Apartments in Peninsula Tower, Business Bay (Dubai): a practical 2025 guide for buyers & renters

If you enjoy the idea of waking up to the Dubai Canal and being a few minutes from Downtown—but you also want a proper, self-contained community with cafés, parks, sports courts, and a promenade—you’ll probably like Peninsula. It’s a master-planned, waterfront address by Select Group right inside Business Bay. Studios, 1–3 bedroom apartments, and even four-bedroom duplex lofts exist across sub-projects such as Peninsula One, Two, Four (The Plaza), and Five. The look is contemporary; the vibe is urban-meets-resort; the details are surprisingly considered (I’ll explain why in a second).

Before we dive into floor plans and micro-markets, here’s the quick version—because sometimes you just want the gist.

Quick facts (2025 snapshot)

• Unit mix: studios, 1–4BR apartments, plus 16 premium duplex lofts in Peninsula Four, The Plaza.

• Lifestyle: Canal-front living, promenade, gyms/pools, parks; plus courts (tennis, squash, basketball) and even a skate park in the wider master plan.

Typical asking rents:

• Studios: roughly AED 80k–110k, with verified listings near AED 90k in Peninsula Five as of late 2025.

• 1BR: often AED 130k–170k (multiple current examples in Peninsula Five). For context, the Business Bay 1BR average is ~AED 115.7k.

• 3BR: commonly AED 265k–320k, with occasional outliers higher (duplex/prime view).

• Who it suits: professionals who want Downtown proximity, investors targeting liquidity and short-let potential, and families who value promenade access + sports facilities. (I’ll show real numbers and pros/cons in a moment.)

If you’re scanning for available inventory right now, contact us @ Totality Estates or send us your brief—we’ll short-list by view, noise profile, floor height, and layout efficiency (that last one matters more than you’d think).

What exactly is “Peninsula” inside Business Bay?

Peninsula is a multi-phase, canal-edge community developed by Select Group, with several towers and low-rise elements positioned to maximise water frontage and skyline views (Burj Khalifa sightlines in many stacks). The master plan layers in retail, cafés, landscaped parks, and recreation, so you’re not just in a tower—you’re in a neighboaurhood with daily-use amenities on foot.

Sub-developments you’ll hear about most:

• Peninsula One – early phase with studio to 2BR apartments and special “simplex” concepts on podium/waterfront.

• Peninsula Two – 36-story tower, studios to 2BR aimed at contemporary, efficient living.

• Peninsula Four, The Plaza – two 52-story towers + 16 duplex lofts; inventory spans studio to 4BR.

• Peninsula Five – premium release with canal and Burj-facing units; a current source of rental comps.

The common thread is waterfront orientation and a pedestrian-first ground plane. That’s a small thing until you live with it: morning runs along the canal, quick coffee without your car, and enough benches and shade to make a winter afternoon actually lingerable. (If you know Business Bay’s older stock, this is a meaningful upgrade in how you use the city.)

Types of apartments available

Studios

Great for single professionals and investor lock-ups. The more efficient plans will balance an 8–9m living run, space for a 2-seater dining table, and a lineal kitchen with full-size white goods. Ask about column intrusions and wardrobe depth—they change how the space lives day-to-day. Inventory across Peninsula One/Two/Four/Five.

1-Bedroom

Probably the liquidity sweet spot. In Peninsula Five and Four you’ll find layouts where the living space actually fits a sofa + media + compact dining without shuffling furniture. For investors, this is often the best yield-to-ease ratio.

2-Bedroom

Two real bedrooms (vs. a “+ study”) are common here, and the better stacks give you dual-aspect or protected canal views. If you work from home, verify acoustics (above amenities?) and sun path; west sun can be glorious… or punishing.

3- and 4-Bedroom

For families or show-piece city pads. Peninsula’s larger tiers lean on view corridors—Burj Khalifa and canal lines—which is half the point of buying here. If you entertain, look for an open chef’s line that doesn’t feel like you’re cooking in the living room.

Duplex lofts (Peninsula Four – The Plaza)
These are the “fun” ones: 16 premium duplex lofts with vertical volume and broader glazing, designed for people who care about form as much as function. If you like New-York-ish scale but want Dubai light and water, this may be your lane.

Want a short-list with layout screenshots and pros/cons per stack? Ask Totality for our private stack notes—we maintain a running dossier on orientation, likely noise sources, and recent seller expectations.

What it feels like to live here (amenities & daily life)

Beyond the obvious gyms and pools, the Peninsula master plan adds tennis, squash, basketball and even a skate park, plus supermarkets, salons, and a spread of dining brands as retail fills in. For many residents, this is the “oh!” moment: you can stay hyper-local from Monday to Friday and still feel connected—then be in Downtown in minutes for the weekend.

