Things to do in Dubai

Dubai is two cities that grew forty years apart, ten kilometres from each other. The old one lines the Creek. The new one runs down the coast as a strip of towers.

Things to do in Dubai divide along that line. Half a day on each side is the honest way to read the place. Abu Dhabi is low and spread out; Dubai is dense and vertical.

The two halves

Deira and Bur Dubai face each other across the Creek. The gold and spice souks sit on one bank, the wind-tower lanes of Al Fahidi on the other. Wooden abras cross between them for one dirham.

Ten kilometres down the coast the new city starts at Downtown and runs through Business Bay, Jumeirah, the Marina and JBR. Al Quoz keeps its galleries in warehouses. The Museum of the Future opened by the highway in 2022.

Karama and Satwa behind them are where the city eats cheaply. The desert begins twenty minutes inland.

Getting around

The metro has two lines. They map onto the two halves almost exactly, and a third is under construction. Stations sit further apart than the map suggests.

• Green Line. Deira, Bur Dubai and the Creek — the old town, end to end.
• Red Line. The airport, Downtown, Business Bay, the Marina and out to the Expo site.
• Tram. A short loop through the Marina and JBR.
• Taxis. Metered, everywhere and cheap by European standards. In summer they are the default.

What the city is a base for

The desert safari is the most-booked day out and picks up at hotel doors in every format. Half-day city tours stitch them together. On the water it is dhow dinners, speedboats and yacht charters.

Dubai also sells the rest of the country. Day trips go to Abu Dhabi, over the mountains to the east coast, and up to the northern emirates. Airport transfers are their own category.

Practical

• Season. November to March is the window. June to September passes 40C, and the humidity makes evenings worse than afternoons.
• Heat and walking. In summer the walk between two metro stations is not realistic. Build the day around air conditioning and taxi hops.
• Timed slots. The observation decks sell by slot and sunset goes first, so book days ahead.
• Money. The dirham is pegged to the dollar, and one nol card covers metro, tram and bus.
• Alcohol. Licensed venues only, mostly hotels. Drinking or being drunk in public is an offence.
• Dress. Beachwear stays on the beach; shoulders and knees are covered in malls and mosques.
• Friday. A working day since the weekend moved, but the midday prayer still slows the roads.