There are lots of things to do when staying in Dubai but here are the top ten in my mind.

1. Beaches – Dubai is home to the world’s cleaniest beaches with fine, white sand. When visiting, if there’s one thing you musn’t forget, it’s gotta be your favorite sunscreen.

Pristine and my friend from Japan admiring the clear waters

2. Desert Safari – just an hour outside of the city lies the golden desert. You can book a safari tour that will take you to the desert, experience dune bashing and have a great dinner of Arabic/Indian food. If you’re worried of motion sickness, ask your tour operator the duration of the desert ride so you won’t have to be sick in your trip.

3. Cruising the creek – Dubai is divided into two by a natural water formation called Dubai Creek. The creek holds a lot of history and up to this day, the traditional wooden boats are still available for anyone who wants to cross the creek the way the inhabitants did before all the ‘rush’.

4. Shopping for gold – Dubai is bling heaven. A visit to Dubai’s gold souq (Souq is Arabic for market) is worth your time even if you’re not interested in buying jewelry, strolling down the lanes of the gold souq provides “entertainment” for the eyes as shop window after shop window is filled with gold necklaces, rings, bracelets, earrings and brooches, all in 22K or 24K. Gold prices here are among the lowest in the world.

5. Golf – You didn’t expect golf courses in the desert, did you? There are a lot of nice golf clubs in Dubai including the only Tiger Woods designed golf course and golf resort in the world (planned).

6. Heritage Tour – Take a tour to see old Dubai at the Dubai Museum and Dubai Heritage Village.

A local woman preparing traditional food, in a traditional way at Heritage Village

7. Dining – Every resident and visitor in Dubai will go through the maze of diverse foods and beverages in this city. With Dubai’s diverse population, it’s not surprising that the city has a wide range of dining options, covering everything from Malaysian to Moroccan.

8. Skiing – Ski Dubai is the first indoor ski resort in the Middle East and offers an amazing snow setting to enjoy skiing, snowboarding and tobogganing or just playing in the snow.

 

9. Hot Air Balloon Rides – While I haven’t tried this, I know that hot air balloon rides are definitely one of the most exciting things to do while in Dubai. On your hot air balloon, you can view the Dubai skyline and spectacular landscapes of mountains and azure waters, as you go high up in air, almost into the endearing arms of the blue sky.

10. Shopping – Dubai is literally a shopper’s paradise. Dubai holds shopping festivals twice a year, one in winter starting around January (Dubai Shopping Festival) and one in the summer called Dubai Summer Surprises where you can get good bargains. Huge malls are sprouting on a regular basis so the competion results in even more bargains for shoppers!

When in Dubai, which of these would you do first?