Region

Emirate of Dubai

Sleep in Dubai and split each day in two: outdoors before 10:00 and after 17:00, indoors in between; Abu Dhabi is a day by road, not a second base.Sleep in Dubai and split each day in two: outdoors before 10:00 AM and after 5:00 PM, indoors in between; Abu Dhabi is a day by road, not a second base.

Open Dubai Plan a trip

More: share, save offline, report a correction

Key facts · United Arab Emirates

Best months: Nov–Mar
Visa: Depends on your passport
Currency: UAE dirham
Language: Arabic (official)
Plugs: G · 230 V
Time zone: UTC+4 all year

Month by month here

Rules in force · 5Alcohol is served only in licensed venues such as hotels,…

United Arab Emirates ↗Alcohol is served only in licensed venues such as hotels, bars and some restaurants; drinking or being drunk in public is an offence.
United Arab Emirates ↗Cover shoulders and knees in malls, government buildings, souks and mosques; swimwear stays on beaches and at pools.
United Arab Emirates ↗Keep public behaviour reserved: no kissing or close contact in public, no rude gestures, swearing or arguments online or in person, and ask before photographing people.
United Arab Emirates ↗Some common medicines (certain painkillers, sleeping pills and ADHD drugs) are controlled here: check the health ministry's rules and carry the prescription before you fly.
United Arab Emirates ↗Check entry rules for your passport on the official government portals; many nationalities enter without a prior visa, others need one in advance.

The emirate is one big city, one creek and one desert. Moving hotels between Downtown, the Marina and the old Creek wastes hours in traffic and heat; keep one bed, use the metro and taxis between clusters, and spend the hot hours in malls, museums and cafés. Desert and Abu Dhabi trips are half-days by car with a driver, not something you add to a walking day.

Where to sleep

3 places in this region

Sleep base

DubaiTrip line
Downtown for first-timers with a short trip, Bur Dubai for the old town and lower prices.
Best Nov–Mar
JFMAMJJASOND
Open Dubai →

Day trip

Abu DhabiCity guide
Grand Mosque and Louvre; 90–120 min each way by road.
Best Nov–Mar
JFMAMJJASOND
Open Abu Dhabi →
HattaCity guide
Mountains and dam; 90 min each way by car.
Best Nov–Mar
JFMAMJJASOND
Open Hatta →

Plan the nights

How to split the nights, day-trips and what to do with your bags

Open Plan the nightsClose Plan the nights3 partsNights · Day-trips · Bags

Night sequences

3 nights: Dubai 3, one desert evening
5 nights: Dubai 4 + Abu Dhabi day

Dubai Marina, Downtown and Deira are 30–50 minutes apart by car in traffic: do not put two of them in one morning.

Day-trips door to door

To	From	Door-to-door p50	Last return	Note
Abu Dhabi	Dubai	105 min	unknown	Coaches and taxis; leave by 09:00, back before rush hour.Coaches and taxis; leave by 9:00 AM, back before rush hour.
Hatta	Dubai	90 min	unknown	Car or tour; not a public transport day.

Bags between cities

No luggage forwarding culture: hotels hold bags; take a day pack out.

When to go

Months and weather

Open When to goClose When to go1 partSeasons

Seasons at a glance

From each city's month table

Pick a month to see where to go.

Only good-now countries

Show all 12 months, country by countryHide the 12-month table

Country	JJan	FFeb	MMar	AApr	MMay	JJun	JJul	AAug	SSep	OOct	NNov	DDec
Dubai	go	go	go	ok	ok	×	×	×	×	ok	go	go
Abu Dhabi	go	go	go	ok	ok	×	×	×	×	ok	go	go
Hatta	go	go	go	ok	×	×	×	×	×	×	go	go
United Arab Emirates (country-wide)	go	go	go	ok	ok	×	×	×	ok	ok	go	go

Go: the good monthsFair: workable, mixedPoor: heat, rain or hazeAvoid: storms, floods, closuresno data yet

Computed from each country’s own data; hover a country name for the source. Advisory countries are left out.

Eat and move on

Regional food and where to go next

Open Eat and move onClose Eat and move on1 partGo next

Go next

Other regions of the country

Abu Dhabi

planned

1–2 nights

Mosque, Louvre, Corniche; day by road from Dubai

Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah

planned

1–2 nights

Museums, mountains, east coast

Emirate of Dubai: what we know, and what is coming

3 of 3 places open

On this page

3 places with their role: where to sleep, what to do as a day trip
How to split 3 or 5 nights
2 day trips with door-to-door time
Seasons month by month, from the cities’ own tables
What to do with the big bag between beds

Coming as the guide grows

Climate strip by zone, with the storm and haze months
Get in: airports and stations with door-to-door times
Regional passes and cards, with a buy / skip verdict
Regional food: what, where and when it works

Meanwhile

Planning aids

Built from this guide's own data

Open Planning aidsClose Planning aids3 partsIn numbers · Trips here · Local time

Region in numbers

Where to sleep: 1 base
Day trips: 2, 1 h 30 to 1 h 45
Nights suggested: 3–5 nights

Trips that stop here

From the United Arab Emirates guide

Dubai only, 4 nights
4 nights here
dubai
Dubai and Abu Dhabi
7 days · 4 nights here
Dubai → Abu Dhabi
Cities, mountains and desert
10 days · 4 nights here
Dubai → Ras Al Khaimah → Abu Dhabi → Liwa desert resort
All seven emirates plus Oman's edge
14 days · 4 nights here
Dubai → Fujairah / east coast → Ras Al Khaimah → Al Ain → Liwa → Abu Dhabi

All United Arab Emirates trips →

Local time

What time it is there now, compared with the clock on your device.

Dubai
…
Checking your clock…Asia/Dubai

Open Dubai Up to United Arab Emirates

Ask about Emirate of Dubai

Loading…

Was this useful?