Most people think of Al Maryah Island as the place they go to work, or the place they go to spend a worrying amount on a Friday night. Both are fair. By day it is Abu Dhabi’s financial district, all glass towers and lanyards. By night it turns into the capital’s smartest dinner address, with Zuma, COYA and LPM lined up along the water like they are waiting for a photo.
But the families who live here, and the ones who drive over from Reem and the city every weekend, use it for something simpler. A long, flat, beautifully kept waterfront to walk. A mall that never feels rammed. A Waitrose, an IMAX and two five-star kids clubs within a few minutes of each other. Here is what Al Maryah Island is actually good for once the office crowd has gone home.
Where Al Maryah Island actually is
Al Maryah Island sits in the channel just off the northeast edge of Abu Dhabi island, with Al Reem Island on its other side. It is small, around 114 hectares, and was known as Sowwah Island until the name changed with its redevelopment. Several bridges tie it to both neighbours, so you can be on Hamdan Bin Mohammed Street or in the middle of Reem in a few minutes.
Three things define it. Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the financial free zone, runs out of ADGM Square in the middle of the island. The Galleria Al Maryah Island takes up the waterfront facing the city. And two five-star hotels, Four Seasons and Rosewood, bookend the whole thing. Wrap a 5.4km waterside promenade around all of that and you have the island in one sentence.
The Galleria: the island’s living room
The Galleria is the reason most people cross the bridge. It carries more than 400 brands, skewing luxury (Chanel, Cartier, Hermes and friends), but residents mostly lean on the everyday end: Waitrose on Level C for the weekly shop, the pharmacies, the coffee counters and a dining line-up that stretches right along the waterfront. It is spacious and almost never feels crowded, which in UAE mall terms is a small miracle.
For entertainment, VOX Cinemas on Level 4 runs 21 screens and the city’s only full laser IMAX. Families get Mission: Play! by Mattel, a 4,000 sqm indoor playground built around Barbie, Hot Wheels and MEGA, plus Kidz Factory, Sparky’s, Caboodle and Xtreme Zone trampolines. Older kids tend to disappear into Zero Latency VR, Game Over Escape Room or True Gamers. Our list of cool ways to beat the heat at The Galleria is basically a summer survival plan built on this building.
Location and access: The Galleria Al Maryah Island, 107 Hamouda Bin Ali Al Dhaheri Street, Al Maryah Island. Open Sunday to Thursday 10am to 10pm, Friday and Saturday 10am to midnight. Contact +971 2 493 7400 or thegalleria.ae. VOX Cinemas +971 600 599 905. Waitrose +971 2 650 3586.
WOW Abu Dhabi Expert Tip: The Galleria’s parking is ticketless and reads your number plate, and it is free on weekends and public holidays. On weekdays you get a free window before charges kick in, so if you are planning a long cinema-plus-dinner session midweek, check the rates at the entrance before you settle in.
Where to eat: the waterfront dinner strip
This is where Al Maryah earns its reputation. The Galleria’s waterfront terraces face the city skyline across the channel, and at sunset the whole row fills up with birthday tables, client dinners and people who just like being seen with a good view behind them.
- Zuma – modern Japanese izakaya, still the island’s default for a big night out. Galleria South Plaza, Section E. Reservations: +971 2 401 5900.
- COYA – Peruvian with a party streak, freshly reopened after its summer 2026 refresh. Galleria North Plaza, Section D. Reservations: +971 2 306 7000.
- LPM Restaurant & Bar – French Mediterranean, the one your in-laws will approve of. Galleria Level 1, Section B. Reservations: +971 2 692 9600.
- Nusr-Et – steakhouse, theatre included. Galleria Level 1, Section B. Reservations: +971 2 679 9949.
- Novikov – Mediterranean-Italian from the London original, open since June 2025. Galleria Level 2, Section E. Reservations: +971 2 563 2937.
- Isabel Mayfair – the newest big-name arrival, open since April 2026. Galleria Level 2, Luxury Collection. Reservations: +971 2 562 0045. Read our Isabel Mayfair review for what to order and what to skip.
- Flamingo Room by tashas – pretty, relaxed and the best bet for a daytime catch-up. Galleria South Plaza, Section E. Reservations: +971 2 675 9301.
