Blue Tower officially named HHHR Tower is a 72-storey, 317-metre residential skyscraper on Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai, built by Al Hashemi and completed in 2010. It holds 1, 2, and 3-bedroom apartments, sits roughly 6 minutes from Dubai Mall, and has a documented history that most listings skip entirely: a multi-million-dollar construction dispute that went all the way to international arbitration. Rents currently run from about AED 95,000 to AED 154,000 a year; resale units start near AED 1.5 million.
- At a Glance: Fact Table
- Where Blue Tower Sits — and Why the Address Matters
- Apartments and Floor Plans
- Amenities Inside the Building
- Renting in Blue Tower: What It Actually Costs
- Buying a Unit: Sale Prices and Returns
- The Story Most Listings Leave Out: A Construction Dispute
- How It Compares to Nearby Sheikh Zayed Road Towers
- Who Blue Tower Actually Suits
- Frequently Asked Questions
Note: if you landed here searching for a hotel, this isn’t it there’s an unrelated, similarly-named property in Damascus, Syria, that shares the same nickname. This guide covers the Dubai residential tower only.
At a Glance: Fact Table
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Official name | HHHR Tower (commonly called Blue Tower) |
| Location | Sheikh Zayed Road (SZR / E11), Trade Centre First, Dubai |
| Building type | Residential, with commercial use on lower floors |
| Height | 317.6 m (1,042 ft) |
| Floors | 72 |
| Construction started | May 2006 |
| Completed | February 2010 |
| Developer | Dubai International Real Estate (DIRE) |
| Architect | Al Hashemi |
| Main contractor | Al Ahmadiah–Hip Hing Joint Venture |
| Unit types | 1, 2, and 3-bedroom apartments |
| Ranking (at completion) | Second-tallest residential building in Dubai; fourth-tallest residential building globally |
Where Blue Tower Sits — and Why the Address Matters
Sheikh Zayed Road is Dubai’s main commercial artery, so this tower’s location does double duty: residents get a business-district address with quick access to almost everywhere else in the city.
Approximate drive times from the building:
| Destination | Drive time |
|---|---|
| Dubai Mall | ~6 minutes |
| Burj Al Arab | ~17 minutes |
| Palm Jumeirah | ~18 minutes |
| The Walk, JBR | ~22 minutes |
| Dubai International Airport (DXB) | ~14 minutes |
| Al Maktoum International Airport | ~44 minutes |
The tower also sits within walking distance of a Dubai Metro Red Line station, plus multiple bus routes — a genuine advantage over towers set back from SZR’s main strip.
Apartments and Floor Plans
HHHR Tower’s unit mix is straightforward, but sizes vary more than most listing pages let on:
- 1-bedroom units: roughly 968–1,150 sq. ft.
- 2-bedroom units: larger layouts, some extending past 2,000 sq. ft.
- 3-bedroom units: the least common on the resale/rental market, typically the top-floor configurations
Interiors generally include closed-style fitted kitchens, built-in wardrobes, ceramic flooring, and floor-to-ceiling glass offering skyline or community views. Seven of the building’s floors are dedicated purely to parking, allocated by unit size worth checking before you assume “covered parking” means one guaranteed spot per bedroom.
Amenities Inside the Building
| Category | What’s included |
|---|---|
| Fitness & wellness | Gym, swimming pool, sauna, steam room, Jacuzzi |
| Sports | Squash court, tennis court |
| Family | Dedicated children’s play area |
| Accessibility | Facilities for residents with disabilities |
| Security | 24/7 CCTV monitoring, on-site security staff |
| Building services | Central heating, on-site maintenance, high-speed elevators |
| Pet policy | Pet-friendly |
| Safety | Fire alarms and extinguishers throughout |
Renting in Blue Tower: What It Actually Costs
Rental data varies slightly by platform, but the range is consistent enough to plan around:
| Metric | Figure |
|---|---|
| Listed rent range | AED 118,999 – AED 153,999/year |
| Average rent (Bayut) | ~AED 123,121/year |
| Average rent, 2-bed (Property Stellar) | ~AED 85,000/year |
| Rent starting point (Property Finder) | From AED 95,000/year |
| New rental contracts (last 12 months) | 131 |
| Year-on-year rent trend | Sources disagree one dataset shows a 17% pullback, another shows 5% growth. Treat any single figure as a snapshot, not gospel, and check live listings before budgeting. |
For comparison, Sheikh Zayed Road’s average apartment rent sits around AED 140,460/year meaning this tower generally undercuts its own neighborhood on price, which is worth knowing before you assume an SZR address means top-of-market rent.
