Dubai: Your Complete Travel Guide to this Land of Excess

Have you ever dreamed of completely exhausting your credit card in the world’s largest shopping mall, then having your driver carry your bags up to your suite at an opulent 5-star hotel, while you give benjamins to all the many, many staff who assist you along the way? How about partying until dawn while scantily-clad bartenders bring you sparklers in $5k bottles of Cristal? Or skiing indoors, in the summer, then reclining on the beach, wearing diamonds? Neither have I. But for those who do, there’s a place where that lifestyle is a reality for some: Dubai. The city is as artificial as its island, and yet its population has tripled in the last decade. It’s the land where even the cops drive Lamborghinis and Ferraris (yes, really!)

You’re probably on the edge of your seat, booking the plane tickets now, aren’t you?

But wait, you have your bags packed and your sunglasses draped over your head, but there is one final hurdle that is stopping you from jumping on the next plane to Dubai: Is it safe there?

Safety and Dress Code in Dubai

You can throw your worries into the same trash can you’ll be throwing any expenditure restrictions; Dubai is one of the safest places to travel to. I know it might be hard to imagine that, given its location in the Middle East: a little too close to Israel and Syria for comfort. But honestly, Dubai is one of those places where you don’t have to give a second thought about taking a midnight walk after a hearty, Arabic-style dinner.

That being said, I do think it would be wise to not venture to Emirates like Sharjah and Al-Ain at night. But metropolises like Dubai and Abu Dhabi are very safe, especially if you’re travelling alone as a woman.

There isn’t any lawfully-enforced dress code in Dubai, except in mosques where women and men are expected to cover their heads in traditional Arabic scarves.

Pack the same clothes as you would if you were taking a summer trip to Hawaii.

Dubai is a city with a population of 90% expats, most of whom come from (cold) countries in Europe. Enforcing a dress code that requires people to cover themselves up would drive most of these expats out of the city, which would all but ruin the local economy — and lawmakers are well-aware of this.

Now that we’ve covered safety, let’s move on to how to get there, all the fun things to do there, and what to pack:

Getting To Dubai

The trip from the US to Dubai is typically around fourteen hours if you aren’t stopping anywhere in between. To me, the best flight to take would definitely be Emirates Airlines. Their first class section offers dual and single cabins where you can enjoy relative privacy while you get your beauty sleep. And your sleep is something you wouldn’t want to compromise on before going to Dubai. Dubai is a night city and you will find yourself going to bed as late (or should I say as early?) as 4am.

There probably isn’t any better way to spend your fourteen hours flying than in Emirates — unless, of course, you take a private jet.

The Dubai Airport is one of the largest airports in the world with a beautiful interior, various shopping outlets, bars and restaurants, so your shopping spree can begin from the very moment you step into Dubai. But remember not to go overboard in Duty Free, as there are many more trinkets you’ll want to throw into your shopping cart after you see the Dubai Mall.

Hotels to Stay In

Since Dubai is a very famous tourist destination, there’s an abundance of luxury hotels that you can choose from. Ranging from the Versace hotel which will set you off on long nights of pure relaxation and warm baths in enormous marble-tiled bathrooms, to the Conrad Hotel which will send a buzzing thrill in your veins with nights of non-stop activities.

Palazzo Versace Dubai

Palazzo Versace Dubai is reminiscent of a sixteenth century Italian palace, with ubiquitous hints of Arabic influence. This marvelous hotel is equipped with a striking entrance, high ceilings, landscaped gardens, and a range of well-crafted Italian furnishings; making it a true symbol of the Versace lifestyle.

It’s pretty much the epitome of luxury.

The suits and hotel rooms have several exclusive designs and fabrics from the House of Versace. Palazzo Versace Dubai is a true luxury retreat for leisure travelers, and will certainly help you relax after your day out shopping, clubbing and battling Dubai’s infamous dry heat. The hotel is surrounded with lush greenery, a rarity that you will certainly enjoy in Dubai. What’s more is that every single piece of furniture or ornament that adorns this hotel is made by the House of Versace. This will certainly give you something to constantly Snapchat about and for your friends to quietly envy.

