Getting around Abu Dhabi's islands is set to get a lot quicker. The Department of Municipalities and Transport has unveiled the Mid-Island Parkway, a AED2.85 billion road megaproject whose first phase should open in 2027 — and it should make hopping between some of the emirate's most popular areas dramatically easier.

Phase One links Saadiyat Island to the small island of Umm Yifeenah via an eight-lane road running from the E12 northern interchange down to Saadiyat's southern tip. The practical payoff: trips between Saadiyat and Reem Island or Abu Dhabi Island, which currently take roughly 25 minutes, would drop to about 10.

It's not just for cars. The first phase adds four kilometres of walking and cycling tracks, plugging into existing routes to create a 12-kilometre continuous path across Saadiyat and Umm Yifeenah — good news for anyone who likes to explore on foot or by bike rather than behind a wheel.

Phase Two goes much further, stretching the parkway 14.5 kilometres from Umm Yifeenah through the islands of Bilrimaid and Samaliyah towards Sas Al Nakhl, Al Raha Beach and Khalifa City. With four lanes in each direction, the mid-island corridor should take around seven minutes to cross, and the full route would put Saadiyat Island less than 15 minutes from Zayed City.

There's more on the roads front, too. Abu Dhabi has also announced a 37-kilometre coastal expressway from Al Hudayriyat Island to the E11 at Al Nouf, with three lanes each way. It's designed as a bypass around central Abu Dhabi congestion, linking Al Dhafra with Al Hudayriyat and Abu Dhabi Island via Halat Al Bahrani, Al Futaisi and Al Aryam Islands, serving commuters and freight alike. Notably, the project includes environmental safeguards around the Bul Syayeef Marine Protected Area and the Ramsar-listed wetland it passes near.

Why should holidaymakers care? Saadiyat Island is Abu Dhabi's cultural and beach flagship — home to the Louvre Abu Dhabi, and soon the Natural History Museum and Guggenheim — while Reem Island and Al Raha Beach are packed with hotels and residential developments. Shorter drive times make it far easier to base yourself in one spot and explore the rest without long airport-style transfers, whether you're museum-hopping, beach-bound or heading out to Zayed City.

The 2027 timeline means early planners won't see the benefit on the next trip, but anyone eyeing Abu Dhabi in the second half of the decade should find the island-hopping experience noticeably smoother — and the new cycling network adds a genuinely pleasant way to see a side of the city most visitors skip.