Things to do in Dubai
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
36 hand-picked places in Dubai, United Arab Emirates: 17 landmarks, 3 museums, 3 mosques, 3 parks, 3 markets, 1 beach and 6 shopping malls. Each has an editor's guide to what it is, when to go and what to know before you visit, with licensed photos. Start with the 3-day plan below, one area a day so you spend your time seeing rather than crossing town, or let the AI planner build a plan for your own dates, with restaurants, opening hours and live prices.
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3-day plan for Dubai: one area a day
The best-known places, grouped by how close they are to each other. Distances are straight lines; the walk is a little longer.
Day 1: around Burj Khalifa
- 1.Burj Khalifa · Attraction
- 2.Dubai Fountain · Attraction · 200 m away
- 3.The Dubai Mall · Shopping mall · 700 m away
Day 2: around Burj al-Arab
- 1.Burj al-Arab · Attraction
- 2.Wild Wadi Waterpark · Attraction · 400 m away
- 3.Souk Madinat Jumeirah · Attraction · 800 m away
Day 3: around Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood
- 1.Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood · Museum
- 2.Dubai Museum · Museum · 300 m away
- 3.Grand Mosque · Mosque · 100 m away
- 4.Iranian mosque · Mosque · 200 m away
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Landmarks and sights
- Burj KhalifaThe Burj Khalifa is the tallest structure ever built, a megatall skyscraper in Downtown Dubai with a total height of 829.
Burj al-ArabThe Burj Al Arab is a luxury hotel shaped like the sail of a dhow, standing on an artificial island 280 metres off Jumeirah Beach in Dubai and linked to the shore by a private curving bridge.
Dubai FrameThe Dubai Frame is an architectural landmark, observatory and museum in Zabeel Park, holding the record for the largest frame in the world.
Global VillageGlobal Village is one of Dubai's leading cultural and entertainment destinations, a seasonal festival held each winter on the outskirts of the city in Dubailand, where countries from around the world set up pavilions…
Palm IslandsThe Palm Islands are three artificial archipelagos off the coast of Dubai, each shaped like a date palm with fronds, trunk and a surrounding crescent: Palm Jumeirah, Dubai Islands (formerly Palm Deira) and Palm Jebel…
Ski DubaiSki Dubai is the first indoor ski resort in the Middle East and one of Dubai's most famous attractions, inside the Mall of the Emirates in Al Barsha and run by the Majid Al Futtaim Group.
Dubai MarinaDubai Marina, or Marsa Dubai, is a modern district at the heart of what is called "new Dubai", built around a three-kilometre artificial canal along the Gulf shore between Jebel Ali Port and the area of Dubai Internet…
AtlantisAtlantis, The Palm is a luxury resort at the apex of the Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, the first resort built on the artificial island.
Dubai Miracle GardenDubai Miracle Garden is the world's largest natural flower garden, located in Dubailand and covering more than 72,000 square metres.
Dubai FountainThe Dubai Fountain is the world's largest choreographed fountain, set on the 12-hectare artificial Burj Khalifa Lake at the heart of Downtown Dubai, between the Burj Khalifa and the Dubai Mall.
Emirates TowersThe Emirates Towers are a pair of twin skyscrapers on Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai, comprising the Emirates Office Tower and the Jumeirah Emirates Towers Hotel, joined by a two-storey, 9,000-square-metre retail complex…
IMG Worlds of AdventureIMG Worlds of Adventure is one of the largest indoor theme parks in the world, on Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road within the City of Arabia in Dubailand.
Wild Wadi WaterparkWild Wadi Water Park is an outdoor water park in the Jumeirah area of Dubai, set between the Burj Al Arab and the Jumeirah Beach Hotel on Jumeirah beach and operated by the Jumeirah hotel group.
