Ben Bandari is a Canadian property entrepreneur and a cast member of STARZPLAY’s Million Dollar Listing UAE. Originally from Vancouver, he relocated to Dubai in 2002 and became the founder and CEO BenCo Real Estate. His property work includes transactions at D1 Tower and Palazzo Versace Dubai, two addresses from his brokerage career. His career spans luxury property brokerage and television, giving his latest Abu Dhabi enthusiasm an immediately recognisable face. The destination earning that enthusiasm is Marsa Al Saadiyat, Aldar’s waterfront development on Saadiyat Island, and his reaction is gloriously uncomplicated. He calls it “amazing” and praises “the entire ecosystem.”
Ben Bandari Is Hyped About Abu Dhabi
Ben Bandari says his team is super excited about Marsa Al Saadiyat and is preparing an Abu Dhabi team. He describes being in the capital every day during the week preceding his remarks, including a visit to Saadiyat Island. That sequence supplies the substance behind the excitement, pairing repeated visits to the city and an intention to establish a local team. Abu Dhabi is firmly on his working agenda, and the enthusiasm sounds thoroughly personal.
His assessment of Aldar’s waterfront proposition is deliciously emphatic, saying it “ticks all the boxes.” The attraction, in his telling, is the entire destination and the variety available to explore on the island. Consider that an enthusiastic endorsement of the proposition he encountered, expressed in wonderfully plain language. The headline development for his business is the planned Abu Dhabi team, an undertaking that gives his island visits a practical next chapter.
The Waterfront Menu Is Seriously Stacked
Marsa Al Saadiyat’s masterplan spans approximately 6.4 million square metres and eight kilometres of coastline, so yes, the itinerary is substantial. Planned residences include private mansions and luxury villas alongside waterfront apartments and branded homes. The marina is designed to accommodate upwards of 350 boats, including superyachts, while a kilometre-long promenade is planned for shopping and dining. A yacht club and two luxury hotels complete that particular waterfront wish list.
Ben Bandari’s ecosystem enthusiasm also has an everyday-life counterpart in the proposed schools, healthcare facilities and outdoor recreation. Aldar’s plans include two private schools and one public school, six nurseries and a central park spanning 73,800 square metres. Approximately 140 kilometres of walking routes and a 46-kilometre cycling loop will serve the destination, while Dar al Funoon is planned for opera, ballet and other live performances. Beach mornings, park afternoons and theatre evenings belong on the future itinerary, and honestly, that combination is serving an exceptionally tempting calendar.
Ben Bandari Visits Faya and the Mansion Details Are Unreal
Ben Bandari also says the island visit included Faya Mansions, adding a separate luxury development to the itinerary. Faya Al Saadiyat comprises 21 homes, including two eight-bedroom mansions and 19 villas offering six or seven bedrooms. Scheduled completion is 2028, making the development a future residential address on Saadiyat’s beachfront. The headline transaction at Faya is an eight-bedroom mansion sold for AED 400 million, announced in July 2025.
That residence spans 6,561 square metres and includes a private car gallery, golf simulator and home cinema. Wellness and fitness suites join the specification, while a private beachfront pool supplies another particularly indulgent attraction beside outdoor living and recreational areas facing the golf course and Saadiyat Beach. Design contributions from 1508 London and Nordic Office Architects accompany Italian-made kitchens and wardrobes, bespoke joinery and expansive layouts. The appeal here is gloriously specific, a home conceived for beach access, private recreation and serious architectural indulgence, all part of the island’s luxury residential offering.
Talay Adds a Fresh Address to the Wishlist
Talay is the first residential community launched at Marsa Al Saadiyat, featuring 351 standalone villas with four, five, or six bedrooms. Announced in September 2026, the development offers landscaped outdoor spaces, beach access, and unique design elements like falaj-inspired water channels and artwork by Abdalla Almulla.
The design details deserve their spotlight, particularly water channels inspired by traditional falaj irrigation and a pavilion for outdoor majlis gatherings. Plans also include shaded seating, a garden equipped for cooking and children’s play spaces inspired by maritime themes. Emirati artist Abdalla Almulla contributes bespoke louvre details to the architecture and a commissioned fountain for the public spaces. Add the planned gym, pool and wellness amenities, and the residential wishlist becomes wonderfully tangible, right down to the spaces intended for an ordinary afternoon outdoors.
The appeal of this Abu Dhabi story is its range. A proposed local team supplies the business development, while separate residential projects offer distinct reasons to examine Saadiyat Island. Bandari’s excitement introduces the headline, and the waterfront plans supply plenty to explore. Keep the destination on the radar, because this is a property story worth following as its residential chapters progress.
There is definitely a lot to look forward to and trust the Ben Bandari and his team of real estate experts are going to be at the forefront every new development. He has done this for over two decades and there is no stopping him for doing the same this time around.
