Saadiyat Island

Saadiyat is where Abu Dhabi put its cultural ambition and consequently its most expensive square footage. The island holds the Louvre Abu Dhabi, NYU Abu Dhabi and a protected natural beach where turtles nest, and housing sits at low density around all of it: beach villas, the Mamsha apartments on the waterfront, and golf-course stock. Residents skew towards university faculty, senior professionals and a real second-home market from Dubai. The reservations are straightforward. You pay the highest per-square-foot figures in the emirate while the amenity is still catching up — several of the cultural buildings remain under construction and their opening dates have moved before. Density is deliberately low, which is the pleasure of the place and also means driving for everything. And it is a fifteen to twenty minute run to the main island, so the commute is real if your office is downtown.