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When it comes to Dubai, the prefix «super» is always used. This applies to hotels, beaches, skyscrapers, the palaces of local sheikhs and supercars, which are just like that — easily parked at supermarkets.
Things to do in Dubai
The sights of Dubai go beyond the usual stereotypes. There are practically no ancient buildings dating back to the depths of time, and museums do not store archaeological artifacts. The emphasis is on the achievements and technological achievements of a modern metropolis surrounded by desert.
Shopping malls are waiting for shoppers of all ages, amusement parks offer plenty of recreation options for every taste, and well-maintained beaches promise bliss under the hot sun.
Museums
Al Fahidi
Al-Fahidi Fort stands at the entrance to the National Museum. Its reconstructed passages and dungeons, equipped with the latest technology, invite you on a virtual journey through Dubai ancient, medieval and modern. The most interesting interactive stand is dedicated to the pearl market. Sound, light and pictures are amazing realism.
In the inner courtyard of the fortress, there are authentic thatched huts typical of the ancient cities and villages of the emirate.
Sheikh Said House Museum
The mansion was built in the 19th century from coral taken from the bottom of the Persian Gulf, and then covered with plaster — a typical construction method of yesteryear. Sheikh Said lived in this house until his death in 1958. Important decisions were made here that affected the economic and political fate of the emirate, meetings of government representatives were held.
In 1986, the Sheikh’s house was turned into a museum. Its 30 rooms display exhibits dedicated to the evolution of Dubai, as well as personal belongings of the ruler: carpets, books, furniture, dishes, photographs, lithographs, and more.
Etihad
Opened in 2017, the Etihad Museum acquaints visitors with the chronicle of the emergence of the UAE state. The exhibition presents important documents, photographs, letters, memorandums. At the touch of a button, interactive stands provide in-depth historical information about the selected fact.
The futuristic building of the museum looks unusual. The roof of the building resembles a folded paper sheet. It is associated with the declaration of unification, and the seven golden columns are the pens of the rulers of the emirates who signed an important document.
Architecture
Burj Khalifa
The tallest building in the world (830 m) can be seen from anywhere in the metropolis. Here, on the 124th floor, there is an observation deck that can be reached by high-speed glass elevators. On the way to them, tourists are offered to watch videos about the culture and history of the UAE, which are continuously broadcast on huge screens.
The observation deck offers a stunning 360-degree panorama. The view of skyscrapers against the backdrop of the desert leaves a strong impression. Night excursions, when the city is bathed in billions of twinkling lights, are especially popular.
Tower O-14
The futuristic 100-meter O-14 skyscraper stands out from the surrounding buildings. Its snow-white facade is a steel exoskeleton 40 cm thick. More than 100 holes of different diameters have been cut into it, forming a cyclic pattern.
These openings are not only aesthetic, but also functional — they provide natural ventilation, preventing the building from overheating. Inside the frame is the usual tower of glass and concrete. It houses offices and shops.
Burj Al Arab
The tallest hotel in the world (321 m) stands on an artificially reclaimed island. The building is reminiscent of the sail of a boat, a tribute to the pearl divers who went out to sea every day to feed their families. At night, the walls of the building turn into a screen for a spectacular light show.
Burj Arab is one of the five most expensive hotels in the world. The presidential suite will cost $15,000 per day. For gourmets, there are 2 fashionable restaurants here:
- Al-Mahara is located under water — through the transparent walls, guests admire the inhabitants of the depths, which are attracted by the light of the lamps.
- Scape specializes in international cuisine, although the emphasis is on fish dishes.
There is a bar on the 27th floor. It is worth stopping by after sunset to admire the view of the city at night.
Almas Tower
The 360 m high skyscraper consists of 2 towers with sloping roofs. They house an exchange of precious stones and companies involved in their sale. The jewelry business gave the tower such a beautiful and telling name.
The two-level podium at the base, where the exchange is located, resembles a cut diamond. The glass facade is covered with a special material that prevents excessive heating of the premises.
Singing Fountains
The Dubai Musical Fountain, located on an artificial lake at the foot of the Burj Khalifa skyscraper, is one of the largest in the world (its length is 275 m). Every second, about 80 tons of water rises into the air to a height of up to 150 m.
The daily show from 18:30 to 23:00 involves about 30 colored spotlights and more than 6,000 spotlights. A unique design of pumps, under the strict guidance of a computer program, starts a whimsical dance of jets. The show is accompanied by music from local and foreign performers.
