Things to Do in Dubai

Cutting through the heart of Dubai, the seawater Dubai Creek winds its way from the trading port on the Gulf to the Ras al Khor bird sanctuary on the desert edge of Dubai.

Old-fashioned boats called dhows criss-cross the water from Bur Dubai on the left bank to Deira on the right. Catch a water taxi dhow, called an abra, to get from A to B, or sign up for a romantic sunset dhow cruise traveling further upstream.

A cruise reveals the glittering high-rise buildings lining the Creek, passing under several bridges to reach the Creekside gardens. Or take a stroll along the paved promenade lining the Creek on the Bur Dubai side of the waterway.

Unlike anything you have seen in the world, Dubai’s Gold Souk is a market that showcases seemingly endless amounts of gold jewelry. With over 300 jewelers on site to accommodate all your gold related needs, the streets during the day are swarming with visitors from all around the world enjoying the spectacle of wall-to-wall gold, and course, the souk’s phenomenal prices.

Whether you are looking to buy or just peruse, the Dubai Souk is certainly worth your visit. With an average of 10 tons of gold available on the premises at any given time, you are sure to be impressed with the glimmering displays, with gold makes in virtually any style you could imagine—and even available in an array of colors including white, yellow and pink.

If you are feeling so inclined to make a purchase at the Souk, make sure you bring your haggling pants with you. It is entirely expected that you negotiate the price for any wanted goods.

Bur Dubai Village, located near the mouth of Dubai Creek, takes visitors back in time through a series of heritage villages complete with recreated architecture and local artisans practicing their crafts using traditional techniques. For shoppers, the village is a great place to find unique, handmade items to take home as souvenirs or gifts.

Long before the skyscrapers and palm-shaped islands, Dubai’s economy relied heavily on pearling. Teams of men would spend months at a time at sea diving for the rose-colored pearls produced in the Persian Gulf. One of the most unique experiences at the Bur Dubai Village is the opportunity to learn more about the city’s pearl diving culture and watch a demonstration of how it’s done.

Bur Dubai Village is open every day of the week, but Friday hours are limited and many of the shop will be closed. After you’ve toured the heritage village, set aside some time for a meal or drink by the waterside.

To write off the Dubai Mall as simply a shopping destination would be a huge mistake. This entertainment complex -- one of the largest in the world -- is more like a small city, housing some 1,200 retailers, 200 food and beverage outlets and a whole lineup of entertainment options.

Even when summer temperatures scorch outside, visitors to the Dubai Mall can lace up their skates and glide across an Olympic-sized ice rink. The Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo, located on the ground floor, is the world’s largest suspended aquarium with 2.6 million gallons (10 million liters) of tank space. The entertainment complex also houses a 22-screen movie theater, SEGA Republic indoor theme park and KidZania edutainment center.

That’s not to say the shopping isn’t a draw. Nearly every major fashion brand out there is represented in Dubai Mall, including five major department stores and brands like Burberry, Diesel, H&M, Juicy Couture and Forever 21.

Dubai Museum is housed in Al Fahidi Fort, built in 1787. It’s a terrific example of a desert fort, complete with cannons and battlements. Dubai’s entertaining museum brings the city’s past and present together in a series of life-size dioramas and archaeological exhibits from desert excavations.

Meet the pearl fishers who first settled the banks of the Creek, the desert Bedouins who roamed the heartland, and the date farmers who irrigated the land. You’ll also see representations of a busy souq, a mosque and inside a traditional home, revealing life in the Emirate before the coming of oil.

E 11, also known as Sheikh Zayed Road, is the main artery passing through the city of Dubai, running north to south parallel to the coast. Named after the beloved first president of the United Arab Emirates, the road exits Dubai and runs all the way to Abu Dhabi, but the segment stretching between the Emirates Towers and the Dusit Thani Hotel serves as the main access point to almost everything in the city.

Lined with towering skyscrapers and prestigious hotels (World Trade Centre, The Fairmont Dubai, Shangri-La Hotel and Millennium Tower to name a few), the road has six lanes running in each direction, with the Red Line of the Dubai Metro running parallel for most of its length through the city.

Dubai may have the world’s largest shopping mall, but for many visitors, the best shopping is found in the city’s traditional souks, or markets. Each of these historic markets specializes in one product or category of products, and one of Dubai’s most famous (and most pungent) souks is the Spice Souk.

Located in the eastern part of Dubai next to the Gold Souk, the Spice Souk includes a small area of narrow lanes lined by small shops selling almost any spice you can imagine. Huge bags and bins of colorful and fragrant spices -- everything from frankincense and saffron to dried chillies -- overflow into the streets. You’ll also find shops selling incense and sheesha, a type of tobacco smoked in a water pipe. If you come to buy spices, be prepared to haggle; knowing your basic numbers in Arabic will help.

