observation deck

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.

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 original Two World Trade Center in June 1984, with midtown Manhattan in the distance.

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

Play media

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

List of public observation decksEdit

List of public observation decks
Rank	Name	Completion Date	Type	Location	Deck height (m)	Total height (m)	Notes
1	Shanghai Tower	2015	Skyscraper	Shanghai	562.1	632	121st floor, decks are also on 118th and 119th floors.
2	Ping An Finance Centre	2017	Skyscraper	Shenzhen	562.1	599.1	116th floor (opened on February 10, 2018)
3	Burj Khalifa	2010	Skyscraper	Dubai	555.7	829.8	148th floor (opened October 2014^[1]) decks are also on 124th floor
4	Canton Tower	2010	Steel Tower	Guangzhou	488	604
5	Lotte World Tower	2017	Skyscraper	Seoul	486	555
6	Abraj Al Bait	2011	Skyscraper	Mecca	484.4	601
7	Shanghai World Financial Center	2008	Skyscraper	Shanghai	474^[2]	492.3	100th floor, decks also on levels 94 & 97
8	Tokyo Skytree	2012	Steel Tower	Tokyo	451.2	634	-
9	Taipei 101	2004	Skyscraper	Taipei	449.2	509.2	The 101st floor indoor/outdoor rooftop observatory opened to the public on June 14, 2019.^[3] Two additional observation decks, an 91st-floor outdoor observatory and the 89th floor indoor observatory is 383.2 metres (1,257 ft).
10	CN Tower	1976	Concrete tower	Toronto	446.7	553.3	Two additional observation decks at 342 m (outdoor) & 346 m (indoor).
11	Willis Tower	1974	Skyscraper	Chicago	412.7	527.3	103rd floor, it is the highest observation deck in the United States
12	Sky100, International Commerce Centre	2011	Skyscraper	Hong Kong	393	484	100th floor 360-degree indoor observatory
13	One World Trade Center	2014	Skyscraper	New York City	386.6	541.3	Observatory on the 100th, 101st and 102nd floors
14	Landmark 81	2019	Skyscraper	Ho Chi Minh City	382	461	Observatory on 79th, 80th and 81st floors
15	Petronas Towers	1998	Skyscraper	Kuala Lumpur	370	451.9	Observatory on 86th floor of tower 2, in addition there is the skybridge between the two towers on 41st and 42nd floors at 170 meters.
16	Empire State Building	1931	Skyscraper	New York City	369^[4]	448.7	102nd floor, additional 86th floor deck (320 m)
17	Lakhta Center	2021	Skyscraper	Saint Petersburg	357	461	Observations on 84th, 85th 86th and 87th floors
18	Oriental Pearl Tower	1994	Concrete tower	Shanghai	351	467.9	15 observation levels, the highest one being outdoors
19	Tuntex Sky Tower	1997	Skyscraper	Kaohsiung	341	347.5	74th floor
20	Jin Mao Tower	1998	Skyscraper	Shanghai	340.1	420.5	88th floor
21	Ostankino Tower	1967	Concrete tower	Moscow	340	540.1	Indoor deck is at 337 m
22	John Hancock Center	1969	Skyscraper	Chicago	313.8	343.5	Observation deck
23	Milad Tower	2007	Concrete tower	Tehran	312	435	Top level
24	China World Trade Center Tower III	2010	Skyscraper	Beijing	311.8	330	81st floor
25	Shun Hing Square	1996	Skyscraper	Shenzhen	298.1	384
26	US Bank Tower	1989	Skyscraper	Los Angeles	297	310	70th floor (Skyslide & Events) 69th Floor (Indoor & Outdoor Observation)
27	Abeno Harukas(Abenobashi Terminal Building)	2014	Skyscraper	Osaka	288	300	58th-60th floor (top floor)
28	Zifeng Tower	2010	Skyscraper	Nanjing	287	450
29	Eureka Tower	2007	Skyscraper	Melbourne	285	297.3	Skydeck 88 is at a height of 285 m
30=	King Power MahaNakhon	2018	Skyscraper	Bangkok	281.6	314	Observation Deck on 74th 76th and 78th floor
30=	Etihad Towers (Tower 2)	2011	Skyscraper	Abu Dhabi	281.6	305.3	Observation Deck at 300 is located on 75th Floor
31	Eiffel Tower	1889	Wrought iron lattice tower	Paris	276.1	324	3rd floor
32	Menara Kuala Lumpur	1996	Concrete tower	Kuala Lumpur	276	421
33	Columbia Center	1985	Skyscraper	Seattle	275	284	73rd floor
