United Arab Emirates
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
LOCATION
MUST DO
- Desert Safari – sand dunes in 4×4, bedouin-style dinner
- Visit the tallest building in the world, Burj Khalifa
- Day Trip to Abu Dhabi to visit the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque at sunset. You may consider inquiring about a custom-made tour that includes the mosque, but also a visit to Ferrari World
- Take a traditional dhow boat across Dubai creek to visit the Old Town souks (bazaar). Take ferry from Deira Old Souk Abra Station
Trip Details
When: February 2017
Where: Dubai, Abu Dhabi
How: Independent Travel with friends
TRAVEL TIPS
- To get around, the easiest transportation to use is Uber (for longer distances) or Careem (for shorter distances). Download their respective apps to your smartphone.
- Don’t miss the fountain show with lights and music near the Dubai mall/Burj Khalifa. It runs every 30 minutes from 6-11 pm.
- Jumeirah beach is a fun spot to chill if you have some time to relax on the white sand, listen to the waves, and take a dip in the ocean on a hot day
- Visit the Dubai Miracle Garden to see some amazing floral arrangements in a park-like setting and fun photo ops. Only open seasonally. Check website for hours. While in the area, if you hear ferraris racing, head over to the nearby Dubai Autodrome to watch ferraris race around a track – free
- We stayed at the Rove Downtown Dubai hotel and highly recommend it! Location is excellent, within walking distance to the Dubai mall/Burj Khalfia and the pool has great views of the skyscrapers.
- The Dubai Mall is one of the most amazing malls I’ve ever visited! Check out the aquarium – they have a paid entry option, but if you don’t have a lot of time or are on a budget, they have a large floor to ceiling tank at the entrance you can view up close or even from the 2nd floor balcony for a bird’s eye view. They have every type of store imaginable, from local shops to global chains, and the food court is decent if you’d like a bite to eat.
NOTES
We only spent two days in Dubai on an intentional layover to break up a long trip across the world to India. It was a good amount of time for an introduction to this lively, glitzy international hub. I would have maybe liked one more day in the area, but not more than that because of how expensive everything is! I have to saw I was in awe of how over-the-top everything is, from the fancy restaurants, luxury hotels gilded in gold, expensive cars, and new skyscrapers being built up to the sky everywhere you turn!
We had some tours pre-planned, like the desert safari and half-day trip to Abu Dhabi to see the famous Sheikh Zayed mosque (seriously, visit at sunset if you can). Looking back, I wish I would have spend more time in Abu Dhabi to have time to try the lunch buffet at Sofra Bld at the Shangri-La Abh Dhabi (on Fridays they have a package for lunch buffet and access to their incredible infinity pool with views of the mosque across the water; make reservations here).
There really is something for everyone, though, from adventure, shopping, beaches, great restaurants, and even an indoor ski resort! It’s a family-friendly, safe, city, and it’s unlike any other city I’ve been to. If you plan a visit, try to avoid the hottest time of the year (August) and go instead between November – April.