The two hotels add a second layer. At Four Seasons, Cafe Milano is the Italian regular with a Michelin Guide 2026 nod, Butcher & Still does 1920s Chicago-style steaks, Crust handles all-day dining and a family-friendly Friday brunch, and Saikindo, a Japanese hi-fi listening bar with a robata room, is the newest reason to book. At Rosewood, Dai Pai Dong is the Cantonese favourite for dim sum Saturdays, Aqua does seafood with near-panoramic views and Em Sherif Sea Cafe brings Lebanese Mediterranean to the water. Our full rundown of Four Seasons Abu Dhabi dining goes deeper, and both hotels feature in our guide to the city’s best private dining rooms.
Location and access: Four Seasons Hotel Abu Dhabi at Al Maryah Island, dining reservations +971 2 333 2444 (Cafe Milano and Butcher & Still) or +971 2 333 2222 (hotel). Butcher & Still has had a renovation closure this year, so ring before you go. Rosewood Abu Dhabi, dining reservations +971 2 813 5550 or abudhabi.dining@rosewoodhotels.com. Em Sherif Sea Cafe direct: +971 2 626 2895.
The promenade and the free stuff
Ask a resident what they actually love about Al Maryah and the answer is rarely a restaurant. It is the promenade. The island is ringed by a 5.4km waterside walk, wide, flat, well lit and properly maintained, which makes it one of the best places in the city for a buggy, a scooter or an evening run. Highline Park and South Plaza break it up with green space, and Maryah Island Edge Park adds a linear strip of lawn for kids who need to run in circles.
Inside The Galleria, the Sky Park on Level 4 and The Grand Steps are free to wander. And on the big nights, New Year’s Eve, UAE National Day and Eid, the Galleria waterfront is one of the city’s go-to spots for fireworks. Arrive early for those; the terraces book out and the promenade fills fast.
WOW Abu Dhabi Expert Tip: Walk the promenade at golden hour or after 7pm between May and September. Midday in summer it is a beautiful, empty, shadeless griddle. From October to April, weekend mornings are glorious and quieter than the Corniche.
Where to stay, or send visiting family
Only two hotels sit on the island itself, and both are the kind you would happily put the in-laws in.
Four Seasons Hotel Abu Dhabi at Al Maryah Island has 200 rooms and suites, a pool kept at a gentle 28C, The Pearl Spa and a complimentary Kids For All Seasons club for ages 4 to 12, plus a teen space and babysitting on request. It is a short walk to The Galleria, which is half the appeal. Contact: +971 2 333 2222.
Rosewood Abu Dhabi sits on the waterfront beside ADGM Square with a pool facing the channel, family suites, the Rosewood Explorers kids club and Sense, A Rosewood Spa. Guests also get beach access at a partner club on Saadiyat, which solves the one thing Al Maryah does not have. Contact: +971 2 813 5550 or abudhabi@rosewoodhotels.com.
For families with kids
Al Maryah is not a theme-park island like Yas, and that is the point. It works as the easy, air-conditioned half-day: Mission: Play! or the trampoline park in the morning, lunch at Flamingo Room or Crust, a promenade scooter loop once the heat drops. The Galleria’s Family Park on Level 2 and the Sky Park give smaller kids somewhere to burn energy between errands, and a Waitrose run on the way out means nobody has to cook.
What the island does not have is a public beach or a school. For sand, residents head to Saadiyat or Al Bateen; for schools, see the next section.
Living on Al Maryah Island
The residential stock is small and mostly high-rise. Al Maryah Vista makes up the bulk of rental listings, with Four Seasons Private Residences at the top end. At the time of writing, one-bedroom apartments mostly list between AED 75,000 and AED 90,000 a year, with Four Seasons units running to AED 250,000 to AED 300,000. Two-bedroom stock is thin and starts from around AED 130,000. Rents on the island have climbed sharply over the past year, so treat those as a starting point and check current listings before you negotiate.
