A sky-high perspective: Exploring Abu Dhabi's Etihad Towers

Abu Dhabi: There is an hour in Abu Dhabi when the day seems to hold its breath. The sun sinks toward the Gulf, the heat loosens its grip, and along the Corniche the light turns the colour of honey.

Five towers catch it first.

Etihad Towers rise from the waterfront like a handful of glass blades pushed into the sand. No two are alike. Tower 2 is the giant at 305 metres and 74 floors, the fourth tallest building in the capital. Tower 1 follows at 277 metres and 69 floors, then Tower 3 at 260 metres and 54 floors, Tower 4 at 234 metres and 61 floors, and finally Tower 5, the smallest of the five, at 218 metres and 55 floor.

Each is a little taller or shorter than its neighbour, and each leans slightly toward the others, as if they were sharing a secret.

At dusk their grey-blue facades borrow the colours of the sky, silver one minute, rose the next, and then a deep, glowing gold. Across the road, the domes of Emirates Palace glimmer back.

Years of dreaming

It took years of dreaming before the first stone was laid. After long planning, construction began in 2006 under Sheikh Suroor Bin Mohammed Al Nahyan and his Projects Department. The Australian firm DBI Design drew the towers as a sculpture rather than a skyscraper, and by October 2011 the last of them stood complete.

Abu Dhabi's skyline has never looked quite the same.

Inside, each tower has its own character. Tower 1 is the hotel, which is Conrad Abu Dhabi Etihad Towers. It offers 382 hotel rooms and suites and 199 serviced apartments, along with an array of beauty, fashion and relaxation amenities, including the Talise spa. The Japanese restaurant Tori No Su opened here in 2012, and across the complex a range of restaurants, cafés and lounges means a guest could spend days here without stepping onto the street.

Towers 2, 4 and 5 are homes: 885 apartments and penthouses, from one to five bedrooms. When the complex opened, more than half the apartments had reportedly been sold already, to buyers from more than 60 nations.

Tower 3 is the city's working heart, an office tower with Grade-A space and a lobby that hums with quiet purpose. Even here the wider world is present, where several embassies have their missions.

When the city needs to gather, it comes here too. One of Abu Dhabi's largest and most modern convention centres sits in the complex, together with a grand ballroom that can host groups of more than 2,200 people.

Down in the podium, shopping at Etihad Towers unfolds in soft light, with designer boutiques offering luxury fashion, jewellery, timepieces and accessories. Behind quiet doors, private rooms wait for those who prefer to shop away from the crowds.

Much of what makes a place like this work happens out of sight. Below ground, four levels of parking hold more than 3,000 cars, with valet service for those who would rather not think about it. Private security, property management and concierge services run around the clock, with what the owners call true Arabian hospitality, so that every guest, visitor and tenant is looked after.

The true surprise

Down in the podium, The Avenue unfolds in marble and soft light. Here the boutiques carry some of the most coveted names in the world, and behind quiet doors, private rooms wait for those who prefer to shop away from the crowds. Every material, every finish, every lamp has been chosen to make time slow down.

But the true secret is above.

The lift to the Observation Deck at 300 climbs in near silence. Floor numbers tick upward, the air pressure shifts and your ears give a soft pop, a small reminder that you are leaving the ground behind.

Then the doors slide open on the 74th floor of Tower 2, and the city lies at your feet. The traffic on the Corniche becomes a string of tiny lights. The Gulf spreads out in every shade of blue, then dissolves into the horizon. For a moment, Abu Dhabi seems to belong to you alone.