34	Yokohama Landmark	1993	Skyscraper	Yokohama	273	296	69th floor
35	One Liberty Place	1987	Skyscraper	Philadelphia	269	288	57th Floor
36	Bank of America Plaza (Dallas)	1985	Skyscraper	Dallas	268.4	281	71st floor, additional 70th floor 264.6 metres (868 ft).
37	JPMorgan Chase Tower	1982	Skyscraper	Houston	268.2	305.4	60th floor
38	Sydney Tower	1981	Steel Tower	Sydney	268	309	Main indoor observatory. Outdoor Skywalk attraction on roof is located at 279 meters
39	Gran Torre Santiago	2013	Skyscraper	Santiago	261	300	Observation deck named Sky Costanera is located on floors 61 and 62
40	GE Building	1933	Skyscraper	New York City	259.1	259.1	70th floor ("Top of the Rock")
41	Tianjin Tower	1991	Concrete tower	Tianjin	257	415.2
42	40 Wall Street	1929	Skyscraper	New York City	255	283
43	Osaka Prefectural Government Sakishima Building	1995	Skyscraper	Osaka	252	256
44	63 Building	1985	Skyscraper	Seoul	249	250	60th floor
45	Midland Square	2007	Skyscraper	Nagoya	247	247	47th floor
46	Lotus Tower	2019	Concrete tower	Colombo	245	356
47	The Shard	2013	Skyscraper	London	244.8	306	72nd floor Observatory Deck
48	Central Radio & TV Tower	1992	Concrete tower	Beijing	238	405
49	Sunshine 60	1978	Skyscraper	Tokyo	237.6	239.8
50	Federation Tower (Tower West)	2008	Skyscraper	Moscow	235^[5]	252	62nd Floor
=51	Q1	2005	Skyscraper	Gold Coast	230	323	77th floor (SkyPoint), with the function hall on the 78th^[specify]
=51	West Pearl Tower	2006	Concrete tower	Chengdu	230	339
52	Roppongi Hills Mori Tower	2003	Skyscraper	Tokyo	229.3	238	52nd floor (indoor) & 54th floor (roof-deck)
53	Taipei Nan Shan Plaza	2018	Skyscraper	Taipei	228.5	272	46th floor (indoor)
54	Europaturm	1979	Concrete tower	Frankfurt	227	337.5	Since 1999, the Europaturm has been closed to the public-->
55	Tokyo Tower	1958	Steel truss tower	Tokyo	223.5	332.6	6th floor
56	Macau Tower	2001	Concrete tower	Macau	223	338
57	Sky Tower	1997	Concrete tower	Auckland	220	328	Skydeck observation deck, numbered 60th floor
58	Tour Montparnasse	1972	Skyscraper	Paris	209	209
59	Fernsehturm Berlin	1969	Concrete tower	Berlin	207	368
60	Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building	1990	Skyscraper	Tokyo	202	243.4
=61	Main Tower	1999	Skyscraper	Frankfurt	200	240
=61	Marina Bay Sands	2010	Skyscraper	Singapore	200	200
62	Olympiaturm	1968	Concrete tower	Munich	192	291
63	Vysotsky	2011	Skyscraper	Yekaterinburg	186	188.3	Observation deck was opened on 3 May 2012^[6]
64	Bitexco Financial Tower	2010	Skyscraper	Ho Chi Minh City	181	262.5	47th floor
65	Tower of the Americas	1968	Concrete tower	San Antonio	176	229
=66	Umeda Sky Building	1993	Skyscraper	Osaka	170	173
=66	Tallinn TV Tower	1980	Tower	Tallinn	170	314
67	Donauturm	1964	Concrete tower	Vienna	169.4	252
68	N Seoul Tower	1975	Steel tower	Seoul	168.3	236.7	Tower sits atop Namsan Mountain
69	Vilnius TV Tower	1980	Tower	Vilnius	165	326.5
70	Space Needle	1962	Steel tower	Seattle	158.5	184.4
71	Calgary Tower	1968	Concrete tower	Calgary	157.5	190.8
72	Fernsehturm Stuttgart	1956	Concrete tower	Stuttgart	153	216.6
73	Avala Tower	2009	Concrete tower	Belgrade	135	204.5
74	Fukuoka Tower	1989	Tower	Fukuoka	123	234
75	Kuwait viewing sphere	1979	Concrete tower	Kuwait City	120	187	(1990 Liberation Tower of ~300 m is not open to public)
76	Palace of Culture and Science	1955	Multi-function	Warsaw	114	237	Observation Deck on 30th floor
77	Spinnaker Tower	2005	Tower	Portsmouth	110	170
=78	Kyoto Tower	1964	Tower	Kyoto	100	131
=78	Nagoya TV Tower	1954	Tower	Nagoya	100	180
79	Tashkent Tower	1985	Tower	Tashkent	97	375
80	Snejanka Tower, Pamporovo, Bulgaria	1978	Concrete tower	Pamporovo	93	156
81	Kobe Port Tower	1963	Tower	Kobe	90.8	108
82	Sapporo TV Tower	1957	Tower	Sapporo	90	147.2
83	Tsūtenkaku	1956	Tower	Osaka	87.5	108
84	Nebraska State Capitol	1930	Skyscraper	Lincoln	75	120	14th floor

