The Second Palm Jumeirah — A New Location for Profitable Investments in Dubai: Palm Jebel Ali

Palm Jebel Ali is one of the largest artificial islands in the world, designed with grand ambitions. This new Palm in Dubai has the potential to multiply the success of Palm Jumeirah — an island that has become a signature landmark of the city. Moreover, it will offer numerous new investment opportunities. Let’s take a closer look at the details.

Dubai is one of the most remarkable cities in the world, known for its ambitious and groundbreaking projects.

The man-made island of Palm Jumeirah is recognized globally, and real estate there has always been in high demand. In 2022 alone, property transactions on Palm Jumeirah reached $6.9 billion, a nearly 40% increase compared to the previous year.

The scale of Palm Jebel Ali is even more impressive — this new Palm is twice the size, covering 13.4 thousand square kilometers (for comparison, Palm Jumeirah spans 5.6 square kilometers). Currently, Dubai’s coastline is just 72 kilometers long, but this new artificial island will add another 110 kilometers to it, a massive expansion.

Being a coastal destination, this location naturally attracts strong demand for waterfront properties. That’s why investors from around the world are showing such great interest in Palm Jebel Ali.

Dubai aimed to expand its tourism sector, but faced a limited coastline. To solve this challenge, the Palm Islands project was conceived. The initial master plan included The World and The Universe archipelagos, along with three artificial islands: Palm Jebel Ali, Palm Deira, and Palm Jumeirah.

Construction of Palm Jumeirah was completed in 2006, making it a symbol of Dubai’s innovation and luxury. Even today, real estate on the island remains highly sought after. Currently, only around 100 villa listings are available for sale, but most of them are fake or speculative. In reality, only 20 to 50 villas are genuinely on the market, and at most, half of them are move-in ready. The In.ae expert Viktoria Butirskaya recently talked more about Palm Jumeirah in our blog.

The history of Palm Jebel Ali began in 2001, when Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum announced the project. To bring Palm Jebel Ali to life, the developer Nakheel Properties hired a Dutch dredging company specializing in land reclamation. By 2006, a 17-kilometer-long and 200-meter-wide breakwater had been constructed. More than 10 million tons of rock were transported from Ras Al Khaimah quarries, loaded onto barges, and dropped into the sea to form a protective barrier.

In 2018, the global economic crisis led to the suspension of Palm Jebel Ali’s development. The downturn impacted the real estate market, and the decision was made to pause the project rather than sell high-value plots at reduced prices.

Executing a project of this unprecedented scale was not only a financial challenge but also a complex engineering endeavor.

In 2020, Nakheel, the master developer, attempted to restart the Palm Jebel Ali project, but the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the plans. Now, after years of anticipation, the project has been revived, and villa sales on the island have officially begun.

In the photo, large-scale embankment works are underway on Palm Jebel Ali Island

The master developer of Palm Jebel Ali is Nakheel, one of the world’s leading real estate developers.

The developer already has successful projects on Palm Jumeirah, such as The Palm Beach Towers.

Beyond individual developments, Nakheel specializes in creating fully integrated communities, ensuring a complete lifestyle experience. Every district they develop is designed with modern infrastructure and essential amenities, including schools and kindergartens, hospitals and healthcare facilities, entertainment and family-friendly spaces.

There is not much detailed information about the development yet, but Palm Jebel Ali is certain to become a paradise-like resort and an ideal place to live.

Moreover, the project has been carefully refined, taking past challenges into account. Palm Jumeirah is connected to the mainland at only one point, whereas Palm Jebel Ali will have three connections to the mainland. This will reduce traffic congestion and make transportation across the island much more convenient.

Nakheel has announced that the island will include entertainment zones and recreational areas, more than 80 hotels and resort destinations, residential properties for 35,000 families, 110 kilometers of newly developed coastline.

The island will include luxurious villas with private beaches and elite low-rise residences:

Palm Jebel Ali has a unique design, consisting of a central trunk and multiple fronds, just like Palm Jumeirah. This distinctive layout also influences real estate pricing in an interesting way.

Each frond represents a separate residential area, labeled with letters: a, b, c, d, and so on. The higher the frond, the more desirable the location — and the more expensive the property.

A more convenient and visual top view of Palm Jebel Ali Island with division into cluster fronds

Even within the same frond, villas are numbered, and the higher the villa number, the more prestigious the location — offering better views and more open access to the water.

Now is the time to secure a place on Palm Jebel Ali. Villas and plots are already available for reservation, giving early buyers the opportunity to invest in a globally recognized, high-value asset. These properties are not just real estate — they are “timeless investments”, sought after by wealthy individuals and collectors who see them as a long-term store of value.