Living in Hudayriyat Island (2026): communities, beaches and sport, distances, schools and buying

Living in Hudayriyat Island means living on Abu Dhabi's sport and beach island, a short bridge from the city: surf, cycling, beaches and restaurants on the doorstep, with gated villa and townhouse communities growing around them. This guide covers where the island is, how you get around, what daily life involves and what to check before you buy.

For every project on sale and today's prices, see our Hudayriyat Island page. This guide is about living there.

Hudayriyat sits off the south-west edge of Abu Dhabi island, directly opposite Al Bateen, and is linked to the city by a dedicated suspension bridge. It is a city-side island, closer to the Corniche than Yas or the airport.

The island is developed by Modon Properties, which describes a 51 million sq m masterplan built around sport, wellness and low-density living. Leisure came first: the beaches, Surf Abu Dhabi and the sports district are already open. Housing is now following, community by community.

By road from Surf Abu Dhabi, Corniche Beach is about 14 km, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi about 18 km and the Louvre Abu Dhabi about 23 km. Zayed International Airport is about 46 km and Dubai Marina Mall about 129 km.

In practice Hudayriyat is a city address. Downtown, Al Bateen, Al Mushrif and the Corniche are close; the airport, Yas and the road to Dubai are on the far side of the city. If you fly often or work in the eastern suburbs, drive that route at rush hour before you choose.

Mostly by car, over the island's bridge. Abu Dhabi has no metro. Check the Darb app or Abu Dhabi Mobility for any bus route to the island before relying on one.

On the island, Modon describes a cycling network of about 220 km, and its communities are planned with cycling paths, jogging tracks and green spines. Wadeem's district plan includes a 2.3 km spine running through it.

Ask the developer how many parking bays come with your home, whether visitors can park inside the gated community, and how residents reach the bridge on busy event days.

A lot, and most of it is already open. Hudayriyat was built as Abu Dhabi's sport and leisure island before it became a place to live.

• Beaches. Marsana East, Marsana West, Marsana East Night Beach and Hudayriyat Public Beach. Modon describes a 4.5 km beach and water zone with beach clubs and water sports.
• Sport. Surf Abu Dhabi, the Velodrome Abu Dhabi, 321 Sports with its open-air fields, the cycling tracks, Circuit X for children and Trail X for off-road riding.
• Dining and hotels. More than 40 restaurants and cafés, in Modon's count, and at least three hotels including Anantara and Bab Al Nojoum Hudayriyat, which offers beachfront glamping.
• Heritage. The Hudayriyat Heritage Trail explores the island's archaeology and maritime history.

The island also hosts large events, such as the World Triathlon Multisport Championships and cycling and running series. Ask how residents' access works on event days if your community sits near the sports district.

Modon is building several gated communities, each with its own home types, plans and handover dates. The leisure areas are public; the communities are for residents.

Wadeem. Modon launched Wadeem in July 2025 as more than 1,700 serviced residential plots and reported them sold out within 72 hours. Wadeem Gardens followed: four to six-bedroom villas built by Modon in three gated clusters, with a choice of facade and layout. Modon lists a 2.3 km spine, an arena, six clubhouses, two international schools, cinemas, healthcare centres and an office park for the wider district.

Hudayriyat Golf Estates. Hudayriyat Golf Estates puts townhomes, villas and golf mansions around an 18-hole course by Lobb + Partners on a 95-hectare site. Modon lists a country clubhouse, golf academy, spa, sports courts, a private school, co-working spaces and a dog park.

Nawayef, Bashayer and Al Naseem. Nawayef Village and Nawayef Park Views offer townhouses, Nawayef East villas and mansions, and Bashayer and Al Naseem a mix of villas and apartments. Modon also describes an elevated, man-made living hill on the island.

Homes on Hudayriyat are mostly large: three to six-bedroom villas and townhouses, with some apartments. Compare them on price per square foot of built-up area, and ask whether the size quoted includes terraces and service rooms. For larger homes across the UAE, see villas and townhouses.

None is open on the island yet. Modon says plots are allocated for schools and healthcare, and its plans for Wadeem and Hudayriyat Golf Estates include schools.

Until they open, families use established schools in nearby Al Bateen and Al Mushrif, on the main island a short drive over the bridge. Abu Dhabi's private schools are inspected by ADEK. Look up each school's current rating, curriculum and fees on TAMM's school search, and ask about places for your child's year group.

Ask Modon which school is confirmed for your community, who will run it and when it opens. Compare that date with your handover; a school that opens two years after you move in still means a drive for the first years.

For now, residents use the city's hospitals and clinics. Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi on Al Maryah Island is about 18 km by road from Surf Abu Dhabi, and Modon points residents to established hospitals in Al Bateen and Al Mushrif.

Healthcare centres are in Modon's plans for the Wadeem district. Check which hospitals your insurance covers, and drive the night-time route once before you move in.

The table below lists every Hudayriyat Island project we track, with today's starting price, payment plan and handover date. It updates when we add or revise a project.

Compare plans on our payment plans page and see the latest releases on new launches. For budgets, see AED 3M to 5M, AED 5M to 10M and AED 10M to 20M.

Hudayriyat's plans leave a large share to the end. Wadeem Gardens is on a 25/75 plan: five instalments of 5% each, then 75% in April 2031 through an off-plan mortgage. Hudayriyat Golf Estates is on 40/60, with 60% due at handover in Q3 2030.