Connectivity in short: Business Bay puts you near Sheikh Zayed Road, the Metro (by feeder bus or a rideshare hop), and key bridges to Jumeirah/City Walk/DIFC. If you do school runs, map actual drive times at 7:30–8:00 a.m.—Peninsula’s in-Bay location is central, but peak-hour bridge load matters. (A small note, yet parents bring it up.)

Rentals & yields: current asks and how they compare

Table: asking rents vs. area averages (2025)

*“Typical asking” = observed range across current/very recent listings and market checks; always confirm unit condition, exact stack, and included items.

For investors comparing communities, Bayut’s H1-2025 report shows premium-area averages citywide trending up—but the spread between new waterfront stock and older towers has widened a touch (my reading). That’s relevant if you’re underwriting exit liquidity, not just yield.

Want our live yield sheet (short-let vs. annual, service-charge bands, and a sensitivity to 5% vacancy)? Ping Totality Estates—we’ll share the latest tab with current STR ordinances and cleaning/OTA fee assumptions baked in.

Micro-choices that change your day-to-day (the unglamorous but important bits)

• View stack vs. noise: Canal-edge is wonderful, but check proximity to active podium amenities or service bays. A unit that looks perfect at 11 a.m. can feel different at 10 p.m.

• Glare & heat: West-facing glass gives cinematic sunsets—and higher cooling loads in summer. Ask for recent DEWA bills where possible; otherwise, budget conservatively.

• Elevator count & waiting: Peak-hour vertical circulation matters in tall towers (school runs, morning commutes).

• Parking & EV readiness: Peninsula’s newer stock is better prepared, but if you drive an EV (or will), confirm actual charger availability rather than just “provisioned”.

None of this is unique to Peninsula; it’s just the difference between a lovely viewing and a delightful year of living.

How Peninsula compares to “classic” Business Bay stock

Older Business Bay towers often deliver bigger raw square footage at a lower AED/sqft—but trade off canal immediacy, retail-at-grade, or interior spec. Peninsula leans the other way: tighter plans (efficient, not cramped) with newer MEP, higher finishes, and a true waterfront community fabric. When clients say, “We want Downtown energy without Downtown prices,” this is usually where we start.

If you’re browsing and feeling a bit lost (there’s a lot of marketing noise), try this simple rule of thumb:

• Longer hold / end-user: pay up for the right view stack and plan.

• Investor / yield first: target 1BRs in rentable stacks with clean comps and low friction for STR licensing (if that’s your strategy).

• Aspirational city pad: shortlist duplex lofts in The Plaza; they photograph beautifully and live even better.

Where to find live listings & factual specs

• Developer (Select Group): best for official specs, master-plan, and authentic imagery.

• Property Finder: dense pool of Peninsula Five listings with verified agents; useful for near-real-time rent asks by bed count.

• Bayut (market reports): handy community averages for Business Bay, helpful to benchmark Peninsula’s premium.

• Or just ask us: TotalityEstates.com—we’ll cross-check escrow, developer reps, and handover status before you commit.

FAQs

Is Peninsula good for short-term rentals?
Generally yes, if your building’s bylaws and community rules permit it—and your stack/view aligns with tourist demand. Yields depend on seasonality and fees; we model both annual and STR paths for clients.

Which buildings in Peninsula rent fastest?
Today, Peninsula Five has a heavy flow of listings and deals; The Plaza’s lofts draw eyeballs for unique design. Liquidity, however, still comes down to price, view, and condition.

Floor-plan deep-dives (what actually works in daily life)

I’ve walked plenty of Peninsula units now, and the story tends to be consistent: clever, efficient footprints with just enough “give” to feel comfortable once you move in couches, art, and—let’s be honest—too many plants. Sizes are neither tiny nor wasteful, and the better stacks reward you with canal or Downtown sightlines.

Studios

Expect compact but not cramped planning. Good ones allow a small 2-seater table and a real sofa run (not just a bench). Peninsula Two’s studio types (multiple variants) confirm the developer’s bias toward lineal kitchens and floor-to-ceiling glazing; Bayut even hosts 2D/3D plans that are helpful when you’re comparing storage walls and bathroom positions.

1-Bedroom

A sweet spot for both end-users and investors. In Peninsula Five, 1-bedroom sizes frequently fall in the ~670–880 sq ft band (with a number of listings clustering around ~820 sq ft), which is enough for a proper living zone, a media wall, and a compact dining setup. If you work from home, check where the bedroom door lands relative to the living run—small details change how “quiet” it feels.

2-Bedroom

Two real bedrooms (vs. +study) and increasingly popular for couples who want a workspace or a nursery. Look for separation between bedrooms and verify you’re not sitting over the noisiest podium edges. (Some stacks will be fine—others less so. We track this in our internal notes.)

