Meydan Horizon, Dubai: a buyer's guide to the canal district in MBR City (2026)

Meydan Horizon is one of the largest districts being built in central Dubai, and one of the busiest for new apartment launches. Meydan has drawn up the plan; a long list of developers is building the towers.

This guide explains what Meydan Horizon is and where it sits, how the masterplan is laid out, who is building what and when it is due, how to get around, what owning a home there costs, and what to check before you buy. For the wider district, see our guide to living in MBR City. This is general information, not advice on any particular home.

Meydan Horizon is a master-planned district by Meydan in Mohammed Bin Rashid City, beside the Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary. Meydan plans more than 39 million sq ft of gross floor area, laid out around a canal in the north and a park in the south.

Meydan describes the district as having views over the Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary. The plan mixes homes with shops, offices, hotels and community space, and the land is divided into plots that Meydan sells to other developers. That is why one district carries so many developer names.

Three names for one place. You will see the same buildings marketed as Meydan Horizon, Meydan, MBR City and Bu Kadra (or Bukadra), the local name for the area by the sanctuary. The Dubai Land Department may record a plot under a different land-area name again: Ellington's Everly Place, for example, is registered in Ras Al Khor Industrial Area 1. Check the registered area on the Oqood alongside the marketing name.

Meydan Horizon is not Meydan One. Meydan One was a separate mixed-use plan beside Meydan Racecourse, announced in 2015. Meydan Horizon is a separate, larger plan at the sanctuary edge. Our Mohammed Bin Rashid City page explains how the neighbourhoods under the MBR City address fit together.

In central Dubai, south-east of Downtown Dubai and Business Bay. Al Khail Road (E44) runs along its western edge, the Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary lies to the east, and Meydan Racecourse is to the south.

Meydan names Ras Al Khor Road and Dubai–Al Ain Road as the district's road access. Developers in the district place Dubai Design District and Dubai Creek Harbour about ten minutes away by car, and Downtown Dubai between five and fifteen minutes depending on the building.

In two parts. The northern section is designed along a 2 km canal with a 4 km boardwalk of cafés and shops, and the southern section around a landscaped central park of 320,000 sq ft.

The canal and boardwalk. Meydan describes the northern section as designed alongside a two-kilometre canal, with a four-kilometre boardwalk lined with cafés and shops. Rove and ALAIN describe the same canal and boardwalk in the material for Rove Home Meydan Horizon.

The central park. At the heart of the southern section is a 320,000 sq ft park of trees, walking paths and lawns.

Lagoons. Developers in the district, including Imtiaz Developments, describe crystal lagoons within the masterplan, and several buildings are marketed as lagoon-front, such as Zen Lagoons and Everly Place. Ask which water your building faces, whether it is a swimmable lagoon or a decorative canal, and when it will open.

The sanctuary. The Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected wetland with flamingo lagoons, on the eastern side of the district. Several towers are designed to look over it, so ask which way your home faces.

Many developers, each on its own plot. Most of the projects we track target handover in 2029, with the first in May 2028 and one in Q1 2030.

The Meydan Horizon projects we track

• Wynwood Horizon by Imtiaz, by Imtiaz Developments: apartments with a commercial element, target handover May 2028. Dubai Land Department project 4133, 9.59% complete on 7 October 2026.
• The Symphony by Imtiaz, by Imtiaz Developments: apartments and duplexes designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, with a rooftop infinity pool, target handover June 2029. Project 4193, 6.3% complete on 7 October 2026.
• Everly Place, by Ellington Properties: apartments beside the lagoon, target handover June 2029. Project 4499, registered in Ras Al Khor Industrial Area 1.
• Zen Lagoons, by Sanzen Developments: a wellness-led tower of one to three-bedroom lagoon apartments, target handover Q4 2028.
• Future Avenue by True Future, by True Future: a 17-storey tower of one and two-bedroom apartments, target handover Q1 2029, with 30% paid after handover.
• Rove Home Meydan Horizon, by ALAIN with Rove: fully furnished one and two-bedroom apartments on a 50/50 plan, due in 2029.
• Pullman Residences Dubai Meydan, by CITYVIEW Developments with Accor: 282 Pullman-branded homes, due in 2029, alongside Pullman Offices Dubai Meydan for office buyers.
• Sawa Residences by QUBE, by QUBE Development: one to three-bedroom apartments, target handover Q1 2030.
• Verso by Reportage, by Reportage Properties: a 174-apartment tower about two minutes from the sanctuary.
• The Winslow by IGO, by IGO: a 23-floor tower with 190 one to three-bedroom homes above an office podium, looking over the sanctuary.

