Observation deck

Elevated sightseeing platform

The Edge at 30 Hudson Yards in Midtown Manhattan, the highest outdoor deck containing optically transparent flooring in the world, looking toward Lower Manhattan, opened in 2020.

View from the Shanghai Tower observation deck.

Visitors on the observation deck of the Skylon Tower, which overlooks Niagara Falls.

The observation deck from the TK Elevator Test Tower, which overlooks Germany's Black Forest and the Alps

Glass balconies attached to the St Eusebius Church in Arnhem, Netherlands.

Footage of the panoramic views during an 1898 ascent of the Eiffel Tower by the Lumière brothers.

An observation deck, observation platform, or viewing platform is an elevated sightseeing platform usually situated upon a tall architectural structure, such as a skyscraper or observation tower. Observation decks are sometimes enclosed from weather, and a few may include coin-operated telescopes for viewing distant features.

List of public observation decks

List of highest observation decks by type

Timeline of world's highest observation decks

This is a timeline of the development of world's highest observation decks since the inauguration of the Washington Monument in 1885.

Under construction

• Unknown Jeddah Tower, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 637 m, Level 157
• Unknown^[18] Goldin Finance 117, Tianjin, China. 578.7 m, Level 116
• 2023 (est.) Merdeka 118, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 517.7 m , Level 117 (Spire observation level at 566 m)^[19]
• 2026 (est) Torre Rise, Monterrey, Mexico. 354 m, Level 93 and 365 m, Level 96
• 2027 (est) Taipei Twin Towers, Taipei, Taiwan. 347 m, Level 73
• 2028 (est.) Torch Tower, Tokyo, Japan. 300 m, Level 55

Approved

• 2025 (est.) Signature Tower Jakarta, Jakarta, Indonesia. 515.8 m, Level 111
• 2030 (est.) Millennium Tower, Frankfurt, Germany. 280 m, Level 67^[20]

See also List of tallest buildings and structures in the world#World's highest observation deck

Observation deck gallery

• 
  The 10 m observation deck of Ronda, Spain, overlooks the Depression of Ronda plain over 100 m below.
• 
  A multi-level tree house in Cape Town, South Africa, with an observation deck on top
• 
  An observation deck place in Rokko Garden Terrace, Mount Rokkō, Kobe, Japan
• 
  An observation deck in West Berlin with a view of Potsdamer Platz on the other side of the Berlin Wall, 1977. At the bottom of the steps a placard shows what the square looked like in 1929.
• 
  Brooklyn Bridge as viewed from the One World Observatory in New York City
• 
  Night View of the Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong from sky100

See also

• Observation car
• Observation wheel

References

1. ctbuh. "World's Highest Observation Decks". www.ctbuh.org. Archived from the original on 28 October 2018. Retrieved 2018-10-28.
2. "Shanghai World Financial Center -SWFC- | Official site of Shanghai Financial Center". www.swfc-shanghai.com. Retrieved 2022-06-12.
3. "Taipei 101 to open top floor to public for the first time". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13.
4. "Sears Tower unveils 103rd floor glass balconies", USA Today, July 1, 2009
5. "The Ledge at Skydeck Chicago". Archived from the original on June 8, 2011. Retrieved May 15, 2011. SOM.com Project Page
6. BJ Lutz (May 30, 2014). "Coating on Willis Tower Skydeck's Ledge Cracks Under Tourists". Nbcchicago.com. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
7. Sophie Lewis (June 12, 2019). "Protective layer of Willis Tower's SkyDeck cracks under visitors' feet". cbsnews. Retrieved June 12, 2019.
8. "The Empire State Building". Wired New York. Retrieved 2007-12-23.
9. "Etihad Towers T1 - The Skyscraper Center". Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. 2013. Archived from the original on August 1, 2013.
10. "Смотровая площадка Башня Федерация".
11. "thyssenkrupp Elevator". TK Elevator (in German). Retrieved 2021-04-06.
12. "Открытие смотровой площадки в БЦ "Высоцкий"".
13. "Aiguille du Midi : Inauguration nouvelle attraction le Tube". June 2016.
14. Coldwell, Will (19 December 2013). "Step into the Void: The glass skywalk at the top of the French Alps – in pictures". The Guardian.
15. "Visit Guangdong's Highest Sky Corridor Waterfall Walkway in China | the Asian Magazine".
16. "World's tallest and longest glass bridge closes after just two weeks". Dezeen. 2016-09-05. Retrieved 2018-01-21.
17. "Jasper National Park Glacier Skywalk Travel Information".
18. China has banned the construction of skyscrapers in 2021.
19. Watch the livestream to the Merdeka 118 Tower Spire Completion Ceremony here!, retrieved 2021-12-04
20. "Millennium-Tower: So grün wird Frankfurts neuer Rekord-Wolkenkratzer". Top Magazin Frankfurt (in German). 2021-12-15. Retrieved 2022-01-28.