Qaṣr Al-Waṭan is the presidential palace of the United Arab Emirates, located in Abu Dhabi.
It is more than just a place, it is a unique testament to the spirit of the UAE’ people and its leaders that reveals and reflects on governance, knowledge and craftsmanship.
It has been a great pleasure for my family to be able to visit such a special place. In this blog, I’m happy to share with you all our wonderful experience.
Opening Hours
The Qasr Al Watan timings are from 10:00 am to 08:00 pm, from Sunday to Thursday. However, the ticket counter is open from 10:00 am to 07:00 pm. Tickets are not issued after 07:00 pm so make sure to arrive there before that so that you have enough time to explore the entire palace
Moreover, the Palace in Motion show is being held at 8:15pm, Last entry: 7:45pm.
We visited the palace in the month of June and we arrived at the location after 10am when it was already a bit hot. So, I suggest to visit the place during the months when the weather is cool – that is around November to February.
Despite the weather condition, we still enjoyed our visit since we wandered inside the palace itself and there are so many things you could see and explore there.
How To Get There
There are lots of options on how to get to Qasr Al Watan.
If you’re travelling from Dubai, the Qasr Al Watan location is approximately a one and a half hour drive via the E11. While for those travelling from anywhere within Abu Dhabi, expect a 20-30 minute drive.
You may opt for self-drive, taking the bus or hiring a taxi.
Once you arrive, you will need to park at the visitors parking and head to the ticketing counter located inside the Visitor Centre. From there a shuttle bus will take you to the palace grounds. Valet parking at Qasr Al Watan is also available at AED 80 per car from 09:30 am to 09:30 pm.
Booking the Tickets
When we first arrived in the Visitor Centre, we actually didn’t know that TICKETS ARE NOT FREE OF CHARGE. We absolutely have no idea. I wasn’t sure why I didn’t googled it beforehand. 😅
We were already there, so might as well go with it and pay for the tickets.
Lesson learned: Always do a research before you reach your destination.
Ticket prices were mentioned in the counter where tourists queue to pay for their tickets.
- Palace and Garden Ticket: AED 60 (Adults), AED 30 (Children below 17 years and Senior Citizens)
- Garden Only Ticket: AED 60 (Adults), AED 30 (Children below 17 years and Senior Citizens)
- Standard Guided Tour English/Arabic: AED 30 (1 to 20 visitors)
- Private Guided Tour English/Arabic: AED 600 (1 to 20 visitors)
Apparently, one staff approached us and told that if we booked online, we will get some discount.
And so we booked ours via the Platinumlist.net. As far as I could remember, we got around 30% discount after booking 3 adult tickets. They usually give different offers every season so keep on checking for good ones! 😍
After which, we received our digital tickets and were guided to ride a bus.
This bus took us from the Visitor Centre to the palace grounds. It was around 5 – 10 minutes ride, and yes, it was a few-minute ride since the palace was a very huge place! I couldn’t imagine ourselves if we walk from the entrance to the inside of the palace. 😁
Inside the bus, there were other tourists patiently waiting to enter the palace. There was also this audio speaker that served as a tour guide about what we were seeing around the palace.
I also noticed during the trip that the gated entrance was secured by soldiers. It is indeed a strictly guarded place.
The Dress Code Policy
The dress code rules are not as restrictive as what you should wear to the Grand Mosque; however, ladies should cover their knees and shoulders and wear nothing too clingy or revealing. A head covering is NOT required; men should wear trousers and tops with shirt sleeves.
The Main Attractions
The Great Hall
Upon entering the palace, we were amazed by the breathtaking archways. Every side was ornamented with complex gold and earth-toned architectural details.
I could say that the Great Wall is the most amazing things to see inside the Qasr Al Watan. as it features a lot of intricate patterns that you could stare all day.
The ‘Power Of Words’ Art Structure
As we are exploring the Great Hall, we stumbled upon a beautiful golden structure called the “Power of Words”. It featured interlaced words from an Arabic quote by Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nayan that says “Wealth is not money or oil, wealth lies in people and it is worthless if not dedicated to serve the people.”
It was indeed a picture-perfect spot. You can either stand outside or inside the structure to take a selfie or even a groupie with your family.
Qasr Al Watan Library
As we kept on exploring the great Hall, we found ourselves in the Qasr Al Watan Library that features more than 50,000 books. A collection that ranges from science, literature, researches as well as newspapers, magazines and other visual contents. If you are a bibliophile, this is a great place for you! 🤓📖📰
The House of Knowledge
We also roamed around one of the rooms in Qasr Al Watan called ‘The House of Knowledge’. The name implies to its purpose as it cases some of the rarest books and manuscripts as well as historic works of calligraphy that are dated centuries ago.
The Spirit of Collaboration Room
This is the official meeting room for the highest constitutional authority in the UAE at the Qasr al Watan presidential palace. It is also used to host official summits such as the Arab League, the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation
Our Experience
It was one of a kind experience!
First of all, it was our first time to visit a Presidential Palace. In our home country, the Philippines, we didn’t get the chance to visit even once though I’m not sure why. 😅
Every piece of its structure was stunning, the very detailed walls that consisted of small tiles which were designed delicately next to each other to form a bigger and more beautiful design is just … wow! 😲
Aside from that, the chandeliers hanging from up the ceilings was so elegant, I wondered how many crystals were used to complete one chandelier as there were a lot of them placed all over the halls. Even the huge carpeted floors inside the rooms are truly a masterpiece.
All the structures are uniquely designed from the very detail of each piece. It is a combined effort of all the people who made this building such a success.
Our expedition wouldn’t be complete if we didn’t visited the Qasr Al Watan.
it was one of a lifetime experience and I can say that the price we paid was all worth it. 👌
Not only us adults, but also my little daughter enjoyed the picturesque view from the walls up to the ceiling. She was even cooing whooow… how cute isn’t she?! 🥰
By the way, kid’s strollers are definitely allowed inside the facility. So if you’re planning to come with kids, just go with it and enjoy!
The wall behind us was actually a huge geometrical mirror. I can say it’s geometrical because of the patterned shapes all over it just like huge triangles and diamonds.
And my daughter loved it so much! She stared on that mirror to see her face on it then giggled continuously.
After roaming around the palace, this was the view after exiting.
From afar, you could also see the Emirates Towers, which we were actually planning to visit. But since, we could see it from there, so we skipped going to that special building. anyways.
In front of the palace, there was this huge fountain that just looked so nice, relaxing and very refreshing. Just a perfect scene for the ‘post-roaming’ experience we had from the beautiful palace.
From here, we rode the bus going back to the Visitor Centre and that was the end of our fulfilling trip.
Have you been to Qasr Al Watan, Presidential palace, Abu Dhabi?
We would love to hear your thoughts and your overall experience. Let us know on the below comment section.
Sources:
- Qar Al Watan Abu Dhabi
- Wikipedia: Qasr Al Watan
- Bayut.com:The Qasr Al Watan Palace in Abu Dhabi Review
Check out our other Travel blogs:
Visiting Burj Khalifa At The Top
Visiting The View at The Palm, Jumeirah Dubai
Visiting the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, Abu Dhabi
A Free Ticket To The Warner Bros World, Abu Dhabi
Visiting Qasr Al Watan, The Presidential Palace, Abu Dhabi