Prices, payment plans and unit sizes are on each project page, and they change as phases sell. The table further down lists every project in Mohammed Bin Rashid City, including these.

What "many developers on one plan" means for you

Construction around you. With ten or more towers due between 2028 and 2030, and plots still to be launched, the district will be a building site for years. If you move in early, expect cranes, hoardings and road works nearby.

The view. A tower facing the sanctuary keeps that view, but a view across an empty plot may not last. Ask the developer which plots lie between your building and the view, and what is approved on them.

Shared facilities arrive in phases. The canal, boardwalk, park and community retail are master-developer works. Ask Meydan or your developer which parts will be open by your handover date.

Rental competition. If you plan to let the home, many similar apartments will complete in the same years. Our guide to off-plan payment plans and the handover in 2029 page help you compare timing.

By car. Al Khail Road, Ras Al Khor Road and Dubai–Al Ain Road all border or serve the district, and Downtown, DIFC, Business Bay and the airport are each a short drive. There is no Metro station today.

Ras Al Khor Road. The RTA's Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Corridor project widens Ras Al Khor Road and adds bridges along about 8 km, from the Dubai–Al Ain Road junction to Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Road. The Dubai Media Office named Meydan Horizon among the developments it serves, together home to about 650,000 people. Phase I opened in December 2022, and once both phases are complete the RTA expects travel time on the road to fall from about 20 minutes to about 7, with capacity rising to 10,000 vehicles an hour.

The Metro. There is no station in Meydan Horizon. The nearest are Business Bay and Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall on the Red Line, about ten minutes away by car. Meydan's plan and several developers show a future Metro link through the district, but no station or opening date has been confirmed. The Blue Line, due to open on 9 September 2029, will have a Ras Al Khor station serving the Ras Al Khor Industrial Area; ask how far it is from your building. Our Blue Line guide has the route.

The nearest established schools are in the Meydan and Sobha Hartland part of MBR City, four of them rated Very good by KHDA. The nearest large hospitals are in Al Jaddaf and Dubai Healthcare City.

Hospitals. Al Jalila Children's Specialty Hospital and Latifa Hospital share a campus in Al Jaddaf, and Mediclinic City Hospital is in Dubai Healthcare City, each about 9 to 11 km by road from the centre of MBR City. Imtiaz lists schools and a community centre within the Meydan Horizon plan; ask the developer when they are due.

Meydan Horizon homes are sold to buyers of all nationalities and registered with the Dubai Land Department. Ras Al Khor, the land-area name under which some plots are registered, is one of the areas listed in Regulation No. 3 of 2006.

Freehold is a plot-level status, so the document to rely on is the Oqood registration for your exact home, which becomes a title deed at completion. Our guide can foreigners buy property in the UAE explains the law.

The price, the 4% Dubai Land Department fee and other buying fees, then an annual service charge, a master community charge and a district cooling bill. None of the towers we track is complete, so running costs are estimates until budgets are approved.

At purchase. The DLD fee is 4% of the price, plus registration and administration fees. Our guide to the true cost of buying off-plan lists every item.