There are no schools on the island itself, but the neighbour does the heavy lifting. Al Reem Island, a bridge away, has Repton Abu Dhabi (British, IGCSE to A-Level and IB), Nord Anglia International School Abu Dhabi (English National Curriculum) and GEMS World Academy Abu Dhabi (IB), plus a good spread of nurseries. For healthcare, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi is on the island, which is a genuine perk for families with elderly parents visiting. Contact: 800 8 2223.
The honest trade-off: this is a business district first. Weekday lunchtimes are busy, weekday evenings are lovely, and the island is at its calmest once the office towers empty. If you work at ADGM or anywhere downtown, the commute is the kind people in Khalifa City dream about. The W Residences project is also bringing more branded homes to Al Maryah in the coming years.
What is coming next
Al Maryah is about to get a lot bigger. In July 2025, Mubadala broke ground on a waterfront overhaul built around a 30-metre illuminated sphere with more than 1,000 water jets firing over 75 metres into the air, set to music by Game of Thrones composer Ramin Djawadi. It comes with a longer boardwalk, shaded cooling areas and new food and event spaces. No opening date has been announced yet.
Bigger still, Aldar and Mubadala announced the North Maryah expansion in December 2025, an AED 60 billion-plus project adding a new marina, more than 3,000 homes, new hotels, 2.5km of air-conditioned walkways and three new bridges to Reem, Mina Zayed and Saadiyat. Enabling works are due to begin in 2026. ADGM has already stretched its jurisdiction across to Al Reem Island, so the two islands now operate as one financial district.
Getting around and a few honest notes
Driving is easy. There are no Darb toll gates on the Al Maryah bridges, so hopping between Maryah, Reem and downtown is toll-free; you only pay if you are coming in over one of the mainland bridges at peak times (our Darb toll guide has the current gates and fees). Island car parks are largely free, and The Galleria has more than 7,000 spaces plus valet.
The bridges to Reem have cycle lanes, which makes a Maryah-Reem loop a decent weekend ride. Buses do serve the island, with a stop at The Galleria’s northwest entrance, but routes change, so check the Darbi app or our guide to using public transport in Abu Dhabi. The taxi rank is on Level G by the South Atrium.
If you are comparing areas, our neighbourhood guides to Saadiyat Island, Yas Island and Al Bateen and Breakwater cover the other areas families weigh up most, and our best brunches guide will fill whatever weekends are left.
The Vibe Check
- The Galleria: spacious, spotless and blissfully uncrowded even on a Saturday night, just know your credit card will feel the luxury wing staring at it from every corner.
- The waterfront dinner strip: skyline views and big-name kitchens make it the city’s most reliable special-occasion row, so book ahead and let the view do half the talking.
- The promenade: calm, pristine and made for evening strolls, just skip it at summer midday unless you fancy being slow-roasted with a skyline backdrop.
- Living here: a five-minute commute, a Waitrose downstairs and a hospital next door, with a rent bill that knows exactly which postcode it is in.
Frequently asked questions
Al Maryah Island sits just off the northeast edge of Abu Dhabi island, between the city and Al Reem Island. Several bridges connect it to both, and it is home to Abu Dhabi Global Market, The Galleria Al Maryah Island, Four Seasons, Rosewood and Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi.
The Galleria is open Sunday to Thursday from 10am to 10pm and Friday and Saturday from 10am to midnight. Restaurants and VOX Cinemas can run later. Call +971 2 493 7400 for details.
Most island car parks are free, and The Galleria’s ticketless parking is free on weekends and public holidays. On weekdays The Galleria gives a free parking window before charges apply, so check current rates at the entrance for long visits.
The Galleria waterfront is home to Zuma, COYA, LPM, Nusr-Et, Novikov, Isabel Mayfair and Flamingo Room by tashas. The hotels add Cafe Milano, Butcher and Still, Crust and Saikindo at Four Seasons, plus Dai Pai Dong, Aqua and Em Sherif Sea Cafe at Rosewood.
Yes, for day-to-day family life it works well, with a 5.4km promenade, indoor play at Mission: Play! by Mattel, two five-star kids clubs and Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi on the island. There is no public beach or school on the island itself, but Al Reem Island next door has Repton, Nord Anglia and GEMS World Academy.
Opening hours, prices, rents and contact details are correct at the time of writing and can change. Always check with the venue before you go.
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