Atlantis The Royal Residences

«It had to be architecture that works as sculpture — recognisable from any point on Palm.»

— TRENT TESCH · DESIGN PARTNER, KPF

After the success of the original Atlantis The Palm in 2008, Kerzner International started planning a sequel — not another mass-market resort but an ultra-luxury venue with trophy residences. The project was developed in partnership with Investment Corporation of Dubai. In 2017, a contract was signed with Kohn Pedersen Fox — a New York firm second only to SOM in scale. Trent Tesch was appointed lead architect. The site chosen was separate from the first Atlantis, on the Crescent of Palm Jumeirah — the outer arc with views of both the Persian Gulf and the Marina Skyline.

KPF's concept was 'stacked blocks': the 43-storey tower is assembled from 80 modular blocks of varying sizes, stacked and shifted relative to each other by 0.5–6 degrees. The result is the project's signature sculptural silhouette, recognisable from any angle.

A key innovation was Sky Courtyards: every block's roof hosts an open patio with a private pool. This lets penthouse and upper-tier owners enjoy outdoor space at 100+ metres — an extremely rare amenity in Dubai. Interior design was split between two European studios: Italy's Alvisi Kirimoto handled the residences (warm palette, custom furniture), while France's Sybille de Margerie designed the hotel's public spaces.

The contractor was Six Construct — the UAE arm of Belgium's BESIX (the same firm that built Burj Khalifa). Construction took about five years, from 2018 to 2022. Each of the 80 blocks was a standalone structure with its own engineering systems, complicating the works: the facade was assembled from over 8,000 custom panels, none of them repeating. At peak, around 5,000 workers were on site. By opening, the complex housed 795 hotel rooms, 231 residences, 17 restaurants, and 90 pools.