Where on my first visit i searched for the cheapest beer, I'm now more interested in clean, safe, child friendly places, which Dubai ticks all those boxes.
13 years ago I struggled will unfriendly locals, however it's not a surprise if I was not respecting their culture. This trip I found them very warm people, especially to our little girl Sienna. There are many many Indians whom after working with them for years I really enjoy their company.
Dubai in August, yeah it's hot, very very hot. Yes it's expensive for attractions (however deals are to be had in August) but there is a myriad of choices.
This trip I managed to achieve the objectives of:
1) Activities out of the day time heat
2) Child friendly activities that didn't break the bank
3) Eating well, but on a budget
Dubai can be expensive, but it can also be done on a reasonable budget. We used the metro to get around as much as possible. Rather than staying in 5* luxury resorts (>£200pn) we stayed in a 4* at £40 including breakfast. I was attracted to this hotel as it was the 'highest hotel in the world' until last year. Another key criteria was the proximity to a Metro station (6 minutes walk - or 4 min if the heat was ultra intense).
Eating we predominantly ate in the Malls food court, which allowed us as a family to get something that catered to everyone's tastes. For example one lunchtime I tucked into Bosnian Sausages, my wife had Pad Thai and put daughter had chicken nuggets.
We did a couple of tours, a boat trip around the marina (at night so it wasnt too roasting). There was a buffet and entertainment so was excellent value for the 3 of us at £88. We also did a desert safari (dune bashing, camel ride, sand boarding, BBQ and entertainment) which again was good value at £98.
I have a good reliable bloke with a nice car that will do bespoke tours, message me for details.
In general having a 4 year old we were paying for 3 adults. Where possible we pushed Sienna through ticket counters as a 3 year old (some places treat 3 year old as adult so we had to bite the bullet).
One day we did try the souks of old Dubai, however we did have to abandon it as it was simply far too hot (the phone was saying mid 40's feels like high 50's).
Back into deals and value. During August you could show your Emirates boarding pass and get decent discount from restaurants and attractions (we got 30% discount from Aya Universe - which by the way was quality).
Many restaurants/cafes put on 10 Dirham dishes (£2) such as Chocolate Brownie and Ice Cream (pictured). In general it's too hot in August so less people travel, which does open the door for value.
Another August initiative is the Dubai Mallathon which is held every morning throughout August at 9 Shopping Malls. Think of Parkrun but indoors with air conditioning! During the first 4 days I did a different one each day, they weren't that popular but we're a great way to meet up with expats.
Dubai has changed a lot in the last 13 years, as have I. The changes have brought us closer together. I'd come back. Maybe again as part of a layover rather than a specific holiday. It has rekindled my appetite for this region, I'll definitely buy looking at layovers in Oman, Saudi or Bahrain (new countries) on future long haul trips
No comments:
Post a Comment