Ghaf Woods Experience Centre

04 Sep 2025

Nestled within Dubai’s first-ever forest living community, the Ghaf Woods Experience Centre stands as a landmark of sustainable innovation and immersive placemaking.

Photo credit: Arch-Exist Photography

Nestled within Dubai’s first-ever forest living community, the Ghaf Woods Experience Centre stands as a landmark of sustainable innovation and an immersive place-making experience.

Ghaf Woods community redefines urban living by weaving nature into the fabric of everyday life. At its heart stands the Ghaf Woods Experience Centre—a fully immersive, future-forward destination designed to engage, educate, and inspire, leading the way for future living experiences. This Experience Centre design, led by the Chinese architecture firm aoe, and developed in collaboration with Dubai architecture firm STUDIOI, marks a milestone step in aoe's journey in Dubai.

Located near Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Highway, and next to Global Village, one of Dubai’s most popular cultural, entertainment, and shopping destinations, the centre sits at a nexus of connectivity, while offering a serene retreat into nature. Through thoughtful spatial sequencing, the building is shielded from city noise and gradually reveals itself through a curated journey, inviting guests to fully immerse themselves in the philosophy of “Living in harmony with nature”.

As a gateway into Ghaf Woods, the Experience Centre offers a multi-layered introduction to the community’s sustainable living vision. The design draws inspiration from the desert landscape, with a dynamic architectural form that mirrors a sand dune emerging from the terrain. Master planned like a stream weaving through the forest, the visitor journey begins with a drive into the woodland, where cars are discreetly dropped off. Inside, the centre merges storytelling, innovation, and placemaking.

Visitors are guided through a series of immersive experiences: from a signature “Light Tunnel” that plays with shadow and reflection, to curated displays of construction materials, and a VR tour that brings the future homes and landscapes of Ghaf Woods to life. Every element bridges the gap between vision and reality.

Along the outdoor path, a curated sequence of landscape nodes, including an Amphitheatre, Event Plaza, Quiet Garden, and Garden of Water, offer contemplative and social spaces for visitors to pause and explore. These elements are carefully positioned as moments of discovery, like jewels scattered through the forest, enriching the spatial hierarchy and deepening the integration of nature and the built form.

The main building itself is sculpted to echo the organic undulations of a sand dune, rising and falling in tune with the terrain. It appears to grow from the earth, its GRC-stepped exterior wrapping the structure in a flowing, architectural rhythm. On the southern side, a floor-to-ceiling glass façade welcomes in views of a landscaped pond and forest canopy, dissolving the boundary between indoors and outdoors. The result is a serene, immersive atmosphere that evokes a sense of intimacy with the forest and a re-connection to nature.

Internally, the centre brings together technology, storytelling, and community visioning. A high-precision 3D model of the Ghaf Woods master plan allows visitors to understand the layout, green infrastructure, and sustainability features of the community. Material samples offer insights into the conscious choices made in the construction of future homes. Meanwhile, a VR-powered multimedia suite allows guests to explore future residential units, landscapes, and public realms, bridging the gap between concept and lived experience with precision and clarity.

A VIP lounge and office zone are positioned on the quieter northern side, facing a private courtyard to offer comfort, privacy, and an ongoing connection to the natural environment for both visitors and staff.

Every aspect of the building considers the UAE’s climate conditions. Extended eaves shade the façade, reducing solar gain and improving energy efficiency. The southern water feature contributes to passive cooling by lowering the immediate microclimate. The surrounding forest ecosystem, designed with native and adaptive species, contributes to cooler ambient temperatures across the community compared to the adjacent desert zone, proving how ecological design can directly enhance urban comfort.

Through these green building strategies, the Ghaf Woods Forest Experience centre serves as a working prototype for environmentally responsive architecture and climate-adaptive urbanism in the MENA region. Its role extends beyond storytelling to actively demonstrate how communities of the future can be built with resilience, beauty, and ecological intelligence.

Importantly, the centre’s open-plan spatial layout allows for functional evolution over time. As the community grows, the space can seamlessly transition into new uses, whether as a cultural venue, learning centre, or resident hub, ensuring long-term adaptability and value generation.

More than an architectural achievement, the Ghaf Woods Experience Centre represents a paradigm shift: a move toward biophilic design, low-carbon lifestyles, and sustainable, community-first development. It is a beacon of what living in harmony with nature can look like, offering first-row forest living, where nature and lifestyle exist in perfect balance, setting a new standard for human wellbeing and environmental stewardship.