List of highest observation decks by typeEdit

Type	Name and Location	Constructed	Height
Enclosed	Ping An Finance Centre, Shenzhen, China	2017	562.2 m (1,844 ft)
Skywalk On Waterfall	Huangtengxia Tourist Attraction, Guangdong, China	2018	500 m (1,640 ft)
On Glass Bridge	Zhangjiajie Glass Bridge, Zhangjiajie, China	2016	360 m (1,181 ft)
Outdoor	Burj Khalifa, Dubai, UAE	2014	555.7 m (1,823 ft)
Observation Platform On Mountain	Kowloon Peak, Kowloon, Hong Kong		602 m (1,975 ft)
On Tower	Canton Tower, Guangzhou, China	2011	488 m (1,601 ft)
Skywalk	Jin Mao Tower, Shanghai, China	1994	420.5 m (1,380 ft)
On Skyscraper	Ping An Finance Centre, Shenzhen, China	2017	562.2 m (1,844 ft)
On Bridge	Zhangjiajie Glass Bridge, Zhangjiajie, China	2016	360 m (1,181 ft)
Dam	Jinping-I Dam, Sichuan, China	2013	305 m (1,001 ft)

Timeline of world's highest observation decksEdit

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

Held record		Name and Location	Constructed	Height of highest observation deck	Notes
From	To	Name and Location	Constructed	Height of highest observation deck	Notes
1885	1889	Washington Monument, Washington D.C., United States	1889	152.3 m (500 ft)	Was the world's tallest structure when completed.
1889	1931	Eiffel Tower, Paris, France	1889	275 m (902 ft)	Two further observation decks 57 & 115 m.
1931	1973	Empire State Building, New York City, United States	1931	369 m (1,211 ft)^[4]	A second observation deck is located on the 86th floor at 320 metres above ground.
1973	1974	World Trade Center, New York City, United States (article)	1973	399.4 m (1,310 ft)	Measured from sea level, street level was 10 feet above sea level. Indoor observatory on the 107th floor of South Tower opened on April 4, 1973. Destroyed during the September 11 attacks.
1974	1975	Sears Tower (since renamed Willis Tower), Chicago, United States	1974	412.4 m (1,353 ft)	Measured from the Franklin Street entrance, 103rd floor observation deck opened on June 22, 1974
1975	1976	World Trade Center, New York City, United States (article)	1973	419.7 m (1,377 ft)	Measured from sea level, street level was 10 feet above sea level. Outdoor observatory on rooftop of the South Tower opened on December 15, 1975. Destroyed during the September 11 attacks.
1976	2004	CN Tower, Toronto, Ontario, Canada	1976	446.5 m (1,465 ft)	Two further observation decks 342 and 346 metres above ground.
2004	2008	Taipei 101, Taipei, Republic of China (Taiwan)	2004	449.2 m (1,474 ft)	Two other observation decks are at 392 m (1,286 ft) (91st-floor outdoor observatory) and 383 m (1,257 ft) (89th-floor indoor observatory).
2008	2011	Shanghai World Financial Centre, Shanghai, People's Republic of China	2008	474 m (1,555 ft)	Other observation decks are at 423 m (1,388 ft) and 439 m (1,440 ft).
2011	2014	Canton Tower, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China	2011	488 m (1,601 ft)	The outdoor rooftop observation deck opened in December 2011. There are also several other indoor observation decks in the tower, the highest at 433.2 m (1,421 ft).
2014	2016	Burj Khalifa, Dubai, UAE	2010	555.7 m (1,821 ft)	Opened on October 15, 2014 on the 148th floor. There is another observation deck at 452.1 m (1,483 ft) on the 124th floor, which has been open since the building was opened to the public.
2016	Present	Shanghai Tower, Shanghai, China	2015	562.1 m (1,844 ft)	Opened on July 1, 2016. there are also 2 more observation decks on the 118th and 119th floor, at 546 and 552 meters respectively.

Under constructionEdit

2022 (est.) Jeddah Tower, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 637 m, Level 157
2020 (est.) Goldin Finance 117, Tianjin, China. 578.7 m, Level 116
2021 (eat.) PNB 118, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 489.58 m, Level 117

Approved

2021 (est.) Dubai One Tower, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. 655 m, Level <161 (Restaurant at 675 m, Level 161).
2025 (est.) Signature Tower Jakarta, Jakarta, Indonesia. 515.8 m, Level 111
2024 (est) Hermitage Plaza (South Tower), Paris, France. 323 m, Level 85

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