VIDEO: Dubai introduces the world’s largest fountain

The glitzy emirate of Dubai broke the record for the world’s largest fountain on Thursday, as the Gulf city seeks to boost its hard-hit tourism sector amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The Palm Fountain, which covers an area of 1,335 square metres, is located at The Pointe shopping and dining district on Palm Jumeirah, a man-made palm-shaped island.

VIDEO: Dubai's record breaking Palm Fountain covers an area of 1,335 square metres and is located at The Pointe shopping and dining district on Palm Jumeirah. It has over 3,000 LED lights, 7,500 nozzles and can shoot water up to 105 metres, according to Guinness World Records pic.twitter.com/wWrJ3O9FUg

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) October 23, 2020

Mask-clad people, in keeping with coronavirus safety measures, gathered on Thursday evening to watch a show of dancing jets of water, music and lights.

“GWR is delighted to officially see The Palm Fountain breaking the title of the Largest fountain,” Shaddy Gaad, Senior Marketing Manager at Guinness World Records said in a statement, adding that Guinness was declaring it “Officially Amazing”.

Dubai, one of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates, already holds a string of world record titles — including the world’s tallest building, Burj Khalifa, and the fastest police car in service, a Bugatti Veyron.

The city that attracts millions of tourists already had one of the largest fountains in the world near Burj Khalifa.

The new fountain has over 3,000 LED lights, 7,500 nozzles and can shoot water up to 105 metres, according to Guinness.

#UAE – Dubai launches the Palm Fountain to break a Guinness World Record. #AFP
📸 Karim SAHIB https://t.co/yXmEuO32k6 pic.twitter.com/X7v2XZtlOY

— AFP Photo (@AFPphoto) October 23, 2020

Dubai has been badly hit by the coronavirus slowdown. Its GDP has contracted 3.5% in the first quarter, following two years of modest growth.

Tourism has long been a mainstay of the emirate, which welcomed more than 16 million visitors last year. Before the pandemic crippled global travel, the aim was to reach 20 million this year.

Dubai is now largely open for business and tourism, but infection rates have been rising in recent weeks.