Top 10 Things To Do In Dubai
Are you planning to visit Dubai and you are wondering what are the best things to do? If yes, you will find out the greatest places and attractions to visit. I spent 10 days full of fun and adventure in Dubai. My list is based on my personal experience.
1. Dubai Metro
Dubai Metro is my number 1 to try in Dubai. Dubai Metro is the cleanest, most modern, and safest metro in the World. I live in London and London Underground is probably one of the most dirty undergrounds/metro in the World, usually you can even meet a mouse family there running up and down in a station. If you are staying in Dubai for a few days I recommend purchasing Dubai Public Transport Travel Card, called Not Card, straight away at the airport. It costs only AED 115 = around £25 per week. Dubai Metro is the cheapest, fastest, and in most cases the most comfortable way of transport.
All Metro stations are air-conditioned, modern, and extremely clean. You will not find a single piece of rubbish on the floor or any graffiti. Even toilets are clean and nicely smelling. The best thing is that the metro is overground and you can enjoy a spectacular view of Dubai.
The Dubai Metro trains are split into 3 parts:
- Gold Class – only for gold-class ticket holders, which costs double the price of a standard ticket. The gold class area is at the beginning of the train. A penalty of 100 AED if failing to show a golden ticket.
- Ladies & Children Cabins – part of the train at the beginning of the train, opposite of gold class cabin, only for women and kids, men are not allowed. Standard ticket charges apply.
- Silver Class – a general mix of men and women for standard ticket cost.
Official RTA – Dubai Public Transport Website: https://www.rta.ae
2. Desert Safari Dubai
There is a huge range of different trips you can choose from. You can find really cheap trips from £30 per person. Those are group trips and you are sharing a jeep with other tourists. The biggest difference is the price, usually, the more you pay more comfortable or private experience you will get. Platinum Heritage is a premium provider of red dune safari trips starting the price for scheduled cars from almost 500 USD per person or from 1600 USD for a private car. Check out their website here as they offer the most luxurious royal platinum packages even with an overnight stay in the desert with a hot air balloon flight. We did not want to spend so much money so we decided on a cheaper option offered by our hotel. We paid only £100 for both of us and our concierge upgraded us with VIP camp as part of the trip which included:
- 4×4 Jeep Dune Bashing
- Sunset Photoshoot in Dubai Red Dune Desert
- VIP Camp
- Camel Ride in the Desert
- Fresh Food and Buffet Dinner, Non-Alcoholic Beverages & Apple Shisha
- Entertainment – Belly Dance, Fire Show & Arabic Dance
Extra cost:
- Quad Bike Dune Bashing – a single quad bike was 150 AED and a stronger quad bike for 2 was 250 AED (for 30 minutes). We show that we were not interested and in the end, we paid 150 AED for the stronger bike for both of us.
- Photo with Falcon – extra 10 AED
- Shisha of Your Choice to Your Table – extra 60 AED – Apple Shisha is Shisha Corner was free.
Check out my blog to find out all the details you need to know before booking Desert Safari in Dubai.
3. Ski Dubai
Ski Dubai is for me the most magical attraction we did in Dubai because we met penguins, we were allowed to touch them and they made our stunning photos. This is the only place in the World you can touch penguins.
Ski Dubai is divided into 3 parts:
- Ski Slopes – Skiing & Snowboarding only.
- Penguin Counter – 40 minutes sessions with penguins
- Snow Park – Winter Attractions:
There are many options you can go for starting from 200 AED (almost £40) per person but we decided to go for the PREMIUM tickets for 500 AED (almost £120) per person which included:
- 40 minutes Penguin counter (no camera allowed = 1 x photo 150 AED or 600 AED for USB key with all photos, 2 photo snowballs, 5 printed photos)
- Unlimited skiing
- Unlimited all attractions
- 1 x pair of waterproof gloves (other packages only flies gloves)
- 1 x hot chocolate
- North Restaurant – 1 x meal with 1 x drink included
- 1 x printed photo with a leather book (more photos = 1 x photo 150 AED or 600 AED for USB key with all photos, 2 photo snowballs, 5 printed photos)
Check out my blog to find out all the details you need to know before going to Ski Dubai.
4. Greatest Public Beach In The World La Mer Beach Dubai
Dubai beaches are different than any other beaches in the world. Every beach has its theme. My favorite beach is La Mer Beach which is the best public beach in Dubai.
La Mer Beach Complex is inspired by pop art and modern urban style. Everything there is made with an industrial twist and attention to every single detail. All buildings are a blend of minimalist and contemporary design, decorated with pop art paintings and graffiti. The architecture is inspired by the rusted metal and tinted barrels that are the result of the sea washing up on timber.