Emirates towers
A complex of two twin skyscrapers — the Emirates Office Tower (54 floors) and the five-star hotel Jumeirah Emirates Towers (56 floors). Despite almost the same number of levels, the buildings have different heights of 355 m and 309 m, respectively. It’s all about the high ceilings of the administrative tower. It houses representative offices of large local and foreign companies, as well as the office of the Prime Minister of the UAE.
rose tower
The Rose Rayhaan by Rotana hotel is located in a skyscraper with a height of 333 m. The facade is covered with frosted glass with a mirror surface, which, depending on the lighting, shimmers with blue and steel hues.
The convex corners of the tower resemble the booster cylinders of a space rocket. The effect is enhanced by a white triangular dome, similar to an unopened rosebud.
Palm Jumeirah
The man-made island, resembling a palm tree bordered by a crescent moon, is visible even from space. The area of the pearl of Dubai is 5.6 sq. km, and the size is about 5 km. There are expensive hotels, restaurants, marinas and luxury housing. The island is connected to the mainland with a 300-meter bridge, and the crescent is connected by a tunnel laid along the seabed.
Religious sites
Jumeirah Mosque
The most beautiful mosque in Dubai is a complete copy of the Al-Azhar mosque in Cairo, but it is 8 times larger than the original. Built in the best Islamic architectural traditions, it is notable for its snow-white facade with elegant brickwork, an elegant dome and two minarets in the style of the Fatimid dynasty. The mosque looks especially beautiful in the rays of evening illumination.
Only Muslims can enter the temple. And representatives of other religions — exclusively as part of excursion groups on certain days.
sikh temple
More than 50,000 Sikhs live in the emirate. With the money of local authorities, a temple was built for people professing this religion. The structure impresses with its huge size, beautiful exterior, rich interior decoration with marble and gilding, as well as floor-to-ceiling windows through which light streams. Inside there is a special atmosphere and ringing silence. All visitors are treated to vegetarian dishes. Free admission.
Entertainment
Amusement Park IMG Worlds of Adventure
It will take several days to visit all the attractions of this park. Entertainment is divided into 5 thematic zones to make it interesting for visitors of all ages.
Here you can immerse yourself in the world of Marvel movie characters, visit a park with dinosaurs, visit a hotel with ghosts, chat with your favorite cartoon characters and watch movies in one of twelve 5-D cinemas.
Also on the territory of the park there are swings, carousels, slot machines and playgrounds for active games.
Aquarium
The Dubai Aquarium on the ground floor of Dubai Mall is listed in the Guinness Book of Records. Its length is more than 30 m, the capacity is 10 million liters of water, and the number of inhabitants exceeds 30 thousand.
Another achievement is the world’s largest transparent panel for observing ichthyofauna. You should definitely take a walk through the tunnel with a radius of 270 degrees. An enchanting spectacle opens up through the thickness of the glass: stingrays, sharks, bizarre colorful fish and other inhabitants of the oceans passing by.
There is also a marine zoo, where they give performances with the participation of dolphins and sea lions. Glass-bottom boat trips are especially popular.
Dolphin Bay
Located on the territory of the five-star Atlantis hotel, the dolphinarium invites you to regular shows featuring these intelligent mammals. Guests have access to a closer acquaintance with marine animals. Under the supervision of an instructor, you can swim in shallow water with dolphins or go scuba diving. Bright emotions and unforgettable impressions are guaranteed.
Zoo
A visit to the Dubai Zoo will be a great pastime for the whole family. Almost 400 species of animals, including those listed in the Red Data Book, live on an area of more than 2 hectares. The conditions in the enclosures are as close to natural as possible. The zoo has become home to Bengal tigers, lions, giraffe, hippopotamus, elephant, monkeys, as well as other animals and birds.
Lost Chambers
A complex of 10 aquariums is located on the territory of the Atlantis hotel. More than 65 thousand representatives of marine fauna and flora live in plexiglass tanks. The most daring tourists can dive, during which they are guaranteed to meet both cute colorful fish and formidable predators — moray eels and sharks. The interiors of the premises resemble a flooded mysterious city.
Bollywood Parks
So far, this is the first and only theme park in the world dedicated to Indian cinema. Tourists are waiting for luxurious palaces, pavilions with recreated scenes from cult films, there is even a real Bombay street in miniature.
In the richly decorated pavilions, they sing and dance in the best traditions of Bollywood. Cutting-edge 3-D cinemas show the latest Indian cinema and timeless classics.
Aquaventure
The park is located on the man-made island of Palm Jumeirah, on the territory of the Atlantis mega hotel. The huge area hosts slides of all sizes, artificial beaches, waterfalls, rivers and countless pools, through which you can move around the entire water park without going to land.