When you think of the word ‘souk,’ you probably picture a sprawling outdoor marketplace brimming with tightly packed stalls selling spices, jewelry, colorful clothing, produce and a whole host of other goods. In true Dubai fashion, the Madinat Jumeirah Resort has taken the traditional Arabian bazaar and cranked up the luxury factor, resulting in the Souk Madinat Jumeirah.

This recreation of a traditional souk, complete with winding streets and open-shuttered shops where goods spill out into the walkway, but this souk also features waterfront cafes and bars, art galleries and designer boutiques. Most of the vendors are independent, and wares include traditional crafts, carpets, jewelry and clothing. Street artists and musicians perform regularly, and visitors can even hop on a canal boat to get from one part of the property to another.

In the past year some 5 million people visited Dubai’s Global Village—a bright lights entertainment hub with games, rides, food and fun. Travelers can find world-class shopping, a wide array of restaurants and live shows that range from cultural dance to daredevil stuntmen at this amusement park place in the heart of UAE.

Global Village highlights not only what makes Dubai’s culture and traditions so unique, but the UAE’s love of glitter and glam, too. Still, visitors agree that entertainment options here stretch far beyond the local flavor. Kid-friendly shows cater to a younger set, while international concerts and street performers offer something for the adults in the crowd, too. And for those who want to ride the rides, dozens of amusement park-style options are available for children, families and thrill-seekers.

Dubai Parks and Resorts has grown to become the region’s first integrated resort destination, comprising three theme parks, a waterpark, entertainment district and a Polynesian-style family resort. For many visitors, the highlight of the resort are the twin parks LEGOLAND Dubai and LEGOLAND Water Park, each with its own set of rides, water features and LEGO building experiences.

Motiongate Dubai takes visitors on a cinematic journey into the worlds of their favorite films, like Ghostbusters, The Smurfs and Kung Fu Panda. Bollywood Parks Dubai is the first amusement park on the planet dedicated to the iconic Indian movie industry. Riverland Dubai, the gateway into the parks, features shops and restaurants divided into four themed zones: a French village from the 1600s, America in the 1950s, the British Raj of the 1930s and early 19th century Europe.

Everything’s bigger in Dubai, and that includes the Dubai Fountain on Burj Khalifa Lake in the heart of downtown. Designed by WET, the people behind the famous Bellagio fountains in Las Vegas, the Dubai Fountain holds the record for the world’s largest dancing fountain system.

The fountains extend 900 feet (275 meters) along the manmade lake, and during the dozen daily shows, high-powered water jets propel water up to 500 feet (150 meters) into the air -- the same height as a 50-story building. During a performance, as much as 22,000 gallons of water will be airborne. The sheer amount of water isn’t the only impressive feature of the fountains; the system uses 6,600 incandescent fountain lights and 25 projectors to paint images on the dancing water.

Performances take place every 30 minutes each evening, and each “dance” is different from the last, with different Arabic and world music.

To enter the only mosque in the UAE open to non-Muslim visitors, make your way to Jumeirah Mosque.

Designed to provide a better understanding of Islam, the tour is followed by a relaxed Q&A session. All visitors need to be accompanied by a registered guide from the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding.

The extremely photogenic mosque is a modern-day tribute to medieval Fatimid architecture, complete with pure-white minarets and domes.

Founded by Sheikh Mohammed and opened in 1998, the Centre for Cultural Understanding in Dubai serves to promote awareness of Emirati culture, including food, customs, and religion, with the aim to educate visitors and expats and remove cultural barriers. Situated within the Emirati wind tower house in Dubai's Al Fahidi district, the SMCCU run guided tours of this historic area, including local mosques such as the Jumeirah Mosque.

The center operates under the motto, "Open Doors, Open Minds" and organizes various activities in addition to tours, including lectures and educational programs, cultural awareness events, Arabic classes, and Iftars during Ramadan. It also offers visitors the opportunity to learn about and experience Emirati food by hosting Cultural Breakfasts and Cultural Lunches, where guests are free to ask questions and exchange ideas with locals while sampling authentic Emirati cuisine.

The Mall of the Emirates, Dubai’s second largest shopping complex after the Dubai Mall, houses 560 international retailers spread over 2,513,017 square feet (233,467 square meters) of retail space. Superlatives are plentiful — the mall houses the largest Carrefour supermarket in the city and five dozen stores made their Middle Eastern debut here.

While the shopping remains a huge draw to the Mall of the Emirates, even non-shoppers will find something to do. Ski Dubai (the first indoor ski slope in the region), multi-screen VOX Cinemas, Magic Planet arcade and family entertainment center, Peekaboo play area and the Dubai Community Theatre & Art Centre also make their home within the Mall of the Emirates. Two five-star hotels, the Kempinski Mall of the Emirates and the Sheraton Dubai Mall of the Emirates Hotel both adjoin the shopping mall.