Holiday to Dubai

[TS7]

OP - there's already the main attractions mentioned in the thread. I visited for the first time in November and read up online about local customs which all stated 'no shorts in shopping centres etc' and if you did wear them people would look at you oddly. I therefore took chinos and shirts only. That advice was a load of nonsense as everyone walks around in shorts and t-shirts etc. The place is very much geared towards tourists. You'll only get in to bother if you do something silly (much like any other country).

Definitely check out JBR - Jumeirah Beach Residence; great little strip to just sit and watch in the evening. It's a strip lined with all the top hotels (which if you look presentable, you can walk around and explore the lobbies etc and no one will question you about it). It's very lively in the evening and if you like cars it's full of supercars. The beach is literally next to it with some great restaurants overlooking (and Cheesecake Factory for some cake ).

Enjoy

 

[matthewwhitton]

Thanks for all the information, tips and opinions. I hope flying with emirates is enjoyable and our hotel is nice, has anybody stopped with movenpick before? It's batutta gate we are staying.

 

[Souleh]

Feels like theres a lot of scaremongering in here. Any cases you see online ultimately you do not know all the facts behind whatever has happened.

The rule here is simply, be respectfull and youll have no problems. Ive been living in UAE and working all around the GCC and theres plenty of drinking, partying and people going home with each other.

OP - there's already the main attractions mentioned in the thread. I visited for the first time in November and read up online about local customs which all stated 'no shorts in shopping centres etc' and if you did wear them people would look at you oddly. I therefore took chinos and shirts only. That advice was a load of nonsense as everyone walks around in shorts and t-shirts etc. The place is very much geared towards tourists. You'll only get in to bother if you do something silly (much like any other country).

Definitely check out JBR - Jumeirah Beach Residence; great little strip to just sit and watch in the evening. It's a strip lined with all the top hotels (which if you look presentable, you can walk around and explore the lobbies etc and no one will question you about it). It's very lively in the evening and if you like cars it's full of supercars. The beach is literally next to it with some great restaurants overlooking (and Cheesecake Factory for some cake ).

Enjoy

Home sweet home for the last 2 years Great place

Thanks for all the information, tips and opinions. I hope flying with emirates is enjoyable and our hotel is nice, has anybody stopped with movenpick before? It's batutta gate we are staying.

Batutta is about 5mins drive to JBR & Marina. Its basically a big mall just outside of the most westernised part of Dubai so a bit quieter but very close all the same. Movenpick hotels are grand and emirates is a solid airline

 

[dowie]

Feels like theres a lot of scaremongering in here. Any cases you see online ultimately you do not know all the facts behind whatever has happened.

The rule here is simply, be respectfull and youll have no problems. Ive been living in UAE and working all around the GCC and theres plenty of drinking, partying and people going home with each other.

So the woman who was arrested for being pregnant was probably 'disrespectful' somehow?

This just seems like you're living in denial tbh.. I fully appreciate that most people won't have issues but to try and ignore or deny the very real issues that can and do occur is naive at best and frankly unhelpful to people seeking information about the place.

 

[Rifte]

Great place, but also incredibly hot at this time of year (although June and July IMO are less tolerable).

I live and work in SE Asia but spend a lot of my time in the UAE.

You will have a great time, and in respect of the plug issue, ALL of the hotels I have stayed in have a universal plug socket in the wall.

Yes it an Islamic country, but it very much geared towards Westerners. I have never had a problem over there and when I take my family they havent either.

Its Asia for newbies.......like Singapore

 

[Freefaller]

So the woman who was arrested for being pregnant was probably 'disrespectful' somehow?

This just seems like you're living in denial tbh.. I fully appreciate that most people won't have issues but to try and ignore or deny the very real issues that can and do occur is naive at best and frankly unhelpful to people seeking information about the place.

The chap does live there, presumably you've been too (I know you've been to the ME)? So surely what he has experienced is a pretty fair account no?

The only real issues that do occur are people that break the laws there. If you're pregnant and not married, don't go to Dubai. Just follow their rules it's not hard. It may go against everything you believe in, but that's just the way it is. I accept their consequences are what we'd consider harsh however.

Unless you're talking about something else?

