Burj Khalifa Tickets: At The Top, SKY & The Lounge

Burj Khalifa tickets come in three tiers, and the difference between them is not simply how high you go. At The Top covers levels 124 and 125 at 452 metres and includes an open-air terrace. At The Top SKY adds level 148 at 555 metres, a smaller and far quieter floor. The Lounge, on levels 152 to 154, is a bar with a view rather than an observation deck. This page explains which one suits which visitor, and when to book your slot.

What each Burj Khalifa ticket includes

Every tier starts the same way: you enter from the lower ground floor of Dubai Mall, walk a short exhibition corridor about the tower's construction, then take a lift that reaches level 124 in roughly a minute. What differs is where you get out and how many people are up there with you.

Our price starts at AED 175 per person for the At The Top ticket, with instant confirmation and a timed entry slot sent by email.

How the visit works, step by step

1. Arrive at the Burj Khalifa entrance on the lower ground floor of Dubai Mall, near the aquarium. Signage points to "At The Top".
2. Show your voucher on your phone. With a timed ticket you join the holders' line rather than the walk-up desk.
3. Pass through security, then the exhibition corridor.
4. Take the lift to level 124. Ears pop on the way up.
5. Walk out onto the terrace on 124, then up the internal stair to 125 for the indoor view.
6. If you hold a SKY ticket, a separate lift continues to 148 from the reception on 125.
7. Exit routes you back through the mall.

Allow 60 to 90 minutes from entry to exit. Add 30 minutes if you have a SKY ticket.

Opening hours and the best time to go

The tower runs from morning until late, but published hours shift with the season and with private events, so treat the time printed on your own voucher as the one that counts rather than any schedule you read elsewhere.

The slot worth paying attention to is sunset. Book for roughly 30 to 45 minutes before the sun goes down and one ticket buys you three versions of the same city: daylight, the gold half-hour, then the grid lighting up. Those slots sell out first — often a week ahead between November and March. If they have gone, a late evening slot after 8pm is quieter than any afternoon one, and the Dubai Fountain runs below you every half hour until 11pm.

Mornings are the clearest. Dubai's haze builds through the day, so if your reason for going is to photograph the Palm or the coastline rather than the city lights, come early.

Getting there and parking

Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall is the metro station, on the Red Line, with a long air-conditioned walkway into the mall. Allow 15 minutes from the platform to the Burj Khalifa entrance; the walkway is longer than it looks on a map.

Driving, use the Dubai Mall car parks and follow signs for Grand Parking or Cinema Parking. Charges apply and the mall is busiest from late afternoon. Hotel pickup is not included with this ticket.

Good to know before you book

• There is no dress code, but the terrace on 124 is genuinely windy. Long hair and loose hats suffer.
• Tripods are not permitted. Shooting through glass is easier if you press the lens flat against it to kill reflections.
• The decks are step-free and wheelchairs are accommodated, including on the level 124 terrace.
• Photo points inside take souvenir pictures; buying them is optional and they are not part of your ticket.
• Entry is by timed slot. Arriving late may mean waiting for a gap rather than being turned away, but it is not guaranteed.
• Free cancellation up to 24 hours before your slot.

Is it worth it?

For a first visit, yes — and At The Top is the tier to buy. The extra 103 metres that SKY gives you changes the view far less than people expect, because at 452 metres you are already above everything. What you are really paying for with SKY is a quieter floor, which is worth it on a crowded evening and not much else.

Skip the upgrade if you are travelling as a family; children care about the terrace and the lifts, neither of which improves on 148. And if your budget only stretches to one Downtown ticket, the view of the Burj Khalifa from outside is arguably better than the view from inside it — the tower is the thing you came to see, and you cannot see it while standing in it.

Combine it with

The Dubai Fountain lake ride runs directly below the tower and pairs naturally with a sunset slot — up first, on the water afterwards. For the opposite view, the Dubai Frame looks back at the Downtown skyline with the Burj Khalifa in the middle of it.

Planning your visit? Read our guide: Burj Khalifa At the Top vs SKY: prices and best time to go.