Some attractions are exclusively for adults who want to get an adrenaline rush. These are the world’s largest slide «Aquaconda», «Poseidon’s Revenge» — a descent in a glass capsule at a speed of over 50 km / h and «Jump into the Unknown» — an almost vertical slide as high as a 9-story building.
Interesting places
Madinat Jumeirah
This area of Dubai invites you to go back in time. Modern architecture here is stylized as an Arab village. In Jumeirah there are boutiques, restaurants and villas of wealthy citizens, immersed in greenery — a rarity for the deserted Arabian Peninsula.
Artificial canals perform several tasks at once: they give coolness, act as overpasses and decorate the landscape. In the center of the complex there is a market with colorful shops.
Bastakiya District (Old Dubai)
The colorful district of Bastakiya is located in the east of Dubai. It was formed in the middle of the 19th century, when rich merchants of pearls, textiles and spices began to settle here. Authentic buildings made of coral, lined with gypsum, have been perfectly preserved to this day. Their main distinguishing feature is wind towers, which in ancient times served as air conditioners.
In the heart of Bastakiya is the Majlis gallery with ceramics, antique furniture and paintings.
Deira area
Washed by the waters of the Dubai Creek, Deira is a colorful fusion of cultures and eras. Against the backdrop of gigantic skyscrapers, buildings of fashionable hotels and world-famous banks, you can see old buildings or sailing boats — just like those that went to sea 100 or 200 years ago.
Deira has become home to locals and immigrants who came to Dubai in search of a better life. All this is reflected in everyday life and architecture. You should definitely see 2 outstanding buildings: the “Heritage House” (1890), which belonged to a large pearl merchant, and the Al-Ahmadiyya School (1912). There are also traditional Arab bazaars: gold, spices and fish.
heritage village
The open-air cultural and historical park invites you to learn how the emirate lived in the past — before the oil boom and the appearance of skyscrapers. Visitors can stroll through the streets of a recreated Arab village, along Persian houses with wind towers and heavy wooden gates. Tasting real Arabic coffee or enjoying local cuisine is a real temptation for gourmets.
Curious people are welcome at exhibitions dedicated to pearls — from mining to creating a piece of jewelry. There is also a real Bedouin tent where you can plunge into the life of the nomadic tribes of the Arabian Peninsula. There are numerous souvenir shops in the village.
Alserkal Avenue Art Quarter
Part of the industrial district of Al-Kuz — the one that adjoins Al Serkal Street — has become an arts center, where young people and local bohemians love to be, who are not alien to anything European. Boutiques, cafes and restaurants are an indispensable attribute of the trendy district.
Galleries have settled on modern streets — from small and chamber ones to mastodons of the art business. Paintings, sculptures, panels and installations in the genre of contemporary art are demonstrated in a relaxed atmosphere. Jams and sessions have already become commonplace for these places.
Zabeel Park
Located in the heart of the metropolis, Zabeel Park is a favorite place for walking locals and tourists. An artificial lake and trees give a saving coolness. The park is equipped with playgrounds, Stargate entertainment complex with themed areas for visitors of different ages.
Miracle Garden
Flowers in the desert are not just a miracle, but the crown of diligence and engineering. About 100 species of variegated flora grow in the park. The territory is divided into three zones:
- In the composition area, you can see the Eiffel Tower made of flowers, a fairy-tale castle or a giant teddy bear with a big scarlet heart.
- The flower fields zone is a whimsical carpet with intricate ornaments.
- The garden of aromas is endless flower beds, the main emphasis is, of course, on strongly smelling flowers.
Twice a year the “exposition” changes completely.
Dubai Mall
The shopping center, opened in 2008, still holds the title of the most visited in the world. It has all the world famous designer boutiques, more than 200 restaurants, a zoo and an aquarium. The decoration of the building is a 4-level waterfall, shimmering in different colors in the rays of illumination.
Mall of the Emirates
The second largest mall in the emirate after the Dubai Mall. For inveterate shopaholics, there are about 600 shops, several dozen restaurants, cafes and cinemas. The famous ski center Ski Dubai, where winter reigns all year round, is also located here.
gold market
The market for gold and precious stones in Deira is considered the largest in the Middle East. Products are sold both retail and wholesale. It also buys assortment for Duty Free shops at Dubai Airport.
If there is nothing suitable, you can make an individual order to the jeweler. Among authentic things there are also fakes. In addition, it is customary to bargain in the market. Discount from the original price can be from 20% to 40%.
spice market
Already on the way to this market, various smells begin to tickle the nose. Spices for any dishes are presented in trays, bags and packages on a huge territory. All kinds of peppers, cinnamon, cloves, thyme, rose oil — what is there. Here you can even buy saffron, the most expensive spice in the world. The sellers are friendly and willing to haggle.
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