Check out my blog to find out all the details you need to know before going to La Mer Beach.
Kite Beach Dubai
I think Kite Beach is the biggest public beach that offers you a lot of opportunities to tan, swim, eat and do various outdoor activities. The beach is a little windy which makes it ideal for kitesurfing. Check out my blog to find out all the details you need to know before going to Kite Beach.
5. Burj Khalifa Dubai
Burj Khalifa is the tallest building in the World which offers spectacular views of Dubai Skyline. There are many options for how to visit Burj Khalifa but the main 2 are:
Floor 148 – The sunset time is the most expensive and it costs around £150 per person.- Floors 124 & 125 – You can watch the sunset from floor 125 for only around £33 per person.
Day and night tickets are cheaper because you will see Dubai only during the day or night. You can also watch the second World’s largest fountain show which starts at 7 PM and repeats every 30 minutes. Check out my blog to find out all the details you need to know before going to Burj Khalifa.
6. Dubai Fountain
The Dubai Fountain is a choreographed fountain system located on Burj Khalifa Lake, right next to the famous Burj Khalifa. The cost of the fountain construction was 800 mil. AED = 218 mil. USD. The fountain is animated with performances set to light, music, and water. It is visible from every point on the lake promenade and from many neighboring structures as well as from Burj Khalifa. Performances take place at 1:00 pm and at 1:30 pm as well as every 30 minutes from 6 pm to 10 pm on weekdays, and from 6 pm to 11 pm on weekends (weekends being Thursday, Friday, and Saturday).
7. Dubai Gold Souk
Dubai Gold Souk, known as Gold Souk, is a traditional gold market located in Dubai’s business district in Deira. The word souk means a traditional market where goods and services are exchanged or sold in a marketplace or streets. Dubai is planning to renovate this popular tourist place to attract even more tourists. Dubai Gold Souk is the biggest gold market in the World and it is believed that there is always at least 1000 kilograms of gold at any time. You can buy there also silver, platinum, diamonds, and other pieces of jewelry.
You can find here one of the biggest and heaviest GOLD rings in the World which is weighing 64 kg.
8. Dubai Marina
Dubai Marina is an affluent residential neighborhood with a waterside promenade Dubai Marina Walk which offers plenty of restaurants, cafes, and Shisha lounges. Dubai Marina Mall belongs to the biggest malls in Dubai packed with luxury fashion brands. You can book here the greatest activities anything from a simple boat trip to skydiving. I recommend you come here to enjoy a tasty dinner with spectacular views of Skyscrapers and luxury yachts. The average price of a main course is about 80 AED and you can enjoy here Shisha just for 40 AED.
Official Dubai Marina website: www.dubai-marina.com
9. Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Abu Dhabi
Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi is the third largest mosque in the world. It took 11 years to build this mosque and the cost is 2 billion dirhams = more than £400 million. The courtyard with its floral design measures about 17,000 m2, and is considered to be the largest example of marble mosaic in the world. The carpet in the main prayer hall is considered to be the world’s largest hand-knotted carpet designed by an Iranian artist. The weight of this carpet is 35 tons and is predominantly made from wool. The mosque has 7 chandeliers that were made in Germany incorporating millions of Swarovski crystals and 24 carats of gold. The chandelier in the main mosque is the third largest chandelier in the world.
This was our cheapest trip in Dubai. The final cost for the two of us was only 135 AED = £27. We could go on a tour which starts from 400 AED = £80 per person or we could rent a taxi for 8 hours for 800 AED = £160, but then every extra hour costs 100 AED. Check out my blog to find out all the details you need to know before going to Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi.
10. Biggest Shopping Malls In The World
Dubai Malls or shopping centers are the biggest shopping malls in the world where you can find the most luxury fashion brands, jewelry, expensive properties, and the greatest attractions in the world:
Dubai Mall
- website: https://thedubaimall.com
- At The TOP, Burj Khalifa
- Dubai Aquarium
- Dubai Ice Ring
Dubai Mall Of Emirates
- website: https://www.malloftheemirates.com
- Ski Dubai
Dubai Marina Mall
- website: https://www.dubaimarinamall.com
- 117 Shopping Outlets and 23 Dining Options at 390k Sq. Ft. across 4 levels.
11. Greatest Hotels In The World
Dubai is famous for the most luxurious hotels in the world. Burj Al Arab is the most iconic Dubai hotel which is considered to be the only 7-star hotel in the World. Its construction started in 1994 and cost 2 billion USD. It has 202 rooms.
The tallest hotel in the world GEVORA Hotel is also in Dubai. It’s located at Sheikh Zayed Road just 1 mile from Burj Khalifa.