Oberoi Hotel    

Ever imagined opening your eyes to a view of one of the most marvelous skylines in the world, to toss around the bed and roll over the other side to see Burj Al Arab, a lavish building built on an a small man-made island? Well, your dreams can become a languid reality here since you’ll be surrounded by Tumblr-like views every direction you turn.

The Oberoi Hotel is a contemporary luxury hotel and its most striking feature is that it overlooks the iconic Burj Khalifa. Imagine coming to your hotel room at night, with tired feet and a bunch of paper bags filled to the brim with clothes and adornments, and dipping your feet in a warm bath inside your bathroom with a large window that overlooks the tallest building on Earth. That’s a dream that will definitely come true at the Oberoi Hotel.

The hotel is near Sheikh Zayed Road (or the road with the best shopping outlets, as the locals call it), making it even easier for you to reach various malls. There are 252 rooms in the hotel, all having floor-to-ceiling windows that give you an enthralling view of the Dubai skyline.

Besides being a hotel of an eclectic style, it is also the home for the restaurant Nine7One. Nine7One offers cuisines ranging from traditional Arabic, Arabic-Western fusion to Indian and Mediterranean. You can have all your crazy-cuisine cravings fulfilled here.

The Oberoi Hotel also offers a spa that has various relaxing Thai massages, a sauna and a mud bath.  There are also holistic therapies drawn from Ayurveda in India, along with internationally influenced therapies that are available in their spa.

Yup, Dubai puts the metro in metropolis.

Conrad Dubai

If you’re looking for a hotel that is located in a business environment, filled with daily buzz and an iridescent energy, then Conrad Hotel might be just right for you.

Conrad Dubai offers elegantly furnished hotel rooms and suits with panoramic views, six unique dining venues, and a luxury spa and fitness center. During your stay here, you’ll probably meet many people thoroughly engaged in rampant business, since Conrad Hotel is a magnet for people travelling for business purposes. Traditional Arabic entertainment, including Arabic dances and music, are also offered here. Besides traditional entertainment, there are also jazz performances offered every other night. So you can be happily assured that all of your nights here will be packed with some form of consuming entertainment.

The dining options available here offer a variety of cuisines, including Latin-American, Mediterranean, Arabic and Chinese. Conrad Dubai is furnished with sleek and modern art that will appeal to your black-and-white aesthetics, and perhaps give you something Instagram-worthy to post.

A Day in Burj Khalifa

You can’t claim to have visited Dubai if you haven’t been up to the tallest building of the world: Burj Khalifa.

Burj Khalifa is a skyscraper that stands erect in the middle of Dubai’s skyline. If you happen to come during the winter time (which is the best time to come in Dubai) you can witness the beautiful fireworks and light shows that take place during Christmas and New Year.

Mall of the Emirates provides a wonderful view of Burj Khalifa, but the best way to truly see this building is by going inside it. But acrophobic people be aware; there are over 180 floors in Burj Khalifa and the tour guide takes you all the way to the top-most floor.

You can book your tickets to visit Burj Khalifa in the Mall of the Emirates, and they will provide you with a tour guide that will accompany you to the top floor in Burj Khalifa, while teaching you about the history of Dubai and how Burj Khalifa was built. Perhaps now you can also build on your geographical knowledge while simultaneously building on your wardrobe.

The lift that will carry you to the top-most floor is one of the fastest lifts in the world! It’s walls are studded with disc-shaped lights that constantly keep changing color while you go up. It feels like you’re travelling in a large disco ball. And rest assure, unless you didn’t just binge on too many Arabic sweets or got drunk on some exotic champagne, you won’t be feeling queasy on this ride.

At the top floor, there are several little digital telescopes that not only allow you to take a closer look at the roads, but also allow you look at what Dubai looked like forty years ago! You can point your telescope in any direction and it will show you how Dubai looked like in the past in the direction that you are pointing your telescope in. There is a similar feature that allows you to take a look at Dubai and see how it might look like in the future. How unnecessarily brilliant this technology is.

