Gulf News

The Burj Khalifa observation deck has been temporarily closed for "maintenance and upgrade". A spokesperson for Burj Khalifa, said: "Due to unexpected high traffic, the observation deck experience at the Burj Khalifa, At the Top, has been temporarily closed for maintenance and upgrade.

The spectacular opening ceremony that marked the Burj Khalifa's appointment with history is now receding into memory, but the sense of anticipation has only started to build up for the home and office owners in the skyscraper.

You can't help feeling a bit like Batman while driving into an apparently secret, subterranean car tunnel coursing under the Downtown Burj Khalifa area.

"Since the turn of the year and the opening of the Burj Khalifa, we have started to see people want to come back and talk to the bank about making investments outside the cash deposit," said Gary Dugan, chief investment officer, Private Banking, at Emirates NBD. "It's hundreds of millions of dollars being put on the table. It's real money that is coming back in."

Western media have taken aim at this country because of its achievements. The UAE's phenomenal success, which was epitomised by the opening of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai earlier this month stands as testimony to the ability of Arab people to challenge the impossible.

When hotels across Dubai were dropping rack rates all through the year to shore up occupancy levels, two of the hotels within Downtown Burj Khalifa more than held their own. And we can put it down to the location, not to mention the helping hand lent by proximity to the world's tallest tower.

Dubai has a choice between remaining a commercial hub or evolving as a civil society by taking tangible action to alleviate the condition of labourers

While thousands braved traffic and crowds to catch a glimpse of the opening ceremony of the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, Karim Al Bassatne simply walked to the balcony of his three-and-a-half-bedroom apartment in Burj Residences to witness history in the making. He even invited some friends over, giving them all a moment to remember for the rest of their lives.

Jesse Downs, director of research and advisory services at Landmark Advisory says, "Lower-limit rents for high-end units in Downtown Burj have increased by 13 per cent." Meanwhile Landmark's latest report found that prices for one- and two-bedroom units in the Downtown Burj area increased by about 5 per cent (lower limit) between July and December.

Burj Khalifa is a source of pride for Dubai and the UAE, said a huge majority (90 per cent) of respondents in an online survey. Of the 811 UAE residents who took part in YouGov Siraj's online Omnibus survey, 61 per cent said they watched the inauguration of the Burj Khalifa.