Living in Zayed City, Abu Dhabi (2026): Bloom Living, schools, transport, homes and costs

Living in Zayed City means living in a planned mainland district south of Abu Dhabi Island, close to the airport, with Bloom Living's gated lakeside community at the heart of what foreign buyers can own there. This guide covers the day-to-day side of a move to Zayed City. See all projects and prices on our Zayed City page.

It is written for buyers who would live in the home themselves or want to know what tenants look for. The area page covers the market; this guide is about living there.

Zayed City is on the Abu Dhabi mainland, south of Abu Dhabi Island, between Mohammed Bin Zayed City and Zayed International Airport. It was formerly known as the Abu Dhabi Capital District, and it is planned as the seat of federal and Abu Dhabi government bodies.

Khalifa City and Masdar City lie to the north, Al Shamkha to the east and Mohammed Bin Zayed City to the south-west. Zayed University and Abu Dhabi University have campuses in the district. Do not confuse it with Madinat Zayed, a separate town in the Al Dhafra region far to the west.

The figures show how central Zayed City is to the mainland. Measured in a straight line from the centre of the district, Zayed University is about 2 km away, Abu Dhabi University about 4 km, Masdar City about 6 km, Sheikh Shakhbout Medical City, Mohammed Bin Zayed City and Al Raha Mall about 7 km each, the airport about 8 km, Yas Mall about 12 km and Qasr Al Hosn about 27 km.

Bloom Living sits in the part of the district closest to the airport, so its own distances differ from these. Bloom Holding says some of the most popular beaches are within 16 minutes of Zayed City by car. Drive any route you rely on at the hour you would use it.

Yes, in Bloom Living. Bloom Holding announced in July 2022 that all expats and foreigners can own property there, following the community's designation as an investment zone.

In Abu Dhabi, foreigners can own freehold only inside the investment zones, where since Law No. 13 of 2019 non-nationals hold full freehold with no end date. Outside the zones, ownership is reserved for UAE nationals, so check the registration of any home outside Bloom Living before you go further. Our guide to buying property in Abu Dhabi as a foreigner explains the zones and ownership rights.

Bloom Living is Bloom Holding's gated community in Zayed City. It covers 2.2 million square metres with more than 4,500 villas, townhouses and apartments, built in a Mediterranean Spanish style around a central lake.

The phases. Bloom Living is released in named phases. The first, Cordoba, sold out within four hours of its release in 2022. Later phases include Granada and Granada II apartments, Carmona townhouses, Seville, Almeria, Malaga and Marbella villas, and Alhambra, a mix of apartments, townhouses and penthouses at the centre of the community facing the lake.

The setting. The community is gated, with a guard house and 24-hour security. Bloom describes it as walkable and self-sufficient, with a lake and island crossed by pedestrian bridges, walking and cycling trails, sunrise and sunset plazas and amphitheatres.

Buying off-plan in Bloom Living follows the Abu Dhabi process: check the project, reserve, sign the sale and purchase agreement (SPA), register the sale and pay into escrow until handover. The main government fee is a 2% registration fee.

1. Check the project and the broker. Bloom lists a permit and project number for Bloom Living; look the project up on DARI or with ADREC, and use a licensed broker.
2. Reserve and sign. Pay the booking amount and sign the SPA. Read the payment schedule, the anticipated completion date and the grace period.
3. Register the sale. The sale goes on the Interim Real Estate Register through TAMM, and the 2% registration fee is paid.
4. Pay into escrow. Each instalment goes into the project's escrow account, which ADREC supervises under Law No. 3 of 2015.
5. Take handover. Pay the balance, inspect the home, collect the keys, and the unit moves to the Real Estate Register with a title deed.

Payment plans. Bloom Living Alhambra asks for 5% on booking, 35% during construction and 60% on handover, and the developer includes the 2% registration fee as an incentive. Bloom Living Marbella asks for 5% on booking, 45% during construction and 50% on handover, with handover scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2028. With half or more due on handover, plan how you will fund it, cash or mortgage, well in advance.

Our guide to ADREC explains how off-plan buyers are protected, and our guide to off-plan payment plans compares plan structures.

Zayed City is a driving district. No metro or tram line serves it, so most residents use a car or taxis, and public buses run along the main roads.

By road. Main roads connect the district with the airport, Khalifa City, Masdar City and Yas Island to the north, Mohammed Bin Zayed City and Mussafah to the west, and the bridges onto Abu Dhabi Island.

Tolls. Abu Dhabi's Darb system charges AED 4 for each crossing of a toll gate from 7 to 9 am and from 3 to 7 pm, every day except Sundays and official holidays. Daily and monthly caps have been removed. The gates are on the bridges onto Abu Dhabi Island, so a peak-time island commute adds a toll each way.

Towards Dubai. Since 4 May 2026 a gate at Ghantoot, on Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Street, operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at AED 4 per crossing.