Deira ClocktowerThe Deira Clocktower, originally called the Dubai Clock Tower, is one of the best-known landmarks of Deira, standing in the middle of a large roundabout where Umm Hurair Road, coming from Al Maktoum Bridge, meets Abu…
Souk Madinat JumeirahSouk Madinat Jumeirah is a covered market in traditional Arabian style at the heart of Madinat Jumeirah, the largest resort in Dubai, spread over more than 40 hectares of gardens and waterways on Jumeirah beach beside…
Jumeirah Archaeological SiteThe Jumeirah Archaeological Site is the most important Islamic-period archaeological site in Dubai, dating to the Abbasid era of the ninth and tenth centuries CE, in the residential district of Jumeirah not far from…
Majlis Ghorfat Umm Al SheifThe Majlis Ghorfat Umm Al Sheif is the preserved summer house of Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the late Ruler of Dubai, one of the founders of the UAE and father of the present ruler, in Jumeirah 2 near the coast.
Museums
Museum of the FutureThe Museum of the Future is one of the most striking cultural and technological landmarks in the world, in Dubai's Financial District on Sheikh Zayed Road beside the Emirates Towers.
Al Fahidi Historical NeighbourhoodThe Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood, long known as Al Bastakiya, is one of the last remaining pockets of old Dubai.
Dubai MuseumThe Dubai Museum is the city's main museum, housed in Al Fahidi Fort, built in 1787 and the oldest existing building in Dubai.
Mosques
Jumeirah MosqueJumeirah Mosque is among the best-known and most photographed mosques in Dubai, on Jumeirah Road in the Jumeirah district.
Iranian mosqueThe Iranian Mosque in Bur Dubai, also known as the Karashiya Hosainia or the Ali ibn Abi Talib Mosque after the Imam Ali Street on which it stands, is a Twelver Shia mosque and hosainia near the old Textile Souk in Bur…
Grand MosqueThe Grand Mosque of Dubai is one of the oldest and most prominent mosques in the city, standing in Bur Dubai between the old Textile Souk and the Dubai Museum in Al Fahidi Fort, a few steps from the Creek.
Parks and gardens
Dubai Safari ParkDubai Safari Park is an eco-friendly wildlife park in Al Warqa 5 on the Hatta Road, opposite Dragon Mart, powered mainly by solar energy.
Al Safa ParkSafa Park is one of the oldest and largest public parks in Dubai, a planned urban park about ten kilometres south-west of the old centre along Sheikh Zayed Road, bounded by Sheikh Zayed Road, Al Wasl Road, Al Hadiqa…
Dubai DolphinariumDubai Dolphinarium is the first fully air-conditioned indoor dolphinarium in the Middle East, located in Creek Park in Bur Dubai near Children's City in the Oud Metha area.
Markets
Gold SoukThe Dubai Gold Souk is a traditional market in the Al Ras locality of Deira, at the heart of the old commercial district near the mouth of Dubai Creek, and one of the most famous gold markets in the world, part of…
Spice SoukThe Dubai Spice Souk, also called the Old Souk, is a traditional market in the Al Ras locality of Deira in eastern Dubai, on Baniyas Street near the Old Souk abra station on Dubai Creek and adjacent to the Gold Souk.
Dubai Textile SoukThe Dubai Textile Souk, also known as the Old Textile Souk, is a traditional market in the historic Bur Dubai quarter on the bank of Dubai Creek, facing the Spice Souk and Gold Souk of Deira on the opposite shore, to…
Shopping
The Dubai MallThe Dubai Mall is the largest shopping mall in the world by total area and the most visited shopping and entertainment destination anywhere, standing in Downtown Dubai beside the Burj Khalifa on the shore of the Dubai…
Mall of the EmiratesMall of the Emirates is one of the largest and best-known shopping malls in Dubai, in Al Barsha at Interchange 4 on Sheikh Zayed Road, developed and owned by the Majid Al Futtaim Group.
City Centre DeiraCity Centre Deira is the original flagship mall of Majid Al Futtaim Properties, located in Port Saeed in the older part of Dubai at the crossroads between Sharjah, Bur Dubai and the airport.
BurJumanBurJuman is one of the oldest shopping malls in Dubai, opened in 1991 in the Mankhool area of Bur Dubai on Khalid bin al-Waleed Road, developed and owned by the Al Ghurair Group. The landmark complex has more than 2.
City Centre MirdifCity Centre Mirdif is a large shopping mall in the residential district of Mirdif in eastern Dubai, close to the airport and Emirates Road.
MercatoMercato Shopping Mall is a small, distinctive mall in the Jumeirah area of Dubai, near Town Centre on Jumeirah Road, opened in 2002 and named after the Italian word for "market".