Buying a Unit: Sale Prices and Returns
- Entry sale price: from around AED 1.5 million for a 2-bedroom configuration
- Estimated rental yield: around 7% ROI, per Property Stellar’s tracked data competitive for a freehold SZR tower of this age
- Freehold status: yes, which is part of why this address shows up consistently in expat and overseas-investor searches
If you’re comparing this to off-plan towers elsewhere in Dubai, the trade-off is straightforward: this is an established, fully-handed-over building with 15 years of rental and resale history to check against not a speculative bet on a rendering.
The Story Most Listings Leave Out: A Construction Dispute
Here’s something you won’t find on any property portal, and it’s directly relevant if you’re doing real due diligence on a 2006-era Dubai tower:
- In 2011, the developer (DIRE) brought in Kingston Corporation as case management consultants for a dispute against the contractor joint venture over a multi-million-dollar prolongation and extension-of-time claim.
- In 2013, the dispute escalated to full arbitration before the International Court of Arbitration (ICC), with DIRE’s team including Baker Botts, Navigant, Deloitte, and JLL.
- By 2016, DIRE’s side won the counterclaim.
- The ICC award was recognized in 2018 and ultimately enforced against the contractor JV’s parent company through Hong Kong’s High Court.
Why this matters to you, not just historians: disputes like this are common on complex, multi-year Dubai megaprojects from the pre-2010 construction boom, and they don’t automatically mean anything is structurally or legally wrong with the building today. But if you’re the type of buyer who checks a building’s paper trail before signing, this is the kind of detail that separates a five-minute Google search from actual diligence and it’s a legitimate talking point to raise with any agent showing you a unit here.
How It Compares to Nearby Sheikh Zayed Road Towers
| Tower | Floors | Height | Completed | Primary use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Tower (HHHR) | 72 | 317.6 m | 2010 | Residential |
| AHS Tower (formerly Al Yaqoub) | 69 | 328 m | 2013 | Residential/commercial |
| Emirates Office Tower | 54 | 355 m | 1999 | Commercial |
| Rolex Tower | 59 | 235 m | 2010 | Residential/commercial |
| Four Points by Sheraton SZR | 43 | 166 m | 2007 | Hotel |
This tower isn’t the tallest on the strip, but it was purpose-built as residential from the ground up unlike several taller neighbors that split use between offices, hotels, and apartments. If full-time residential living (not a mixed-use building with hotel guests cycling through) is a priority, that distinction matters more than the height figure alone.
Who Blue Tower Actually Suits
- Young professionals wanting a central address with a short commute to DIFC, Downtown, or Business Bay
- Small families who value the on-site play area and pool over extra square footage
- Investors comfortable with an established building’s known rental history over an off-plan project’s projected one
- Pet owners, given the pet-friendly policy not universal on SZR
Who it may not suit: buyers wanting brand-new 2020s-era finishes, or anyone prioritizing large-format 3-bedroom family units, which are the scarcest configuration here.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Blue Tower the same as HHHR Tower?
Yes Blue Tower is the common name; HHHR Tower is the official building name used in property records and Wikipedia.
How many floors does the tower have?
72 floors, reaching 317.6 metres.
Who developed it?
Dubai International Real Estate (DIRE), designed by architect Al Hashemi.
Is it freehold?
Yes, which is why it’s available to both UAE nationals and foreign investors for purchase.
Is parking guaranteed with every apartment?
Parking is allocated by unit size across seven dedicated parking floors confirm your specific allocation before signing, rather than assuming one spot per bedroom.
Is there a hotel with the same name in Dubai?
No the well-known “Blue Tower Hotel” that shows up in some searches is actually located in Damascus, Syria, and has no relation to this Sheikh Zayed Road building.
How does it compare on price to the rest of Sheikh Zayed Road?
It generally rents below the SZR average (around AED 123,000/year vs. the road’s ~AED 140,460/year average), making it one of the more accessible entry points to the address.
Was this building involved in any legal disputes?
Yes a construction-delay claim between the developer and the contractor joint venture went through ICC arbitration between 2011 and 2018, resolved in the developer’s favor.