There are many shops on the top floor where you can get souvenirs, books, ornaments and models of the Burj Khalifa. Really, there isn’t a single place in Dubai where you shouldn’t carry your wallet and your credit card.

Skydiving from Burj Khalifa

Calling all the adventure lovers! There is also an option to skydive from the top most floor in Burj Khalifa; and you were thinking that this trip would be just a shopping trip.

Ever thought of being ten feet tall? Well, how about fifty feet tall with an extra touch of free fall?

The tickets for this thriller can be booked online, or also through the reception in The Mall of the Emirates. This honestly isn’t something you should be missing, you’ll regret not jumping from an incredible high and into clouds and skyscrapers when you later look back at your trip.

The fall from the top floor is beyond exhilarating, and the view is something that you can never forget. It feels like falling into a pool of skyscrapers – but don’t worry, you actually just fall onto a trampoline.

Stay in Burj Khalifa

Can’t have enough of this elegantly designed and too-tall-to-be-real building? Well, you don’t have to worry about giving up the amazing view from here after just one day of sightseeing. Another hotel that you can consider staying in is the one in Burj Khalifa itself.

Armani Hotel is a hotel situated in the middle floors of Burja Khalifa. It has a grand private entrance and occupies eleven floors of Dubai’s iconic skyscraper. You can relax in your bed and gaze out at the city through your one-way floor-to-ceiling window while everyone outside secretly wishes they were you.

There are several dining options available, but the most famous one is the Japanese buffet. It is an outdoor buffet and almost all the seats overlook a beautiful view of the road, and everything looks inordinately small. One of my favorite things to eat here was the Japanese Garden Desert; a little garden-like palette filled with different colored chocolates and ice-creams and dragon fruits. Indoor dining options are also available with a blend of Western and Arabic cuisines.

There is also an extensive Armani spa which offers different kinds of treatments and sequential bathing options. I guess by now you must have realized that spas are a big thing and go-to spot for most of the people here. Spas are incredibly famous in Dubai and you should definitely go to at least one of them before you say your final farewell to the city.

Another benefit of staying in Burj Khalifa is that it allows you to be really close to Downtown Dubai, which is an ideal place for luxury brand shopping.

Desert Safari

One of the best aspects of visiting a country that is partially covered in desert is the desert safari. Desert Safari is a thrilling ride which includes dune bashing, night camps, Arabic-style entertainment and a large buffet. It is both adventurous and relaxing (and you thought those two things could never come together).

Platinum Heritage

Platinum Heritage provides the most luxurious and authentic desert safari experience that you are likely to never forget. They have different collections and offers available to best suit what you want. Platinum Heritage is one of the best ways to experience and witness the beauty and serenity of a dessert at night.

Their Platinum Collection is their most basic collection. It includes a thrilling ride in a luxurious Range Rover, followed by occasional stops at Desert wildlife conservatories. Here, you can book a ticket to enter the conservatory and spend a half hour gazing at the Dubai wildlife in their natural habitat. They also make stops at oasis, so that you can see first-hand what a mirage looks like to a desert traveler.  Near the oasis, they also offer a uniquely styled Bedouin breakfast with traditional food items like dates, coconut sweets, hummus, lamb meat and Arabic bread.

The Heritage Collection is one step up from the Platinum Collection. Being an ardent history lover, this is the offer that I took. In the Heritage collection, the occasional stops in the safari are made at historical sites and museums located inside the desert. It’s enthralling gazing at the historical cites in the sort of pleasurable quietness that you only find in a dessert. You can spend one night at a vintage Bedouin camp that is equipped with the best bathroom facilities and a luxurious Bedouin tent- it’s the perfect way to experience the life of a Bedouin while staying true to your twenty first century lifestyle. They provide tailor-made activities which can include camel rides, falcon spotting, henna art, belly dancing, hookah smoking, etc.

Besides these, Platinum Heritage also offers a wedding package for all those of you who wish to spice things up Arabic style and host a wedding or proposal in the desert. And trust me, it’ll be equal parts quirky and adventurous.

