Dubaiâs incredible metamorphosis is the epitome of opulence among all the cities in the world.
I had a not-so-long 9 days 8 nights trip to Dubai in December 2018 with my husband. It was our birthday week (luckily, both our birthdayâs fall in the same week) and we had decided to spend it in a different way. It was one of the best decisions we took to make our birthdays memorable.
We travelled to many places, as many as we could in the limited time that we had. Burj Khalifa, Desert Safari, Water park, Ferrari world, Skiing, IMG world of adventure and Bollywood park are some of the key attractions which we covered. A trip which will stay with me forever with the best memories.
I will not be able to cover the whole of Dubai in one blog post therefore, you will get to read many posts on Dubai in the days to come.
But before I share my excitement and beautiful experience about the delightful Dubai, here are a few tips which you may keep in mind while planning your trip to the most luxurious city in the world:
The best time to travel to Dubai is November to March, specially December with all the New Year and Christmas festivities all around.
In December, the weather is pleasant throughout the day but becomes a little chilly in the evenings. Carrying a jacket is a good idea if you are planning a midnight time outside your hotel room.
You can opt for visa on arrival if you have a USA Green Card or a valid visa for UAE, youâ d be admitted directly.
If not, then plan to take visa from India. It will cost you around INR 5-6K per person and will be valid for a month.
Plan your trip in advance and book your itinerary to get the best possible rates. December is the peak month and hence the rates touch heights if you book them at the last minute.
Book your flight tickets and hotel room on priority basis. This will save you from last minute rush.
There is no budget which you can think of while planning a trip to Dubai but if you donât wish to go out of basic budget, I believe carrying 200-300 AED per day would be enough per person (apart from hotel and itinerary)
Most importantly, carry smile, happiness and positivity with youđ
Iâll brief you first about the major areas of your expenditure and then will talk about my beautifully spent days.
Arriving at Dubaiâs airports-
There are two airports in Dubai at the opposite ends of the city. The main and the older one known as the worldâs busiest airport in terms of international travelers is Dubai International Airport coded as DXB and the new one- Al Makthoum International airport coded as DXC. Transportation from any of the airports to hotels is easy and convenient. You may choose to go via cab or even metros are available nearby.
Stay in Dubai-
Deciding a hotel completely depends on your personal taste and pocket size. You will find all kinds of hotels starting from some hugely luxurious coastal resort hotels to thousands of options within the different areas of the city. It really depends on what you want to get out of your trip. For the ultimate Dubai experience, you may opt for Atlantis the Palm, or Burj Al Arab on Jumeirah Beach for which youâll need a fat wallet, but it would be a once in a life time kind of experience.
We opted for an average budgeted Indian hotel- âHotel Citymaxâ which was located in the centre of Bur Dubai. It had all the amenities from clubs to swimming pool to great food and super-fast services. The room was small but cozy and well-maintained.
There are multiple options for hotels in Bur Dubai as it is in the centre and connects well to all other parts easily.
Getting around Dubai-
We had booked our itinerary well in advance (thanks to my husband) and it was inclusive of all the to and fro transportation. However, if you wish to travel on your own, there are three options:
1. Metro- there are two metro lines- green and red covers most of the tourist areas in and around the city. However, they are pretty crowded, and I personally donât like travelling in them.
2. Cabs and taxis- It is a much better option and are easily available at all points everywhere in the city. They are all metered (starts with 5 AED and the minimum fare is 12 AED during the day time) and you wonât need to haggle.
3. Buses- they are common across the city, but you really need to know the routes for that.
Food in Dubai-
Dubai is famous for its food. Be its vegetarian or non-vegetarian, you will never have any problem. All the places have plenty of restaurants which serves everything from simple north Indian dal roti to street food including pao bhaji and papdi chaat, south Indian food like dosa and idli to non-vegetarian food including chicken, meat and what not.
From the airport, the first place where we landed was our hotel. We rested there for a while and then moved out to have a look of the city. Bur Dubai is the centre of many places and is filled with many restaurants (especially Indian). You will not feel alienated even for a minute as most of the people are either Indians or Muslims. The only difference which I felt was discipline. Dubai is a highly disciplined city. From crossing roads to entering in a restaurant in a queue or talking to the receptionist in a queue, everybody is well-disciplined. It was different and beautiful. We had our lunch at an Indian restaurant names ad âKamatâ and moved to Dubai mall.
[Could it be any better- aloo poori and pao bhaji in Dubai đ]
Dubai mall- the worldâs largest mall, is one of itâs type.
It is so huge and beautifully made that you will be mesmerized by its beauty.
The first thing which we did inside was going to underwater zoo.
The magnificence is that such a huge aquarium has been built and well maintained inside a mall and people outside have no clue whatâs happening inside.
It is filled with numerous fishes, sharks, crocodiles and what not.
We had a long tour inside where they showed us how the water animals are taken care of keeping in mind the safety and security of visitors as well as the animals. It was a indeed a memorable experience.
From there, we went to cheesecake factory đ
[Thanks to my husband who took me to so many branded food joints about which I had not even heard before :P )
I had the best pasta of my life (it is expensive, but worth a try, you cannot afford to miss it)
[We were so tempted by the pasta that we didn't bother to click any picture of itđ]
Then we walked in and around Dubai mall a little bit and headed towards another fascinating attraction called as fountain show.
Uuhh la la.. no words and pictures or videos will ever be able to showcase what we encountered with our eyes. It was just hypnotic.
I was stuck for a moment there. I loved it. So much.
We also had the best shake of the town there named as five guys chocolate oreo shake.
It was not just a shake. It was pure bliss.
Then we went to watch the eternal powerful beauty of Dubai for which it is most popularly famous. The Burj Khalifa. The name says it all. It is 160 feet tall amazingly made building which in itself shows great supremacy. The lift runs at a super fast speed where in a blink of your eyes, you will reach the 124th floor. Visitors are allowed to go to this floor only. You may pay extra if you wish to check out Dubai from the top most floor đ The building calls itself 'I am Burj Khalifa'. It shows ultimate power.
The day ended on a great note. We were dead tired. I was eagerly waiting for the next day because it was my baeâs birthday. Yayayay!
Husband's birthday, day 2, 3, 4 in the next post. Soon. Stay tuned.