What that means for you. The cash you put in during construction is modest, but the handover payment is the bulk of the price. On an AED 8.7 million villa, 75% is AED 6,525,000, and under the Central Bank's rules an off-plan mortgage is capped at 50% of value, so check how a lender would fund that payment and what you would cover yourself.

The Golden Visa. Abu Dhabi's ten-year Golden Visa needs a property worth at least AED 2 million and, for an off-plan home, proof that at least AED 2 million has been paid to the developer. On a 25/75 plan you may reach that only late in the build, so map the date before you rely on it. See the Golden Visa and UAE property.

Hudayriyat follows the standard Abu Dhabi process, regulated by the Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre (ADREC). It is not part of ADGM, so the rules that apply on Al Reem and Al Maryah do not apply here.

1. Check the project. Look it up on DARI for its registration, escrow account and completion rate. Anyone selling to you must hold an ADREC licence.
2. Reserve, often through an expression of interest. Wadeem Gardens, for example, opened with an AED 50,000 EOI from 18 to 28 September 2026, before VIP sales and the launch. Ask whether the EOI is refundable if you do not buy.
3. Read the disclosure statement. The developer must give you a regulator-approved statement on the unit, the project, the finishes, the service fee estimate and the delivery date before you sign.
4. Sign and register. The sale goes on the Interim Real Estate Register, with a 2% registration fee split between buyer and seller unless the contract says otherwise, plus a TAMM electronic fee of AED 450.
5. Pay into escrow. Every instalment goes into the project's escrow account.
6. Take handover. Pay the balance, inspect the home, and the unit moves to the Real Estate Register with a title deed in your name. TAMM lists AED 900 plus AED 50 for the transfer.

Ownership is freehold for all nationalities, covering the home and the land. The full process, with fees worked through, is in buying property in Abu Dhabi as a foreigner, and the off-plan rules in our Abu Dhabi off-plan buyer's guide.

The main running costs are the community service charge, utilities and cooling, and any club memberships. On a large villa, these add up.

Service charges. ADREC approves service fees for jointly owned property in Abu Dhabi. The disclosure statement must include a budget and an estimate of service fees for the first two years after completion. Ask for it in writing before you sign.

As a worked illustration, every AED 1 per sq ft on a 5,000 sq ft villa adds AED 5,000 a year. These are illustrations, not quoted rates.

Clubs. Golf, beach and country clubs may charge membership on top of the service charge. Ask what is included for residents and what is paid separately.

There are no official rent figures yet for Hudayriyat's new communities, because ADREC's tables are built from registered leases and the homes are not finished. Treat any rent quoted at launch as an estimate.

Hudayriyat is outside ADGM, so ADREC's rent freeze from 2 June 2026 applies: renewals at a 0% increase and re-lets held at the previous contract's rent. A new home has no previous lease, so its first rent is set by the market at handover. For official rents elsewhere, see Abu Dhabi rents by area.

All three are islands sold freehold to foreign buyers under ADREC's rules, but they sit in different parts of the city and suit different routines. Hudayriyat is the city-side island in the south-west; Saadiyat is just north-east of the city centre; Yas is out by the airport.

The practical difference is the daily drive. A household working downtown or in Al Bateen gains most from Hudayriyat; one that flies every week or works in the eastern suburbs may find Yas easier. Saadiyat sits between the two for the city centre, with the museums and its own schools.

The facts in this guide fit some households better than others. The table sets out what they mean; it is not a ranking.

For the other Abu Dhabi islands, see living in Yas Island, living in Al Reem Island, living in Ramhan Island and our Saadiyat Island buyer's guide.

Leisure on Hudayriyat is finished; housing is not. The first residents of each community will live beside the next one under construction.

Noise and traffic. Ask which plots around yours are still to be built, and whether construction traffic uses the same roads as residents.

Facilities in stages. Clubhouses, shops, schools and clinics open as each community fills. Ask what will be open at your handover date, and where the nearest supermarket and pharmacy will be.

Views can change. A sea, park or golf view can be partly blocked by a later building. Look at the master plan, not only the render.

• Modon. The master developer of Hudayriyat Island; its residential arm is Modon Properties.
• Wadeem. Modon's first residential community on the island, launched as plots in 2025, now with Wadeem Gardens villas.
• Marsana. The island's beach and leisure district, with East, West and Night beaches.
• ADREC. The Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre, which regulates property sales on Hudayriyat.
• DARI. ADREC's platform for checking projects, escrow accounts and completion rates.
• Interim Real Estate Register. Abu Dhabi's register of off-plan sales. The sale moves to the main Real Estate Register at handover.

1. Drive your commute at rush hour, over the bridge to work and school.
2. Find your community's phase, and what will still be under construction around it at handover.
3. Ask what will be open at handover: school, clinic, clubhouse and shops.
4. Plan the handover payment, which is the largest instalment on most Hudayriyat plans.
5. Ask for the service fee estimate in writing, and what club memberships cost.
6. Check schools and places in Al Bateen and Al Mushrif on TAMM.
7. Map the Golden Visa against your payment plan if residency is part of the plan.

Tell us how you will use the home and we will send the Hudayriyat Island homes that fit, with today's availability checked.