Belgrade Waterfront · Waterfront
Belgrade Waterfront: today to 2045
Eagle Hills & the Republic of Serbia
About Belgrade Waterfront: today to 2045
Belgrade Waterfront (Beograd na vodi) is the most ambitious urban project in Southeast Europe: a brand-new city centre on the banks of the Sava, bringing riverside parks, landmark architecture, luxury hotels, shopping, culture and thousands of new homes to the heart of Belgrade. A partnership between the Republic of Serbia and Abu Dhabi’s Eagle Hills worth about $6 billion, it is planned to grow until around 2045.
The back story
For most of Belgrade’s history the right bank of the Sava below the old town was a place the city turned its back on. Much of it was a marsh, Ciganska bara, where people lived in stilt houses among the reeds, which earned the area its ironic name, Bara Venecija, the Venice pond. In the early 1880s the marsh was filled with rubble from across the city to make way for Serbia’s first railway, and in 1884 the first train left the new Main Station for Vienna.
For the next 130 years the riverbank belonged to the railway. Tracks, sheds and warehouses cut the city off from the water, just a few minutes’ walk from Knez Mihailova and the fortress. Planners dreamed of reclaiming it for decades, and the chance finally came when trains moved to the new Belgrade Centre station and the old Main Station closed in 2018.
For 130 years the riverbank belonged to the railway. Now it belongs to the city again.
A new heart for Belgrade
Serbia and Eagle Hills, the developer founded by Mohamed Alabbar, the creator of Dubai’s Burj Khalifa district, signed their partnership in 2015 and building began that autumn. In just over a decade the riverside has been transformed. More than 30 buildings are finished and around 10,000 apartments have been sold to buyers from Serbia and around the world.
The 168-metre Belgrade Tower by SOM, the architects of the Burj Khalifa, is now the tallest building in Serbia, home to The St. Regis Belgrade and the Belgrade 360 Deck with views over the rivers and the whole city. Galerija Belgrade, opened in 2020 with some 300,000 square metres over its floors and a Cineplexx with IMAX, is billed as the largest shopping centre in Southeast Europe and ranks among Europe’s premier shopping destinations. The Sava Promenade gives everyone a riverside walk of several kilometres, with cafés, restaurants, playgrounds, cycle paths and more than 11 hectares of parks.
What it brings to the city
For Belgraders it brings the river back. The promenade is now one of the city’s favourite places to walk, run and cycle, and the district is planned with three primary schools and 16 kindergartens for more than 3,000 children, green spaces and new public transport, including future metro lines. Historic landmarks at its edge, from the Belgrade Cooperative to the Hotel Bristol, have been restored, and the old Main Station is becoming the Serbian Historical Museum.
For visitors it brings world-class hotels, rooftop views, shopping and dining in a walkable new quarter, minutes from the old town, Kalemegdan and Savamala’s galleries and bars. Coming next are an opera house under the great dome of Hall 1 at the Belgrade Fair, the city’s largest marina, the Belgrade Eye Ferris wheel and a green pedestrian bridge across the Sava.
For business it brings modern offices, international hotel brands, retail and thousands of new homes in the centre of a capital that is growing fast, with fast trains to Novi Sad and soon Budapest leaving from Belgrade Centre nearby, and EXPO 2027 bringing the world to the city. The district has become a magnet for investment from Serbia and abroad.
The road to 2045
The next decades carry the project south along the river to Ada Ciganlija and across the Sava to New Belgrade, with new homes, offices, parks, a cultural quarter and the promenade extended 2.4 km. By around 2045 Belgrade Waterfront aims to be a complete new city centre on the water: a business, residential and tourism hub that shows a confident, modern Belgrade to the world.
Visiting
The best way to see it is to walk the Sava Promenade from Branko’s Bridge to the Belgrade Tower at sunset, then ride up to the 360 Deck as the lights of the city come on.
Why it's on our list
- About $6 billion, built out to around 2045
- Homes, hotels, culture and business space
- A new hub for living, business and tourism
Belgrade Waterfront in depth
Figures from Belgrade Waterfront (2026). Expansion details are from the published plans and may change.
Today · 8
About $6 billion project value, 2.3 million m² of building space planned, 34 completed buildings and 12 under construction, About 10,000 apartments sold, 6,000 handed over, Belgrade Tower (Kula Belgrade), 168 m, with The St. Regis and the Belgrade 360 Deck, Galerija Belgrade, 93,000 m², with over 19 million visits in a year, A 16,000 m² gastro market, The 4.2 km Sava Promenade and more than 11 hectares of parks
Coming next · 7
The city’s largest marina, beside Hall 1 of the Belgrade Fair, An opera house in Hall 1, with a new central square for open-air events, A 120-metre landmark tower by the marina, The Belgrade Eye Ferris wheel on the New Belgrade bank, The promenade extended 2.4 km to Ada Ciganlija, A Green Corridor linear park and pedestrian bridge to Topčider Park, New homes and offices across the river in New Belgrade
For residents · 3
Three primary schools and 16 kindergartens planned, for more than 3,000 children, Parks, cycle paths and a continuous riverside walk, Planned Belgrade Metro lines meeting near the former main railway station
For visitors · 3
Hotels including The St. Regis and the restored Hotel Bristol, The 360 Deck, Galerija and the riverside promenade, A future cultural district: the opera, an expanded Nikola Tesla Museum and an Archaeological Museum
For business & investors · 3
Homes, hotels, shops and new business space in a new city-centre district, Apartments sold to buyers from Serbia and abroad, A short ride from Beograd Centar station, start of the high-speed line to Novi Sad and Budapest
Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Belgrade Waterfront: today to 2045 before you go.