ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

The Top Five Most Spectacular Skyscapers in the World

Updated on October 14, 2013
Source
Source

A Picture Hub of Breathtaking Architecture


The Top Five Most Spectacular Skyscrapers in the World:

1. Burj Khalifa, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

2. Al Hamra Tower, Kuwait City, Kuwait

3. One World Trade Center, New York City, United States

4. Jin Mao Tower, Shanghai, China

5. Abraj Al-Bait, Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Honorable Mention: Umeda Sky Building, Osaka, Japan


Burj Khalifa

A view from the observation deck.
A view from the observation deck. | Source
Dubai skyline
Dubai skyline | Source
Source
Burj Khalifa under construction
Burj Khalifa under construction

Height: 2,722 ft (829.8 m) Number of Floors: 163

Construction Start to Opening: January 2004 - January 2010

Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Designers: Skidmore, Owings and Merrill

World Records: Burj Khalifa is the worlds tallest structure by nearly 700 ft. Naturally, it holds a number of records in regards to building height and architecture. It holds the world's highest restaurant.

Meaning behind the name: Burj is Arabic for Tower. Khalifa is the name of the President of UAE. The skyscraper was originally namedBurj Dubai, "Dubai Tower", but was renamed at it's opening in honor of President, Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in return for his backing of the project.

Interesting fact: The elevators in the tower move at 33 ft/second or roughly 22.5 miles per hour. There are 2,909 stairs from the ground floor to the 160th floor.


Al Hamra Tower

Source
Source

Height: 1,354 ft (412.6 m) Number of Floors: 77

Location: Kuwait City, Kuwait

Total Cost: $500 million

Records: Tallest stone-clad structure

Interesting Fact: Over 195,000 square meters of concrete was used in the construction of the building.

One World Trade Center

Skyline of Manhattan
Skyline of Manhattan | Source
A view of the tower under construction in July 2012.
A view of the tower under construction in July 2012. | Source
The tower--closer to completion--in November 2012.
The tower--closer to completion--in November 2012. | Source
A photo of the tower from the Hudson River taken in July 2013.
A photo of the tower from the Hudson River taken in July 2013.

As of February 2013, this building is topped-out, but not yet completed. Construction started in April 2007 and the building is scheduled to open in late 2013 or early 2014. The building was formerly known as the Freedom Tower. The tower is a part of the new World Trade Center complex which features a September 11 Memorial, a new transportation hub, and other high-rise buildings.

Height: 1776 ft. (546.2 m) Number of Floors: 104

Location: New York, United States

Total Cost: $3.8 billion

World Records: The third tallest skyscraper in the world and the tallest in the western hemisphere.

Interesting Fact: The building is developed and controlled by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

Jin Mao Tower

A bottom-up view of the 32 story Grand Hyatt atrium.
A bottom-up view of the 32 story Grand Hyatt atrium.
Source
Source

Height: 1380 ft. (420.5 m) Number of Floors: 88

Location: Shanghai, China

Construction Started and Finished: 1994 - 1999

Number of Lifts/Elevators: 61

Total Cost: roughly $530 million

Interesting Fact: Floors 53-87 hold the Shanghai Grand Hyatt hotel, featuring 555 rooms and a barrel-vaulted atrium 32 stories high.

Abraj Al-Bait

A view of Abraj Al Bait with construction nearly complete.
A view of Abraj Al Bait with construction nearly complete. | Source
Source
Source

Height: 1,972 (601 m) Number of Floors: 120

Location: Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Construction Started/finished: 2004-2012

Total Cost: $15 billion

Interesting fact: the clock on the Abraj Al-Bait tower is the largest in the world. It can be viewed from 16 miles away/

Umeda Sky Building

This 40-story tower deserves an honorable mention simply because of it's unique design and the sky bridges which cross "space" between the two towers.

Vote for your favorite

Which skyscraper is your favorite

See results
working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)