Things to do in Dubai

[shakalaka]

So at the end of May, my dad and I will be in Dubai for like 2 days. Just wondering what we can do when we are there and stuff. If anyone has been there, what would you recommend.

Are there any recommended websites that I can check out in order to see what sort of tourist packages are available that I can look into booking or something?

Thanks a lot.

[YYC_A4]

The Dubai Mall, Mall of the Emirates, and the observation deck at the Burj Khalifa are a few popular touristy things to do/see. The old souk (mostly textiles), and the gold and spice souks are fascinating to explore (located in the Al Ras / Deira area). Make sure that you haggle at the souks, never pay the sticker price!

Marvel at the presence of Tim Hortons and Second Cup there - my mind was blown when I first arrived and saw a Timmy's. Though for an authentic experience, try the Arabic coffee and creamy, melt-in-your mouth "rhutab wannan" dates at the Bateel Cafe in the Dubai Mall.

The currently closed-for-renovations Jumeirah Beach Park was a great spot to enjoy the warm waters of the Persian Gulf - Mamzar Park is an alternate beach park, though a little out of the way.

If you want to make an excursion, Al Ain is a lush oasis city located about 100km south (along the Omani border).

Personally, I'd skip a tour package and just explore the city yourselves. The metro and bus systems are decent (see proviso below), and combined with taxis you can cover the entire city.

**Make sure you know where your destination is ahead of time! Don't rely on bus drivers or other public servants for directions! The pace of growth there is so crazy that few people know their way around the city.

[eblend]

Went there in 2011 for a week, and here are just some of the things we did:

1. Mall of the Emirates - huge mall, can walk around and see. We went to Ski Dubai and did snowboarding there, can rent all your gear there. Not much fun, but once in a life time opportunity to say you went skiing in Dubai, was worth it.

2. Gold souk in the old town, Deira area.

3. Jumeriah Mosque, Jumeriah Beach

4. Burj Khalifa observation deck and the surrounding area, watch the dancing fountains (like in vegas)

5. Atlantis Waterpark at the Atlantis Hotel on the Palm Jumeirah.

6. Chopper flight over downtown Dubai and the Palm islands and the beach area

7. Boat tour around the Palm Jumeriah, marina, and Burj Al Arab. Jumping off the boat to swim. Water there is amazingly warm...we didn't know we could swim...so we did it in our underwear as we didn't bring swimming trunks

8. Afternoon tea at Burj Al Arab. Pretty pricey, $120 if i recall USD, but it's your best bet to get into the 7 star hotel. Have to dress up a bit. Chillax at the top in a fancy restaurant while having finger foods

9. Night dinner on a boat around Deira

10. Offroading in the desert. Dune buggies. This was by far my most favourite part. Ripping through the desert in the dune buggy is unbelievably fun...we did it twice!

11. Sleep in the desert. There is a walled complex in the desert where you have buffet dinner outdoors (watch out for sand...)...while there is entertainment on central stage, can go sit on the back of a camel, sandboard, smoke hookah. We booked the overnight stay. They setup sleeping bags and area on the second floor of this grass hut and you sleep under the open sky. Very very cool.

Check your PM, I sent you a link to my site which shows pictures of everything mentioned above, and see what you think would be cool for you. We did all of the above in 4 full days.

[jav_]

im not vacationing to dubai anytime soon but id definitely do the skydiving down the palm islands

[JDMMAN]

Depending on your schedule, I'd recommend heading down to Abu Dhabi to the Grand Mosk and Yas Marina or Ferrari World.

[shakalaka]

Thanks a lot guys for the suggestions, please keep them coming.

Are there any websites where I can look into booking some excursions perhaps?

Also, we would like to stay in downtown preferably. What are some of the good hotels there? What is the best way to book them? Expedia?

Thanks a bunch! Sounds like a lot of things to do but we will only be there for 2 days, so would like to pick the best couple of things.

[zooter]

I just returned from vacation and visiting family in Dubai for 2 weeks.. There is a lot to do, in 2 days it will be very tough to see everything but my suggestion are:

Dubai Mall - make sure you watch the Dubai Fountain show, you step outside by the Tim Hortons on the lower level. The show runs every hour, there is a different song each time. The night show with Thriller is the best.