3- & 4-Bedroom

These live like contemporary city homes, with glazing that makes the water the main event. Peninsula Five’s active rental market provides a decent proxy for layouts and expectations across tiers—several 3BR listings are around 1,700–1,750 sq ft and ask in the AED ~265k–320k range, while standout layouts and “villa-type” units push higher.

Duplex lofts (Peninsula Four – The Plaza)

The show-stoppers. Two 52-storey towers + 16 premium waterfront duplex lofts; think dramatic double-height volume and big, cinematic windows. You’ll see duplex sizes in the ~3,629–4,513 sq ft range in marketing materials and third-party brochures, which aligns with what we’ve seen on the ground. If wow-factor is the brief, this is where we look first.

Want a private walkthrough video of three contrasting layouts (efficient 1BR, family 3BR, and a duplex loft)? Tell me your budget and I’ll pair examples accordingly—then you can decide if the premium for view/volume feels justified.

What the numbers look like (fees, charges, and two yield paths)

Let’s translate the glossy brochures into a working spreadsheet. We’ll keep it simple and realistic.

Typical running costs to budget for

• Service charges (OPEX): Dubai apartments generally land somewhere in the AED ~10–30/sq ft/year band, depending on amenities, finish, and management. Waterfront communities with rich facilities trend toward the upper half of that range. (Always verify the latest building-specific schedule before you buy.

• Utilities (DEWA + cooling if applicable): usage-dependent; west-facing glass means higher cooling loads—budget conservatively for summer months.

• Landlord insurance / contents: modest but worth it.

• Leasing/management: if you outsource, expect a fee; short-let management will cost more than annual leasing.

Short-term rental (STR) compliance checkpoints (holiday homes)

• DET Holiday Home permit issuance: AED 300 per bedroom per year (+ minor knowledge/innovation fees; AED 50 classification certificate). Process sits with Dubai’s Department of Economy & Tourism. Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism

• Tourism Dirham (collected from guests): AED 10 (Standard) or AED 15 (Deluxe) per bedroom, per occupied night, up to 30 consecutive nights; remitted monthly. (Yes—reporting by the 15th matters.)

• Optional references with worked examples: industry guides summarise the same thresholds and fee levels for 2025.

Side note: Some hosts talk about “hidden taxes.” In practice, for holiday homes the Tourism Dirham is the recurring, per-night guest levy you’ll model. Everything else is either a one-time/annual permit cost or your operating choices (cleaning, management, OTA fees).

Example A — Annual tenancy (1BR, investor profile)

Assumptions (illustrative, not advice):
Purchase at AED 2.45M (Peninsula Five 1BR, mid-view), gross rent AED 155,000 (between Business Bay mid and Peninsula ask), service charge AED 22/sq ft on 820 sq ft, agency/letting cost amortised, landlord insurance/incidentals.

This is conservative for a clean, well-furnished 1BR with a strong view stack; push rents higher with presentation and timing, but don’t under-budget OPEX.

Benchmarks: Bayut’s H1-2025 report shows Business Bay 1BR averages near AED 110k, Dubai Marina around AED 111k, and Downtown near AED 143k; Peninsula typically prices at a waterfront/new-build premium on top of Bay’s mean.

Example B — Short-term rental (1BR, host-managed with pro cleaning)

Assumptions (illustrative):

• 1BR, average ADR AED 550, occupancy 72% (seasonality baked in), OTA fee 15%, cleaning AED 220/turn, DET permit AED 300/bedroom/year, Tourism Dirham AED 10/night (Standard classification), service charge as above.

That NOI looks lower than annual rent—on these inputs. But tweak the levers (ADR to AED 650 in peak months, deploy dynamic pricing, reduce OTA reliance with repeat guests) and STR can exceed annual figures. The right product (view, furniture spec, photography) is the difference.

If you want, I can spin up a simple, editable calculator where you change ADR/occ/fees and it recalculates the breakeven vs annual rent for your exact unit.

Side-by-side: Peninsula vs Dubai Marina vs Downtown (renter lens)

This isn’t a “which is best” table; it’s more like a quick sorting hat. Also, I’m using H1-2025 public averages for Marina/Downtown—Peninsula commands a waterfront/new-build premium within Business Bay.

Sources: Bayut H1-2025 rents for Marina/Downtown/Business Bay. Peninsula ask ranges from active Property Finder listings.

Mini buyer’s checklist (Peninsula-specific)

• Stack > floor: a 22nd-floor unit in the right stack beats a 30th-floor unit pointed at a service bay.

• West sun test: view the unit in late afternoon if possible; your AC bill will thank you.

• Elevator count & speed: tall towers during peak school/commute windows are the real test.

• Actual DEWA & chiller bills: where available, ask the seller/tenant for three recent statements.

• If STR is the plan: confirm building bylaws + DET permit steps + your Tourism Dirham workflow (reporting by the 15th).