District cooling. In August 2021 Empower agreed to supply district cooling to the Meydan master community, naming Meydan Horizon among the communities covered: 382,000 refrigeration tons for 750 existing and upcoming buildings. Cooling is billed by Empower, separately from DEWA and the service charge, and Empower charges a capacity fee whether or not the home is occupied. Ask the developer for your unit's contracted cooling load.

Service charges. Each building's budget is approved by RERA after completion and paid through Mollak. A master community charge for the canal, boardwalk and park may be added by the master developer. Ask for the estimated figures per square foot for both, and look up approved rates later on the Dubai Land Department's Service Charge Index.

Payment plans. Plans in the district range from 50/50 to plans with part of the price after handover, such as Future Avenue's 30% post-handover share. Compare what you pay before completion, not only the deposit; see our post-handover payment plans page.

Renting out. Register long-term leases on Ejari and use the Dubai Land Department's rental index for the area. Furnished homes such as Rove Home may also suit short stays, which need a holiday homes permit; see our guide to holiday homes in Dubai.

The registered area and project number, the developer's track record, the escrow account, the plot plan and what is approved around it, the handover terms, and the running costs.

1. The registered area and project number. Ask for the Dubai Land Department project number and look it up in the project status service of the Dubai REST app, which shows the registered developer and certified completion.
2. The escrow account. Pay only into the escrow account for the project named in your contract. Our escrow law guide explains how it protects you.
3. The plot plan. Where is the building on the masterplan, which way does it face, and what is planned on the plots in front?
4. The master developer's works. When will the canal, boardwalk, park and roads near your building open?
5. The handover date and grace period in the sale and purchase agreement, and what happens if they are missed.
6. Running costs. Estimated service charge, master community charge and contracted cooling load.
7. The developer. How many buildings has it handed over in Dubai, and on time? Our guide to checking an off-plan project and developer goes through each step.

The Meydan Horizon projects are listed by name above. The table below lists every project we track across Mohammed Bin Rashid City, including Meydan Horizon, District One, Sobha Hartland II and District 11, with prices, plans and handover dates. It updates as projects are added. See also our Mohammed Bin Rashid City page.

If you are comparing neighbours, see Al Jaddaf for apartments on the Green Line, Dubai Creek Harbour across the sanctuary, and Nad Al Sheba for villas. Browse new launches and apartments across Dubai.

It suits buyers who want a new apartment close to Downtown, DIFC and the airport, with sanctuary or water views, and who are comfortable buying early in a district that will take years to finish.

It tends to suit:

• buyers who want a new apartment in a central location, close to Downtown and the airport;
• people who work in Downtown, DIFC, Business Bay or Dubai Design District and drive;
• buyers who value an open view over the sanctuary;
• buyers who want a choice of developers, plans and branded options in one district.

It suits less well:

• people who want to commute by Metro today;
• families who want a finished community with schools and shops inside it now;
• buyers who want to avoid living beside construction;
• buyers who want a villa or townhouse, which the Meydan Horizon projects we track do not offer.

• Meydan. The master developer of Meydan Horizon and the wider Meydan area, including Meydan Racecourse.
• Bu Kadra. The local name for the area by the Ras Al Khor sanctuary, used by several developers for Meydan Horizon.
• Gross floor area (GFA). The total built floor space a plan allows, across all buildings. Meydan Horizon's is more than 39 million sq ft.
• Master developer and plot developer. The master developer plans the district and builds shared works such as roads, the canal and the park; plot developers build individual towers.
• District cooling. Chilled water supplied to the building from a central plant, billed separately by Empower.
• Master community charge. A charge for shared facilities across the district, separate from the building's service charge.
• Oqood. The Dubai Land Department's registration of an off-plan purchase, which becomes a title deed at completion.

Shortlist two or three Meydan Horizon projects from the list above and compare them on position in the plan, handover date, payment plan and running costs, not only the price. For daily life across the wider district, read our guide to living in MBR City, and for the full handover process, our handover guide.