The Al Faisaliah Tower ( برج الفيصلية) is a commercial skyscraper and complex located in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This tower is 267 meters high with 55 stories and is famous for being the first skyscraper to be built in Saudi Arabia. The Al Faisaliah Complex was designed by the well known British Architect firm, Foster + Partners.
Structure
Shaped like an elongated pyramid, the Al Faisaliah Tower looks futuristic, especially at night as it stands out from afar. The tower is famous for the enormous glass globe that is located near the apex. The globe is 24 meters in diameter and is made of 655 glass panels. Another famous element of this building is its lobby’s monumental stained-glass walls that were designed by artist Brian Clarke. Currently, the tower is the fourth tallest in Saudi Arabia and ranks as the 325th tallest building in the world.
Inside the Tower
Inside the tower are apartments, restaurants, offices, the Sky shopping mall, and a viewing platform. From the viewing platform, tourists can marvel at the Riyadh skyline including the iconic Kingdom Tower. This activity alone attracts the biggest number of tourists, as it is not every day that you get to be on top of one of the biggest cities in the world. At the top of the tower is the Globe Restaurant, which is located inside the golden sphere and requires a reservation to visit.
The Al Faisaliah complex includes the adjacenet five star Al Faisaliah Hotel and fine dining restaurants including the Italian restaurant, Mamo Michelangelo , LPM Riyadh, Meraki, Entrecote Cafe de Paris as well Mode Mall which contains the famous Yauatcha Riyadh which is a fine dining Chinese restaurant.
Access to the tower is limited, and is only open from 12 pm to 12 am, and you have to pay a fee of 63 Saudi riyals in order to go up. With some of the best food and an amazing atmosphere, the tower is among the top places tourists should visit if they are in the city.