I preferred Dubai Mall over the Mall of the Emirates. There are no benches, seats anywhere in the Emirates mall to sit. Kind of made it hard with kids. Don't know why this is the case.

Jumeira Beach - Atlantis at the Palm - Aqua Adventure, really nice water park for families and kids, etc.

Wild Wadi Water Park - better rides than Aqua Adventure, nice place to take the kids or family

Ferrari World

Restaurants! They have some really top class restaurants in Dubai. Take your pick and enjoy.

Desert Safari

Boat cruise / dinner Deira Dubai as mentioned above. Make sure you pick one of the better operators.

Dubai Creek - take a walk, have dinner, relax.

Golf - some really nice golf courses in and around Dubai.

[JAYMEZ]

Im heading down the same time as well to see my Sister who lives there. Thanks everyone for the suggestions!

[weezy00]

Originally posted by eblend
Went there in 2011 for a week, and here are just some of the things we did:

1. Mall of the Emirates - huge mall, can walk around and see. We went to Ski Dubai and did snowboarding there, can rent all your gear there. Not much fun, but once in a life time opportunity to say you went skiing in Dubai, was worth it.

2. Gold souk in the old town, Deira area.

3. Jumeriah Mosque, Jumeriah Beach

4. Burj Khalifa observation deck and the surrounding area, watch the dancing fountains (like in vegas)

5. Atlantis Waterpark at the Atlantis Hotel on the Palm Jumeirah.

6. Chopper flight over downtown Dubai and the Palm islands and the beach area

7. Boat tour around the Palm Jumeriah, marina, and Burj Al Arab. Jumping off the boat to swim. Water there is amazingly warm...we didn't know we could swim...so we did it in our underwear as we didn't bring swimming trunks

8. Afternoon tea at Burj Al Arab. Pretty pricey, $120 if i recall USD, but it's your best bet to get into the 7 star hotel. Have to dress up a bit. Chillax at the top in a fancy restaurant while having finger foods

9. Night dinner on a boat around Deira

10. Offroading in the desert. Dune buggies. This was by far my most favourite part. Ripping through the desert in the dune buggy is unbelievably fun...we did it twice!

11. Sleep in the desert. There is a walled complex in the desert where you have buffet dinner outdoors (watch out for sand...)...while there is entertainment on central stage, can go sit on the back of a camel, sandboard, smoke hookah. We booked the overnight stay. They setup sleeping bags and area on the second floor of this grass hut and you sleep under the open sky. Very very cool.

Check your PM, I sent you a link to my site which shows pictures of everything mentioned above, and see what you think would be cool for you. We did all of the above in 4 full days.

Who did you do the Dune Buggy tour and Boat Tour with? How much was the dune buggy tour?

[eblend]

Originally posted by weezy00


Who did you do the Dune Buggy tour and Boat Tour with? How much was the dune buggy tour?

http://desertrangers.com/Safaris/overnitesafarihalf.php

We did the overnight tour. They have a bunch of different options. The dune buggies are there, can go anytime. We went twice, once the following morning as it was so much fun. I think it was like $100 for 40 min

The boat tour was by these guys
http://www.dubairelaxtours.com/

[weezy00]

Thanks, I will check them out.

[davidI]

People have already listed a lot of the top attractions.

Here's a post I had written a few years ago about Dubai. It may be due for an update but there's still a lot of good information: http://baldpacker.com/uae-backpacker-guide-dubai

[NoPulp]

How expensive is it to travel there?
Compared to Europe?

[SR54RNR]

Bumping this up, heading to Dubai in a few months, Staying at the TAJ.

Anyone else been there lately, or have any other info to add?

Some good info in this thread already. We are planning on hitting up Ski dubai, the Burj Kalifa, the malls, and maybe one of the water parks.. anyone been to any of them? We have been to Atlantis in the Bahamas already, so unsure if we going to check it out in Dubai.. This Wild Wadi sounds like it may be pretty good..?

Also, anything else in Abu Dhabi worth checking out other than Ferrari world? Trying to decide if we should spend a few nights there on our way back from Maldives

[BensonTT]

I was actually in Dubai during Ramadan time and you couldn't eat,drink or smoke in public.. It was a pain in the ass!Oh and Ferrari World was pretty cool...