Travel guide Dubai
Dubai refers to both one of the United Arab Emirates and its trendy capital with its delirious skyscrapers, luxury hotels and designer boutiques. On the menu: caviar, champagne, marble, crystal and 24-carat gold! At night, fortunes are displayed, VIPs show up and DJs electrify the track. The spectacle is permanent in this city where all nationalities, luxury cars and giant boats live together. A concentration of excesses and records with the 830 m high Burj Khalifa, the widest 7-voice highway in the world, a marina with 200 skyscrapers, the Burj Al Arab, a self-proclaimed only 7-star hotel in the world with a gold-plated elevator. Dubai is undoubtedly the trendiest place in the Middle East, the one that attracts the jet-set of Arab countries, VIPs from all over the world and tourists of varying degrees of wealth. Spectacular, the immense Palm, an artificial island in the shape of a palm tree with 8,000 luxury villas, and this World, an archipelago of 300 artificial islands that make up the world map. Incredible, this covered ski resort. In addition to its bling bling bling city, which has emerged from the sand in 30 years, Dubai offers a magnificent desert, but also its mountains with the Hajar chain bordering the Sultanate of Oman. And tourists have a great time: seaside resorts and amusement parks, 4x4 race through the dunes, night in tents in the desert, horse races or Formula 1 world championships.... Dubai is the madness of grandeur with no limits.
What to see, what to do Dubai?
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When to go Dubai ?
In the heart of summer, the heat melts the prices and you can afford a stay in a luxury hotel for the price of a small 4-star hotel. The same applies during the Ramadan period, when the country is running at a slightly slower pace and is experiencing a significant reduction in the services usually offered (fewer means of transport, restaurants and bars in the centre closed during the day, amusement parks open for less time...). However, due to the high average hotel occupancy rate, it is difficult to really speak of low season because Dubai is a popular destination during the hot months for people in the Gulf countries. The high tourist season in Dubai begins with the real drop in temperatures at the beginning of November and ends at the end of April, but the best times to go to Dubai are in the off-seasons: autumn and spring. In winter, many commercial, sporting and cultural events take place and the days are beautiful. On the other hand, the full summer is hot, so we take refuge in the malls, swim in the refrigerated swimming pools and the country plays the night owl, living between 8pm and 3am. The best season to discover Dubai is four months: October to the end of November and March-April. The average temperature is 30°C during the day and does not fall below 20-24°C at night. The temperature of sea water and swimming pools is ideal, around 28 °C. From the end of November to March, it is winter. Temperatures are mild, around 24°C from December to February. The evenings may then seem a little chilly. And if you have decided to spend the night in the desert, be aware that mercury can drop to 10°C. You should also know that the sea is 20°C in the middle of winter and the beaches are deserted.
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How to go Dubai
How to go alone
There is no difficulty in organizing your stay yourself. There are many flights to Dubai. The choice of hotels is very large. You can rent a car to reach Doha, for example, and discover another Emirate. Public transportation and cabs make it easy to explore Dubai. Hire a local tour operator to discover the desert.
How to go on a tour
This formula can be interesting for proposals of unusual discoveries accompanied by a guide. We will take you to visit a hyper-luxurious apartment, a grand hotel, the kitchens of a great restaurant, excursions in the desert, a festive evening, original seaside activities or some VIP services, just to make the most of the surrounding luxury. Also classic stays, flight, hotel, beach.
How to get around
Four main means of transportation are available to tourists: the subway, cab, bus and boat (water cab or abra). Two-wheeled transport is practically non-existent and walking, even if all neighborhoods offer more and more space for pedestrians, is not yet a common practice either, and one cannot really move from one neighborhood to another on foot...even less in the middle of summer.
