‘Landscrapers’ and record breakers: 10 stunning new buildings set to open

Next big thing in travel: Architecture

Some of the world’s most anticipated blockbusters are set to open this year.

Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, UAE

A landmark takes shape ... the design for the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.

Finally, the vision of Saadiyat Island as a global hotspot of design and architecture is being realised with the long-awaited opening of the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi pegged for 2025. It’s not Frank Gehry’s first Guggenheim rodeo, he also designed the Bilbao outpost in northern Spain, and the tubular forms of the new museum are sure to be as much a talking point as its Spanish counterpart. Rounding out Saadiyat’s cultural offerings is the Zayed National Museum by Foster + Partners, slated to open later this year making the island a one-stop shop for the biggest architecture names, along with the Louvre Abu Dhabi by Jean Nouvel and Japanese “ultra-technologist” art collective teamLab’s teamLab Phenomena. See guggenheim.org; zayednationalmuseum.ae; louvreabudhabi.ae; teamlab.art

Australian Opal Museum, Lightning Ridge, NSW

Artist’s impression of the new Australian Opal Centre, Lightning Ridge, Australia.Credit: Darcstudio

A vast, subterranean building in one of NSW’s hottest towns is the initial concept devised by Pritzker Prize laureate Glenn Murcutt and architect Wendy Lewin to tell the story of the Australian opal. The two-storey, underground building, designed by Lewin and Dunn + Hillam Architects, is dug into Yuwaalaraay country, where temperatures can reach 50 degrees. Yet the energy-efficient museum has no air-conditioning; guests will enter through a tunnel into the museum which is lit from above with natural light. A Gondwanan garden will be filled with descendants of the plants found here 100 million years ago. See australianopalcentre.com

Google UK HQ, London, UK

Design render of the new UK Google headquarters, Kings Cross.Credit: Hayes Davidson/BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group

It’s rare a building creates a new word; in this case, the word is “landscraper”. For sheer size alone, Google’s new UK HQ earns a mention; at 330 metres long, the wedge-shaped Google site is longer than The Shard is tall. Located beside Kings Cross and St Pancras stations in central London, Copenhagen disruptors Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) and Kings Cross locals Heatherwick Studio, looked to the railway stations and urban landscape for its design. On a human level, the zero-carbon behemoth’s green roofs are planted with 250 trees and shrubs, with a running track and pool.

Expo 2025, Osaka, Japan

The ring that binds 150 countries … Sou Fujimoto’s Grand Ring Expo 2025.

Osaka is currently a global hotbed of contemporary architecture with the opening of the latest world Expo on an artificial island on April 13. As more than150 country pavilions battle for the crowds’ favour, the ring that binds them is Sou Fujimoto’s Grand Ring. Built to the concept of Unity in Diversity, the world’s largest wooden architectural structure – as declared by Guinness World Records – measures up to 20 metres high, with an outer diameter of 675 metres. Tapping into the increasing use of timber in public architecture, the cypress and cedar structure employs traditional Japanese techniques often found in temples, such as nuki timber joinery, and is crowned by a two-kilometre Skywalk. See expo2025.or.jp

Statement bridges

Design render of the Danjiang Bridge, Taipei.

The late Dame Zaha Hadid’s legacy continues when her vision of the Danjiang Bridge in Taipei is completed at the end of this year. The 920-metre, cable-stayed bridge crosses the Tamsui River, and is entirely suspended on one single, concrete 211-metre mast, making it the world’s longest single-mast, asymmetric cable-stayed bridge. Meanwhile, in south-west China Huajiang Canyon Bridge will be the world’s tallest suspension bridge in this mountainous province already renowned for its record-breaking bridges. Taking design cues from San Francisco’s Golden Gate, expect a stargazing bar reached by a glass elevator, a bungy-jump platform and an 800-metre glass walkway 400 metres above ground when it opens in June. See zaha-hadid.com

Maloca, Costa Rica

Credit: James Maloca March

As politicians argue whether there is a climate crisis, architecture practices such as Bali-based Ibuku continue quietly to create sustainable design from renewable materials, specifically bamboo. The designers of Bali’s Green School, their latest project is a medicine temple, yoga and meditation space called Maloca at retreat centre Tierramor in Nosara, Costa Rica. “Bamboo is a symbol of resilience and ecological harmony,” says the practice, which used local building traditions and low-impact techniques to create “an organic extension of the landscape in perfect symbiosis with the natural world and the human body”. The dome is positioned to allow the play of sunlight and shadow, channel wind for optimal air circulation and frame panoramic views, says architect Adriel Frederick. See ibuku.com; tierramor.cr

Vernacular airports

Render of Techo International Airport, Phnom Penh.Credit: Foster + Partners

Finally, airports’ role as the gateways to a country see generic, grey temples of transport traded for unique, country-specific design. Foster + Partners’ Techo International Airport in Phnom Penh takes its cues from Cambodia’s distinct architecture and native flora, with “trees” upholding its undulating roof that mimics the jungle canopy. Back in Australia, the bush flora of the Cumberland Plane and the Blue Mountains played a role in the design of Western Sydney International Airport, by Zaha Hadid Architects and Australia’s Cox Architecture. The terminal’s roof was inspired by the local eucalyptus tree, says the Cox team.

Nyaal Banyul Geelong Convention & Event Centre, Victoria

Artist’s impression of the Nyaal Banyul Geelong Convention & Event Centre, Geelong.

Geelong’s waterfront has long been a gathering place for the Wadawurrung People, and their language now names the city’s newest gathering space. “The name Nyaal Banyul encourages people to open their eyes to the hills of Wadawurrung Country, for these hills hold our stories,” says Corrina Eccles of the Wadawurrung, who engaged with the operators of the site for a shared vision for the venue. The complex includes a 200-room Crowne Plaza, a 1000-seat theatre, public plaza and event spaces when it opens in May 2026. The project is led by Australian architect firm Woods Bagot, whose most recent work in the travel sphere includes Melbourne’s StandardX hotel and the interiors of The Ghan’s new carriages. “The centre will build on Geelong’s legacy as a UNESCO City of Design,” says project design lead Bruno Mendes. See nyaalbanyul.com.au

Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, Los Angeles, US

Design render of the futuristic Lucas Museum of Native Art.

Less Death Star, more sinuous cloud, this five-storey, billion-dollar museum is founded by filmmaker George Lucas and his wife Mellody Hobson. Ma Yansong of Beijing-based MAD Architects threw out the right angles when designing the organically-shaped, earthquake-ready museum. Clad in a shell of 1500 polymer tiles, it hovers over newly created parklands that were, before this project, parking lots. Set to open in 2026, it will also hold the Lucasfilm archive, which includes the inspiration for the Star Wars universe. See lucasmuseum.org

Aramco Stadium, al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia

Artist’s impression of Aramco Stadium, Al Khobar.

As 2034 hosts of FIFA World Cup, the most-watched sporting event on the planet, Saudi Arabia need to bring their A-game to their stadiums. It plans a slew of new stadiums, including Aramco Stadium by sports venue specialists Populous. With significant input from the firm’s Australian design team, the facade’s spiralling, overlapping translucent sails were inspired by whirlpools that occur in the nearby Arabian Gulf, and direct natural light throughout the 47,000-seat venue. Populous, the firm behind the Sphere in Las Vegas is also working on a 92,000-seat stadium in Riyadh, a new home for top Italian team AS Roma and a new stand at Wales’ STōK Cae Ras stadium, home of Wrexham FC, owned by Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. The Aramco Stadium opens in 2026, in time to host matches in the 2027 Asian Cup.