Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Skyscraper in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Kingdom Centre, formerly Kingdom Tower, is a 99-storey skyscraper about 302 metres tall in Riyadh's Al-Olaya district, at the junction of three of the city's main roads, and one of the best-known landmarks of modern Saudi Arabia. Completed in 2002 on land bought by Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal in 1990, it overtook the Faisaliah Tower as the kingdom's tallest building at the time; it was designed by Ellerbe Becket with Omrania after an international competition. Its signature is the inverted parabolic arch in its upper third, topped by a public glass-sided Sky Bridge, a 300-tonne steel structure about 65 metres long at roughly 300 metres up, reached by two high-speed lifts, with a view over the whole of Riyadh; lit at night, the tower's opening looks like a pendant in the sky. It also contains the King Abdullah Mosque, described as the world's highest mosque above ground level. It stands on a site of about 100,000 square metres and houses the three-storey, 57,000-square-metre Al-Mamlaka mall, the Four Seasons Hotel, offices, luxury apartments, event halls and many restaurants.
Go up to the Sky Bridge at sunset or after dark, when Riyadh's lights spread to the horizon. Tickets are sold on the mall's lower level; check times, which are mostly evenings. Allow an hour for the bridge and extra time for the mall. The bridge is glass-sided, so it may not suit anyone uneasy with heights.
Hours and prices change — check before you go. Source: en.wikipedia.org
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