Stay in the ‘Lost City of Atlantis’

Ever felt like you were a lost mermaid on land, with languid legs instead of a fabulous tail? Well, now you can reunite with your true self at the famous Lost City of Atlantis. The water rides here will make you feel like you really are a fish and the large aquariums that adorn the walls will make you forget that you live on land.

From the tallest buildings to the deepest of ocean’s treasures, Dubai has every possible luxury available for you to devour.

Atlantis is a grand water park in Dubai. In addition to being a water park, it has a beautiful resort, various restaurants offering versatile cuisines, museums and a large, floor-to-ceiling aquarium, making you feel like you are actually inside the submerged city of Atlantis.

Waterpark

The waterpark here is the best way to cool off during the summers in Dubai. It has numerous themed rides that are both exciting and enthralling to look at. One of my favorite rides was a water tube that stretched across the entity of the park and finally ended in a lagoon that is designed to resemble the inside of a sea oyster. You can take your swimming experience to a whole new level in Atlantis.

Besides your regular waterpark rides, you can also buy tickets to go diving into the aquarium. It is completely safe, and I promise the sharks and sting rays that roam the beds of the aquarium don’t bite. An experienced diver accompanies you while diving, to ensure your safety. While underwater, you can also feed the fish. And pretend that you’re a mermaid (or maybe that was just me).

This will probably be a good time to do a  rain-check and see if you have packed your waterproof camera. Diving into the world’s largest aquarium isn’t a memory that should be just kept in the dull confines of a human mind. These need to be shared on Facebook for the world to see.

Atlantis the Palm – Resort

The Palm is a luxurious resort inside the Atlantis, located at the Palm Beach in Dubai. The beach is called “the Palm” because it literally resembles a palm when you look at it from the sky – which you can, by the way, by renting a helicopter from the Resort facilities. It was artificially made just so that it could accommodate the Atlantis.

There are various rooms and suits available at the Palm resort. I stayed in the Beach Deluxe suit, which is an enormous and beautiful suit that overlooks the Gulf Sea and the waterpark. The best part of this suit is that the bathroom has a floor-to-ceiling window that looks into the sea! That’s right, the bathroom in the suit is underwater. You can take the most relaxing bath in the bathtub while feeling like Ariel, surrounded by other sea creatures.

There are other options available as well, including the Palm Deluxe Suit, which is situated at the very top of the resort and from where you can not only see the Dubai Skyline, but also be the first one to witness the sunset in Dubai.

Kaleidoscope Restaurant

One of the finest restaurants in the Atlantis is Kaleidoscope. Every day is a different theme, and the food is served accordingly. The themes can range from contemporary Mediterranean to traditional Chinese. Isn’t Dubai turning out to be a city full of versatile cuisines? That’s probably because of the diverse groups of people who live here.

The ambience in the dining hall is absolutely beautiful. The interior changes according to the theme of the day. There are both indoors and outdoors dining options available. The outdoor dining option provides a view of the Atlantis waterpark, as well as the Gulf Sea.

What to pack?

If you are travelling to Dubai in the summer, I strongly advise you to pack a generous amount of sunscreen, tank tops and shorts, because it will get really hot. Don’t forget to bring your swimming wear, since you definitely wouldn’t want to miss out on the beaches and the water parks. And like I have mentioned before, you don’t need to worry about being dress coded anywhere. None of the tourist destinations in Dubai have any dress codes that you need to follow.

If you are travelling here during the winter, bring jeans and some sweaters. You should pack at least one warm jacket, because it can get alarmingly cold in the desert at night.

Make sure to pack at least a couple heels and glam dresses for all the fancy clubs and restaurants you’re going to be frequenting.

Dubai is a wonderful place, packed with heritage, one of the world’s tallest buildings and also luxury shopping outlets that you don’t want to miss. It’s the perfect place to fill your Instagram feed with, to get so lavishly tired that your feet start hurting and to cure that by going into one of the best exotic spas.

So hurry up and start packing! And for God’s sake, don’t forget the sunscreen!