Qasr Al Watan is the UAE Presidential Palace opened to visitors in Abu Dhabi, and it is one of the rare places on earth where you can walk through a working head-of-state building, admire halls where world leaders have shaken hands, and watch a nightly light show illuminate the same façade. The name translates to Palace of the Nation, and within its vast marble-and-gold interiors you find the formal offices of the UAE President and Vice President, meeting rooms of the Federal Supreme Council, a library packed with manuscripts on Arab science and governance, and interactive exhibits that trace the country's founding story. The architecture alone is reason enough to go: sweeping domes, intricate geometric patterns, and a golden dome that catches the desert sun from across the Corniche. For a first-time Abu Dhabi visitor, Qasr Al Watan slots naturally into a culture-and-architecture day, pairing well with the nearby Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque or the waterfront Corniche. Allow around two hours to explore at your own pace with an audio guide available in five languages, then stay until dark if you can, because the Palace in Motion light show transforms the entire complex into a moving canvas of projected history, culture and future vision.

Tourist attraction

Abu · AE

Al Qana

Al Qana is Abu Dhabi’s sprawling waterfront lifestyle destination, built around a lively canal promenade where the capital comes to eat, play and wander by the water. Far more than a single attraction, it gathers an aquarium, a butterfly sanctuary, gaming halls, an adventure park, a cinema, a marina and a long ribbon of restaurants into one walkable, fully integrated precinct on Al Maqta’ Street in the Rabdan area. Open since the early 2020s and repeatedly named a Tripadvisor Travellers’ Choice destination in the world’s top 10%, Al Qana has become a favourite for family days out, sunset walks and layover dining. The best part for a first-time visitor: it is not a gated attraction, so strolling the promenade and marina costs nothing, while the individual venues charge their own admission.

Water park

Abu · AE

AquaDhabi Water Park

AquaDhabi turns a stretch of the Abu Dhabi Corniche into a floating playground. As the emirate's largest inflatable water park, it anchors more than 45 chunky, bouncy obstacles out on the sea, letting you and your children run, jump, climb and belly-flop across the water under a wide Arabian sky. For families and groups of friends after an active, sun-soaked hour by the coast, it offers a kind of hands-on, splash-everywhere fun that a conventional slide park simply cannot.

Theme park

Abu · AE

Ferrari World Yas Island, Abu Dhabi

Ferrari World Abu Dhabi is the world's first Ferrari-branded theme park, housed beneath a sweeping red canopy emblazoned with the iconic Prancing Horse logo on Yas Island. Inside, the park channels decades of Italian automotive passion into high-speed roller coasters, cutting-edge racing simulators, interactive factory tours, and family-friendly attractions spread across themed zones. Its crown jewel, Formula Rossa, is the fastest roller coaster on Earth — launching riders from 0 to 240 km/h in just 4.9 seconds with a peak force of 4.8 g. But the park goes well beyond that single record-breaker: it offers everything from hang-gliding simulators and karting academies for kids to an esports arena and a dining scene that brings the flavors of Ferrari's birthplace, the Emilia-Romagna region, to Abu Dhabi.