 

[XeNoN89]

I went a couple of years ago and it was ok.

You need to get taxis everywhere
Finding bars/alcohol is not an issue at all, pretty much every hotel has bars and clubs that you can go to. The main issue we had was getting into places without a woman. (it was just 4 blokes in our group) Some places will only let you in if you pay for a table as well.
Didn't notice any issues with clothing. I packed a lot of chinos because of everyone saying you have to cover up but in the shopping malls for example plenty of people were in tshirts and shorts and even saw lot of women wearing short skirts etc that I didn't expect.
Go to Atlantis for the Water park and aquarium they are good.
Wouldn't recommend going up to the top of the burj, was pretty boring you go up look at the view of mostly desert and that's about it.

 

[TS7]

Wouldn't recommend going up to the top of the burj, was pretty boring you go up look at the view of mostly desert and that's about it.

The top of the Burj was a personal highlight for me. I assume you went during the daytime? At night it is amazing, the city is well lit up and makes for some wonderful photographs. However the best bit is that you get to experience the water fountain display from above (again, you wouldn't get this during the daytime). I think we spent over two hours up there as the display repeated every 15 minutes or so and was just as mesmerising and impressive each time.

 

[Freefaller]

Agreed Burj was amazing for me. But I'm into construction and engineering so was geeking out about it!

Sand dunes and desert tours are good fun, and there are so many good restaurants to go to. But you do need to take taxis everywhere. The water park is fun, as is Atlantis and the Jumeriah is worth visiting. So many malls and resorts to go and visit. We went to watch the camel racing - that was great! Spas and that sort of thing is great too if you enjoy that sort of pampering. Visiting the old town and the souks are worth doing too. There's a good museum in town too. Boat tours are quite interesting too. You can even go skiing!

 

[XeNoN89]

The top of the Burj was a personal highlight for me. I assume you went during the daytime? At night it is amazing, the city is well lit up and makes for some wonderful photographs. However the best bit is that you get to experience the water fountain display from above (again, you wouldn't get this during the daytime). I think we spent over two hours up there as the display repeated every 15 minutes or so and was just as mesmerising and impressive each time.

Yeah the only slot we could get was the afternoon, we tried to get sunset but had no chance!

 

[dowie]

The chap does live there, presumably you've been too (I know you've been to the ME)? So surely what he has experienced is a pretty fair account no?

The only real issues that do occur are people that break the laws there. If you're pregnant and not married, don't go to Dubai. Just follow their rules it's not hard. It may go against everything you believe in, but that's just the way it is. I accept their consequences are what we'd consider harsh however.

Unless you're talking about something else?

I don't think it is a fair account, yes I've been there no I haven't lived there. Regardless, objectively the following statement is false: "be respectfull and youll have no problems."

That is what I'm taking issue with - the only real issues are not just confined to people who actively break the laws/are disrespectful and people can, despite trying to do things correctly, end up breaking laws through no fault of their own.

As I said I'm sure the vast majority of people don't have an issue - however there are very serious issues for a small minority of people that can turn out to be very serious and so it is certainly something to be aware of. I think that people actively denying that/brushing it under the carpet are being incredibly unhelpful as this isn't just a random GD discussion/thread but potentially serves as advice to real people who are planning to go there - that is why I'm taking particular issue with it - I appreciate that I can be pedantic at times but I've got quite strong views that with this sort of thing it is fundamentally wrong to be blasé about it and simply dismiss it as we're talking about something that could have real life consequences for people. I've posted examples/evidence of where things can go wrong so I'm not really seeing that there is much to dispute re: what I've posted - I've been quite clear that for the majority there won't be an issue.

I think I do need to clear up what I feel might be a misunderstanding re: your post above - you state "If you're pregnant and not married, don't go to Dubai. Just follow their rules it's not hard."

Below is the story I linked to earlier - key point here is that the woman in question didn't know she was pregnant and went to the Dr because she felt unwell while on holiday there - so in fact your reply for people who want to be super cautious perhaps could to be changed to don't go to Dubai if you're a single female and have had sex in the weeks/months prior to traveling there....

however we can throw some more stories into the mix, you can be arrested and sentenced for extra marital sex if you're raped:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23381448

A Norwegian woman has spoken out about the 16-month prison sentence she received in Dubai after reporting a rape incident to police.

so in fact perhaps we could just change it to don't go to Dubai if you're female.

