get on the escalators directly to the mosque
Swimming pools in front of the mosque
The pools in front of the mosque are the first very photogenic place. The minarets are huge, 107 meters high.
Mosque Hall
Another amazing place is the hall. The floor shines and gives the impression of a water surface.
Floor polishers
It may not seem like it, but in this heat, this work must be quite tiring.
The third largest mosque in the world
The mosque is the largest in the UAE and is among the largest mosques in the world (often listed as the third largest after the holy mosques in Mecca and Medina). The construction was carried out by more than 3,000 workers and 38 companies from around the world, who used materials from a number of countries (marble from Italy and Greece). You move around the mosque in predetermined corridors and only forward. Thanks to this, the halls are empty and the photos are more beautiful.
Rare chandeliers and a record-breaking carpet
Finally, the excursion path will take us inside the mosque, where there are two main attractions: The main prayer hall contains one of the largest hand-knotted carpets in the world (~5,627 m²), weighing tens of tons and made by Iranian-Turkish craftsmen. The mosque has large crystal chandeliers from German manufacturers (e.g. one has a diameter of ~10 m and a height of ~15 m, decorated with Swarovski crystals)
Along the colonnade
After exploring the interiors, all you have to do is return along the colonnade back to the escalators. There are more than 1,000 marble columns in the mosque.
Mosque models
There is also an exhibition of models of the most important mosques in the UAE underground.