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Discover Dubai
It is the city of all possibilities. In less than 72 hours, you can explore the historic district and discover a rich and unknown past in one of the museums before crossing the Creek by abra and getting lost in the souks. Take a dip in the sea, drive a vintage 4X4 for a retro safari in the dunes. The next day, fly over the desert in a hot air balloon before a jet ski tour in front of the Burj el Arab. At sunset, stand at the top of the Burj Khalifa, amazed by this city emerging from the sand, before smoking a shisha in front of the sound and light of dancing fountains. It is also to understand the culture and the traditions by exchanging with locals, to stroll in the art galleries in Alserkal. Then parachuting over the Palm. Marvel at the new technologies at the Museum of the Future before savoring the local grouper in the small ports. The great difference between tradition and modernity. You are in Dubai.
The 12 keywords Dubai
1. #Abaya and Dishdash
These clothes are the visible signs of the Emirati identity. A long black coat for the lady, the abaya is sometimes discreetly decorated with gold threads and embroidery. For men, the dishdash or kandura is a long cotton dress of immaculate white, which is sometimes colored in winter. He changes his clothes about 4 times a day.
2. #Brunch
It's an institution in Dubai on Saturday lunchtime and a never-ending topic on social networks. Almost every restaurant offers it. Some are more festive, others more family-oriented. Non-alcoholic or all-you-can-eat version, expatriates dress up on weekends to stroll in front of the pantagruelic and gastronomic buffets.
3. #Burj
Word meaning "Tower" in Arabic. The Burj Al Arab, a sailing hotel, became the first emblem of the city before being dethroned by the Burj Khalifa, the highest tower in the world which culminates at 828 meters high. A paradise for lovers of architecture, its countless towers make Dubai the4th city in the world with the most skyscrapers.
4. #Creek
Historical district of Dubai which designates a natural sea arm. This is where Dubai's economic boom started, based on the pearl and spice trade. Thanks to the abras, traditional wooden boats equipped with a motor, you can cross this arm of the sea to reach the souks between Bur Dubai and Deira. A change of scenery is guaranteed.
5. #Desert #
The city is really at the doors of the desert. It is by leaving the city on board a 4X4 that we realize how close the desert is. Sunset, safari, reconstituted Bedouin camp, falconry demonstration... From October to May, locals, expatriates and tourists meet there in great numbers for half a day.
6. #Innovation
Dubai is among the 20 most innovative cities in the world. Everything is being done to create an ecosystem that welcomes and helps investors set up in new technologies in order to become one of the leading cities of the fourth industrial revolution. The Museum of the Future inaugurated in 2022 has become the emblem of this.
7. #Ladies' night
Ladies night" is an institution of the Dubai social life. In short, some bars allow women to drink on the sly. At the beginning it was every Tuesday and the success is such that you can find them almost every day of the week. A website allows you to find out when and how to enjoy them: www.ladiesnightdubai.com
8. #The Palm
Iconic artificial island of the city, shaped like a palm tree. It is the symbol that in Dubai nothing is impossible. No other project has generated so much coverage, criticism, and fantasy. It took only 6 years to build this island on 560 hectares comprising a trunk and 16 branches and housing residences, hotels and restaurants.
9. #Ramadan
Even non-Muslims are looking forward to this month, except that the configuration of the city is changing. The city is collected during the day and festive as soon as night falls. The whole population goes to the many iftars (meals that break the fast) and suhoor organized either in families or in the tents set up by the hotels.
10. #Sheikh Mo
Affectionate nickname used by the population of Dubai to name Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, ruler of Dubai since 2006, but also Prime Minister and Vice-President of the United Arab Emirates. He has transformed Dubai into a modern megalopolis. More broadly, Sheikh refers to a tribal leader and translates as Master or Sage.
11. #Sheikh Zayed Road
This is the Dubai Road, whose diminutive name SZR is found everywhere. Part of the E11 highway that crosses all the emirates, it is the main artery that allows you to cross the city at nearly 120 km/h and to see all the emblematic buildings of Dubai. It can also be traveled by metro without hindrance.
12. #Tolerance
In this city where more than 200 nationalities live together, it is the key word to the point that a ministry is dedicated to it. In 2019, the Year of Tolerance is inaugurated by Pope Francis who came to sign the document on human brotherhood with the Imam of Al-Azhar. The Abraham Accords in 2020 establish peace between the Emirates and Israel.