By bus. Abu Dhabi Mobility runs the public bus network, and routes serve the district. Check the current route and timetable in Abu Dhabi Mobility's journey planner before you rely on one.

Zayed City is well supplied with schools for a new district, which is one of its main draws for families.

Public schools. Three public school campuses opened in Zayed City in September 2024, with 5,360 student places on a combined 81,000 square metres. They were the first school infrastructure in the UAE delivered under a public-private partnership, by the Abu Dhabi Investment Office with ADEK, and each campus is run by a private operator under ADEK's charter school programme.

Inside Bloom Living. Bloom Holding describes two international schools within walking distance of most of the residences.

Universities. Zayed University's Abu Dhabi campus and Abu Dhabi University are both in the district.

Private schools in Abu Dhabi are regulated and inspected by the Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK), which publishes each school's inspection rating. Before you choose a home for a school, check the latest ADEK rating, the curriculum, the fees for your child's year group and whether there is a place.

Primary care is inside Bloom Living, and two hospitals are a short drive away.

In the community. Bloom Living's Town Center includes a medical clinic and a wellness centre.

Hospitals. Sheikh Shakhbout Medical City, one of the UAE's largest hospitals for serious and complex care, run by SEHA with Mayo Clinic, is about 7 km from the centre of the district in a straight line. NMC Royal Hospital in Khalifa City is about 5 km away, and Danat Al Emarat Hospital for Women and Children about 10 km.

Which facilities you use depends on your health insurance, so check the drive to the nearest emergency department your insurer covers.

Inside Bloom Living, daily life is designed to happen on foot. Outside it, Zayed City is still being built out, so many errands mean a short drive to Khalifa City, Masdar City or Al Raha.

The Town Center. Restaurants, cafés, shops, a supermarket, a medical clinic and a wellness centre.

Sport and leisure. A clubhouse with pools, a lagoon pool club and swim club, tennis and multi-purpose courts, and dog, yoga and linear parks, pool parks and play areas along greenbelt trails.

Faith. Mosques inside the community, and churches in Abu Dhabi and Mussafah a drive away.

Further afield. Al Raha Mall is about 7 km from the district centre in a straight line, Yas Mall about 12 km, and Yas Island's theme parks a few minutes beyond. Bloom also points to Al Maqta'a Fort, Wahat Al Karama and Al Wathba Wetland as nearby landmarks.

Bloom Living offers the full range, from studios to six-bedroom villas. The figures below are the starting sizes Bloom Holding publishes for each home type across its phases, including sold-out phases.

Bloom also describes villa and townhouse plots in Zayed City ranging from 16,000 to 30,000 sq ft. Compare price per square foot and floor plans across phases, not bedroom counts.

A gated community with a lake, pools and a clubhouse costs more to run than a small building, so ask about the community charge as well as the building or villa charge.

Service charges. In Abu Dhabi, ADREC approves the service fees charged in jointly owned property. Ask Bloom for the current approved figure on a completed phase, or a written estimate on an off-plan one, and check what it covers: security, landscaping, the lake, pools and the clubhouse.

Utilities. Electricity and water accounts are opened through TAMM. Ask how cooling is supplied and billed for your home type.

If you let the home. Every residential tenancy is registered in Tawtheeq. Expatriate tenants pay a 3% municipality fee on the annual rent, collected with utility bills, and since 2 June 2026 a rent freeze has held renewals at 0% across the emirate outside ADGM. Our guide to Abu Dhabi rents by area explains the official rent data.

Zayed City suits families who want a gated, walkable community with schools and space, on the mainland near the airport. It suits less well those who want the city centre or the beach every day.

Off-plan supply in Zayed City is led by new Bloom Living phases. The table below is built from our project data and updates as we add or revise projects.

Bloom Holding's other communities are on our Bloom Holding page. Across the UAE, see villas, townhouses and projects from AED 1 million to 2 million. For a nearby mainland suburb, see our guide to living in Al Shamkha, and for the waterfront, living in Al Raha Beach.

Use this list on any Zayed City home, new or resale:

1. Ownership. Confirm the home is in Bloom Living or another investment zone, and check the registration on DARI.
2. The phase and its status. Which phase, when it is due, and what is already built around it.
3. The view. Lake, park or road, and what is planned next to the plot.
4. The service charge. The current approved figure or the developer's written estimate, and the community charge on top.
5. The schools. ADEK ratings, curricula, fees and places at the two community schools and the public campuses.
6. The commute. Drive it at peak time and count the Darb gates on your route.
7. Handover funding. If 50% to 60% is due on handover, arrange the cash or a mortgage early. Our guide to off-plan mortgages in the UAE explains the limits.
8. Residency. If you want a visa through the property, read our guide to the Golden Visa through UAE property.

If Zayed City suits your family and your commute, start with the project table above and the Zayed City page, then compare it with the rest of the emirate on our Abu Dhabi page. If you would like a shortlist of Bloom Living homes by phase, size or handover date, ask us.