Top 10 largest buildings in the world

A building does not have to be known only for its fame, significance or height. It can also rank among the largest buildings in the world. But what do we mean by largest? Mainly the built-up area or the total floor area. So what does such a ranking look like?

1. New Century Global Centre

Unsurprisingly, this building is in China, and it rightly ranks among the largest buildings in the world. It is three times the size of the Pentagon, the headquarters of the US Department of Defense. To put it another way, it could hold 20 Sydney Opera Houses. And what will you find inside? Offices, a shopping centre, a water park and a very popular ice rink. Its dimensions are truly incredible: 500 metres long, 400 metres wide and 100 metres high. The floor area is 1.76 million square metres. Completing it alone took 3 years. You can also visit the very popular water park called Paradise Island.

2. Terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport

In second place is an airport, in Dubai itself. It is one of the busiest airports in the world. The total built-up area is 1,713,000 m² It lies about 4 km from the city centre. It is an important hub for the Middle East. Terminal 3 is used only by Emirates.

3. Aalsmeer Flower Auction

From the East we move to Europe, specifically the Netherlands. This is home to the largest flower auction in the world, which is also open to the public. After paying for admission, you can look around the busy warehouse full of flowers. Aalsmeer benefits from being close to Amsterdam Schiphol International Airport. Flowers auctioned in the morning can be on sale on the other side of the world the very next day. By turnover, most flowers are sold to Germany, the United Kingdom and France. The Czech Republic is said to rank 13th among buyers. So why not visit the land of tulips?

4. The Venetian Macao

This is the largest casino in the world. And you guessed it, it is inspired by Venice. You will find it in Macau, which blends Chinese and Portuguese cultural influences. It houses a luxury hotel, restaurants and a network of shops. However, there is also entertainment for the youngest visitors, including water parks and theatres. Playing in such a huge casino is a challenge for any gambler, as you will find almost every type of game here, including poker and baccarat.

5. The Pentagon military building

The headquarters of the US Department of Defense could be measured in several football pitches. It has the shape of five concentric pentagons with a garden in the middle. The building has four floors, and besides being one of the most voluminous buildings in the world, it is also among the buildings with the highest oil consumption. As a result, it is also one of the biggest air polluters. Interestingly, construction began on 11 September 1941, and exactly 60 years later the building itself became one of the targets of a terrorist attack.

6. Camp Nou football stadium

It is located in Barcelona, Spain. It is the home ground of FC Barcelona. It can hold up to 99,500 spectators. A planned rebuild and modernisation of the stadium began only recently. The whole renovation will take several years, so no matches will be held there. Even so, the Spanish value it highly.

7. Istana Nurul Iman

It is the famous residence of the Sultan of Brunei and also the seat of government. The palace is located in the north of the island of Borneo. It was designed by the Filipino architect Leandro Locsin, who used the architectural motif of golden domes and vaulted roofs as an echo of Islamic and Malay influences. The Sultan’s house has 1,788 rooms, 18 lifts, 44 staircases and 250 bathrooms. The Sultan’s throne room holds 2,000 people and the banquet hall as many as 5,000 guests. The building also includes a mosque. Unfortunately, the palace is not open to the public, except for 3 days at the end of the annual Islamic celebrations after Ramadan.

8. The Forbidden City

The largest palace complex is located in China. It contains 9,999 rooms. The magic number nine is repeated even in the smallest details of the building. You will even find multiples of nine, for example in the number of roof supports. The whole city is surrounded by a moat, walls and watchtowers. The only way to get in was to become an imperial concubine or a eunuch. However, they were never allowed to return.

9. Angkor

The ancient city of Angkor was the largest city in the world in pre-industrial times. It covered an area of 10 km² and was home to about a million people, at a time when only about 200 million people lived in the whole world. Today we can no longer admire all the buildings of this ancient metropolis, yet a huge number of stone houses and temples have survived. The best preserved of them is Angkor Wat, an example of Khmer architecture at its peak.

10. Gandaria City

Gandaria City is a mixed-use complex comprising a shopping centre, an office tower, residential towers and a hotel in Kebayoran Lama, Jakarta, Indonesia, developed by Pakuwon Jati. The shopping centre, the Sheraton Grand Gandaria City hotel, the residential towers and the office tower are directly connected.

Even as a digital nomad, you can visit these places too. Just bear in mind that living in their surroundings is not the cheapest.