You might think she's megalomaniacal, she's above all bluffing and innovative, eclectic and electric, visionary and without limits... Dubai is in a way THE futuristic megalopolis of the third millennium. The one that will host the Universal Exhibition in 2021 and 2022 (postponed by one year due to the Covid-19 pandemic). But for years, construction sites and cranes have been working day and night and the city is taking shape like a peaceful and nourishing oasis. In the heart of the traditional districts, it is planting high-tech buildings. In the sands of the desert, it is sowing golf courses and bringing life to life. A stone's throw from the beaches, it erects a snow-white dome, like an unreal landscape, an emergence that is both excessive and ambivalent. Dubai catches us, it focuses our interest
Dubai, a futuristic megalopolis
Very quickly, the sea and the desert, so rich in multiple activities (quad, buggy, jet-ski, etc.), are however only a pretext. It is towards the city that one turns: its skyscrapers with innovative architecture, its ultra-trendy bars, its world cuisine to damn one's taste buds. We want to take a step back and plunge into it, magnetized by so much excitement! The superficial is absorbed, the overbidding becomes playful. You go from a restaurant with a minimalist decor to the enveloping comfort of a rich Arabic lounge. We jump from a chic and ostentatious limousine to the old-fashioned and crowded bench of a popular water taxi. We get lost in the souks and old merchant docks, just as we drown in the gigantic malls. In the background, not far from the city, a caravan of Bedouins is reflected in the shimmering facade of a brand new building, and we no longer know which of the two images is the real thing.
Mythical skyline and luxury hotels
Dubai recomposes its own portrait every day, from road-lifting to botoxed towers. Under a canine sun, or in this beige mist that falls from the sky and seems to paint the landscape with terracotta, here, in these gardens near the Creek, we breathe this city to the point of intoxication. With its two subway lines - straight out of Batman's aesthetic - that irrigate it ; and while the Burj Khalifa overhangs it by almost 828 metres in its centre, waiting for the Calatrava Tower in the new Dubai Creek Harbour district to cast its shadow over it or for the Expo 2020 site of... 2021 (the World Expo, planned for 2020, has been postponed for a year because of the Covid-19 pandemic) in the new South Dubai district to end in the desert, we tell ourselves that nothing can compare to it and wonder if it will ever stop!
And to put down one's suitcases here, more than anywhere else, better than anywhere else, the Gulf is a temple of luxury hotels. An open-air palace with multiple addresses. So, for great prices when you know how to shop on the Internet, the traveller will be able to spend a few nights in a brilliant palace, in the style of an oriental palace or an ultra-design style. To each his own tastes, according to his means. But nothing shabby or approximate here.
Shopping and sport all year round
Welcome to the shopping temple! Chanel, Dior, YSL, Cartier, Vuitton... the most prestigious brands seem to have met in Dubai, the land of choice for Platinum cards. Most European brands have one or more shops, as do the big names in IT and decoration! Some seventy "malls" - these covered shopping centres - compete in ingenuity to attract customers who stroll through them in astonishing settings and have unparalleled services (numerous bars and restaurants, childcare and play areas for children, cultural centres, amusement parks, hotel shopping delivery, etc.).
On the sports side, you obviously have to deal with the weather. Nine months out of twelve to get some fresh air, from temperate to very hot. Then four hot summer months are more conducive to jogging in air-conditioned malls! The emirate you are going to explore has nearly 400 kilometres of maritime showcase, lagoons in salt pans and beaches. Diving, golfing, walking and swimming. What a pleasure to take a bath in Jumeirah or on the JBR Walk in 30°C water! What a pleasure to drag a mint lemonade under a parasol in your hand!
Dubai, the country of all possibilities... in complete safety..
Because in terms of leisure, the emirate has not done in half measure. Here, in less than 24 hours, it is possible to take a sea bath in 38°C, to travel across the desert on camelback, to observe the oryx in a reserve, to cross the Creek in abra! You can also treat yourself to a dinner cruise in a traditional boat, fly over the desert in a hot-air balloon, cruise along the immense Palm in a speed boat, watch the sunset behind the dune of Bab Al Shams, smoke hookah in a Bedouin camp. You can savour local grouper, dates from Al Aïn, cucumbers from Holland, meat from New Zealand, caviar from Iran, Roquefort cheese from France, etc., and, for the most capricious and wealthy, freshly imported produce from Rungis market! You can stroll around, drink a fresh mint lemonade or enjoy a glass of vintage champagne...
And, not to spoil anything, Dubai, like the rest of the Emirates, is very safe. You can stroll around in complete peace, without watching your bag or fearing for your vehicle. Delinquency is non-existent or very marginal, and pickpocketing or theft from hotels is extremely rare. You will simply have to remain vigilant at the wheel, as drivers of huge 4x4s tend to play mushroom. On the religious front, the government ostensibly condemns fundamentalism and accepts cultural differences. Children are happily welcomed and can wander around with their parents without fearing for their health. Hygiene is very good, there are few or no insects and no vaccinations are required for visitors. All in all, everything is in place for a dream vacation with family, friends or lovers. Welcome to Dubai !
Smart info
When? Like many destinations in the world, Dubai has several annual tourist seasons, which are decisive in terms of price. During the Christmas and New Year holidays or festivals, hotels are full and sometimes double their rates! The same applies during the festivities (Eid at the end of Ramadan), sporting events of worldwide scope, various international trade shows, etc. In the heart of summer, on the other hand, the heat melts the prices and you can treat yourself to a stay in a palace for the price of a small 4-star hotel. The same is true during the Ramadan period, when the country slows down a bit and experiences a significant reduction in the services usually offered (fewer means of transport, restaurants and bars in the centre closed during the day, monuments open for less time...). However, due to the high average hotel occupancy rate, it is difficult to really talk about low season.
Getting there. For a return flight from Paris to Dubai, count on average between €400 and €700 and between 6h30 and 7 hours flight time.
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