I've already mentioned the supercars being abandoned but I'll reiterate - you can (could - law may have change relatively recently)go to prison for being in debt! Redundancy, medical issues etc.. suddenly the school fees, rental contract for your apartment, car etc.. can't be paid - this is more of an issue for ex-pats than holiday makers though and some of this might be insured against if you're employed rather than self employed.

Other laws you can break unintentionally - there was a US man arrested and charged for criticising his employer on Facebook, in post made when he was back on holiday on US soil, not even in the country. Then again you could say that he should have known better than to writing critical posts on social media - which is probably fair. This guy however, I don't think any reasonable person can criticise much, completely unintentionally broke the law by posting a charity appeal on Facebook, seriously!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-37114401

A 42-year-old man arrested in Dubai for sharing a charity post on his Facebook page has been charged.

Scott Richards, who holds both British and Australian citizenship, promoted a charity drive to buy blankets and tarpaulins for refugees in Afghanistan.

He was held for 22 days then charged with fundraising without permission.

[...]

"His wife is under extreme stress," Mrs Haberfield told the BBC.

"She can only take the clothes to him once a week. She takes him money so that he can buy water and extra food.

[...]

Police confirmed that Mr Richards had used social media to recommend a crowd-funding campaign run by a US charity which works in Afghanistan.

The crowd-funding campaign seeks $35,000 for "new tarpaulins, blankets, warm clothes and socks, and sleeping bags" for children at the Chahari Qambar refugee camp on the outskirts of Kabul.

More than 100 children froze to death at the camp four years ago.

Mr Richards was arrested at his home on 28 July and has been held at Al Murraqabat Police Station.

Literally all he has done is post a link to a campaign for afghan refugees on Facebook and he got locked up for it! Sure he broke the law but unless you were aware of that law in the first place then you could quite easily break it without having any idea you were doing anything 'wrong'.

 

[dowie]

Now for the darker side - some disputed cases that have arisen from arguments with people over there:

Firstly a woman who's taxi driver allegedly tried to overcharge her so claimed she'd had sex in his cab in order to get her arrested (she ended up spending 95 days in prison), she was also married and had to keep that quite as she could have been charged with adultery too which technically carries the death penalty (though unlikely for a Westerner)

http://www.express.co.uk/news/world...i-jail-and-almost-stoned-to-death-says-Briton

“We gave the driver two addresses but he thought we were drunk and tried to take us the long way, doubling the fare. An argument started.”

Rebecca said the driver lied and reported the pair to a policeman for having sex in his cab.

The businesswoman and her friend, Irish welder Conor McRedmond, were driven to a police station and handcuffed.
[...]

“I walked in the hospital room to a bed with stirrups. I remember feeling sick, I knew something was seriously wrong. The doctor was surprised I didn’t know my charges.

“She said, and I started crying, telling her it wasn’t true. She said to have a sex test and if results came back negative I would be fine.

“The test was beyond intrusive, horrific, but it all came back clear. She even wrote that it was obvious I hadn’t had sex in a long time but it meant nothing.”

Another incident that spiralled out of control allegedly after a dispute with a hotel maid he'd allegedly caught stealing - he ended up dead after allegedly being beaten by police.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/w...e-bradley-brown-s-death-in-dubai-8595547.html

Business deals can even land you in trouble for unknown reasons - former Leeds United MD spent time in jail over there after being arrested at the airport and without being charged:

http://www.prisonersabroad.org.uk/get-involved-overview/2025-2/

I had flown to Dubai on a business trip. I was there to meet the former owners of Leeds United and to discuss a new business opportunity in London. I remember getting off the plane, heading over to the office. Everything seemed normal before I was arrested.

Just hours after I had landed, I was in a prison cell with no idea of why I was there. I’d done nothing wrong, and I had committed no crime. They didn’t charge me with anything. Before I knew what had happened I was being processed in Arabic, signing documents I didn’t understand and with lots of pushing and shouting. I remember being shouted at in Arabic, but I had no idea what they were saying.