Floor-plan highlights (quick reference)

Peninsula vs. other Business Bay options (clear-eyed comparison)

It’s tempting to treat “Business Bay” as one homogenous market. It isn’t. Waterfront orientation, ground-plane retail, lobby quality, elevator count, even how the podium is landscaped—these details quietly dictate day-to-day life and, frankly, rentability. Peninsula leans hard into the neighbourhood idea; many legacy towers lean into centrality first. Neither is “better” in the abstract; it depends on how you live (or how your tenant will).

Quick matrix (reader-friendly, not salesy)

If you like the idea of Business Bay but want the Marina’s promenade rhythm, Peninsula is the bridge.

Fair-pricing in Peninsula (how I sanity-check a number)

I try to decompose why a price looks the way it does before negotiating. A few simple levers help:

1. View corridor: Straight canal + Burj skyline = the premium stack. Soft oblique view? Still nice, but it shouldn’t price like the hero angle.

2. Floor + stack pairing: A higher floor isn’t automatically “better.” A mid-high floor in the right stack beats a top floor with service-bay exposure.

3. Plan efficiency: An 820-sq-ft 1BR with clean furniture walls can live larger than a 900-sq-ft plan with awkward columns.

4. Condition + handover delta: New and genuinely move-in-ready deserves a bump; “new but snaggy” is not the same thing.

5. Liquidity lens: If similar units transact quickly at a given number, that’s a signal. If they linger, that’s another signal.

On fees and formalities, you’ll handle the standard Dubai purchase costs (transfer, trustee, conveyancing, etc.). The exact amounts are stable but occasionally tweaked in documentation; I prefer to run a fresh completion statement anyway so there are no surprises at the desk.

Want me to price-stress a specific listing you’re eyeing? Share the link, the stack, and any snag reports. I’ll annotate the plan like a cranky architect and put a number on it—with a walk-away line.

FAQs

Is Peninsula actually quiet at night?
Mostly, yes—water calms a city. That said, podium edges and plaza-facing stacks carry more evening life. If you’re sensitive to sound, shortlist inland-facing or higher-floor stacks away from activity nodes and do a second viewing near sunset.

Annual lease or short-term rental: which path is “better”?
It’s not a morality tale—it’s math and logistics. Annual rent is simpler, with fewer moving parts. Short-term can out-earn annually in peak months if the unit is the product (view + furniture + photos) and you manage well. If you don’t plan to run it like a micro-business, annual usually wins on effort-adjusted return.

Do duplex lofts rent as quickly as standard 1–2BRs?
They attract attention fast (click-through rates love volume and glass), but the tenant pool is narrower and more lifestyle-driven. When they transact, they often do so at a premium. When they don’t, they can sit. Marketing matters here—great photography is not optional.

What about service charges—are they high?
Waterfront, amenity-rich communities trend higher than bare-bones towers. I treat charges as a feature if I can see and feel the benefit daily (landscaping, gyms that don’t feel like afterthoughts, good management). Always request the latest building schedule before making an offer.

How’s school-run traffic from Peninsula?
Central. Quick to Downtown and DIFC when the bridges behave; slower when they don’t. If school logistics are a big deal, do a real-time test drive at 7:30–8:00 a.m. That ten-minute experiment saves a year of grumbling.

Can I find “value” units inside Peninsula?
Yes—usually where the view is softer, or the plan is less popular. Also, lightly dated furniture depresses perceived value; I sometimes advise sellers to de-clutter and neutralize before listing. (If you’re buying, that’s your angle.)

Is Peninsula a flip or a hold?
It’s more compelling as a hold. The community thesis (promenade, retail, sports) compounds over time. If you’re flipping, you’ll need to buy astonishingly well and create a product (furnishings/photos) the next buyer falls for.

Comparison table: Peninsula sub-projects at a glance (buyer lens)

A tiny “how to view” script (sounds silly, works)

• Arrive 10 minutes early. Walk the promenade first; you can read a community better outside the lobby than inside it.

• Stand in the living room in silence for 30 seconds. What do you hear? AC hum, road wash, plaza chatter?

• Face the kitchen and imagine a dinner. Is there a spot for prep, or will you fight for every inch?

• Find the sun. Morning coffee angle? Afternoon glare? Your eyes—and your DEWA bill—will notice both.

• Ride down at 8:45 a.m. Elevator reality check. You’ll thank yourself later.

Closing thought

Peninsula works because it’s livable and legible: you can see where your time and money go. Views that feel like Dubai, ground-level life that doesn’t feel like a mall. If that resonates, we’re close.

Shall I compile a two-option shortlist (one “yield-first”, one “view-first”) with pros/cons and a realistic offer strategy?
Or—if you’d like—I can continue with a Part 4: publish-ready HTML, on-page SEO checklist (title/meta/OG), and a tiny ROI calculator you can embed.

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