Then I was put into a dark prison cell.

I found out that my business partners had said I’d stolen from them, but no formal charges have been brought. I remember thinking that I’d been cheated by people I trusted - by friends. And I knew everything was stacked up against me. I’ve been told I could be held indefinitely. It’s been over 400 days now, and I’ve still not been charged with anything. You know, they haven’t even interviewed me - not a single question in 14 months.

Lastly there is the racial divide over there - think 1960s USA... Emirates are at the top, western expats next, migrant workers from poor countries are basically the lowest and can be treated very poorly - granted lots of this treatment is in the form of exploitation in their workplace so doesn't affect tourists per say... but the attitude towards them is poor in general so British people of Indian origin might want to be aware - for example security guards will sometimes tell Indians to leave public beaches if it is busy and there are lots of western tourists about - and there are other consequences to being seen as 'less than' - we get road rage here too but it is more the brazenness and the entitlement on display here that is worrying:

The Emirate is quite confident assaulting the asian man and the asian man won't dare fight back. Note the white expat intervening, even he has to tread cautiously and attempt to reason with/calm down the Emirati. He can't simply jump in and push them apart or grab/restrain the Emirati as things could go rather badly for him too if the police turned up. (Note the guy who made the above video is now wanted and could face jail for merely filming the incident!)

Another business dispute - member of the royal family had a dispute with an Afghan grain merchant. The Afghan grain merchant didn't commit any crime yet he ended up getting literally ******(allegedly)

(****warning video is from US TV and isn't too detailed so hopefully OK by forum rules - it does contain violence so perhaps not everyone will want to watch****)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Issa_bin_Zayed_Al_Nahyan

In April 2009 a video tape of torture smuggled out of the United Arab Emirates showed Issa mercilessly torturing a man with whips, electric cattle prods, wooden planks with protruding nails and running him over repeatedly with an SUV. The same person may have been allegedly sodomised, but the Emirati court found him not guilty of any crime and instead condemned and sentenced two brothers for using the video as blackmail

Basically if you've got a dispute with the authorities or annoy the wrong person over there (regardless of whether it is your fault) you can end up in a lot of trouble and courts will be about as much use to you as to a black man in the Deep South pre civil rights era.

 

[gary996]

It is expensive there.
When people say its expensive I thought some things just cost a bit more. No no no it is very expensive a small bottle of water cost more than £3 .
Was there in MArch

 

[The_One]

It is expensive there.
When people say its expensive I thought some things just cost a bit more. No no no it is very expensive a small bottle of water cost more than £3 .
Was there in MArch

where was you buying the water!

I was there in feb and walked round the souks, could buy bottles for less than 30p was loads of blokes with cool boxes walking around

 

[matthewwhitton]

I was looking at booking the burj for the sunset, is it worth the £90 in ticket pricing? Also do people have any recommended restaurants to try? Is Friday brunch worth it?

 

[philstanbridge]

I absolutely adore Dubai Have been 5 times now, and always stay in the Jumeirah area. I've also been during Ramadan twice, and that's better than going at other times because it's quieter. Obviously you need to respect their rules but a lot of the time you just need to use a bit of common sense. I remember celebrating my 30th up the top of the Burj Al Arab. It was the only 6 star hotel at the time and it was a fab experience. When I go back I want to go up the Kalifa.

 

[TS7]

I was looking at booking the burj for the sunset, is it worth the £90 in ticket pricing? Also do people have any recommended restaurants to try? Is Friday brunch worth it?

£90 per person? That's pretty steep. I'd personally go once the sun has set, £27.

 

[matthewwhitton]

£90 for both of us, at 6pm, the sun sets at 6.50 around the time we are there.

 

[matthewwhitton]

So my girlfriend is ill, so can't make the holiday now would I be able to sell the flights and accommodation?? Change it into other names? It's the battuta gate hotel Dubai and fly from Manchester tomorrow at 10am.

 

[scorza]

Sorry to hear that Matt, really sucks. I'm afraid you'll have to check your T&Cs of your booking to answer your question definitively, however I would expect that at this stage you are unlikely to be able to change/sell your booking. Did you take out travel insurance?