Middle East - Dubai in Christmas

Hello Folks,

In need of some advise.
I'll be in transit in Dubai for about 2 days in Dec (23-26 Dec) and am just wondering if it's gonna be business as usual in city on Christmas Day? Or can i expect things to be slowed down or even closed on the 25th?

Appreciate your advice.

Also, given that i may have only one full day, any suggestions of what i should do?

TIA!

Hello Folks,

In need of some advise.
I'll be in transit in Dubai for about 2 days in Dec (23-26 Dec) and am just wondering if it's gonna be business as usual in city on Christmas Day? Or can i expect things to be slowed down or even closed on the 25th?

Appreciate your advice.

Also, given that i may have only one full day, any suggestions of what i should do?

TIA!

Are you honestly asking this question? Why would you think Dubai would be "closed down" on Dec 25th? Did you check the atlas to see where Dubai is?

No need for the hostility, really.

I know where Dubai is and its social demographic. Just wanted to be extra sure that the stopover won't be a cop out.

Are you honestly asking this question? Why would you think Dubai would be "closed down" on Dec 25th? Did you check the atlas to see where Dubai is?

Actually you'll find a lot of Muslims also take a day off on Christmas such is the overlap in religions.

Dubai will be open as usual on Christmas Day. You'll find the malls have Christmas trees up, the hotels will have Christmas lunches and various festive events on, there will even be a few Santas around if you need your fix.

Otherwise, if you want to avoid Christmas completely just go to the beach and top up the tan.

Thanks BXBPlat for sharing! Appreciate it!

The Christmas trees are already up in DXB T1.

Hello Folks,

In need of some advise.
I'll be in transit in Dubai for about 2 days in Dec (23-26 Dec) and am just wondering if it's gonna be business as usual in city on Christmas Day? Or can i expect things to be slowed down or even closed on the 25th?

Appreciate your advice.

Also, given that i may have only one full day, any suggestions of what i should do?

TIA!

one full day.... take yourself to Dubai Mall, see the fountains, sit in a cafe at the foot of the Burj and people watch, (if you book ahead, get a ticket to go up to the observation deck) have a fabulous meal there, shop, ride the metro up and down to get an overview of the city, then finish off at a smart cocktail bar, you can do all those things in one venue there.

And Dec 25th will be business as usual in DXB. Enjoy, I shall be there too:cool:

Cool and thanks! The mall and people watching sounds about right.

Dubai being a bustling city, my conundrum now is a suitable hotel. =S

I'm a little late to this, but wanted to note that while it will be "business as usual" the majority of fine restaurants will have special holiday menus.

If you are planning on fine dining you may want to book ahead, or at least see what the menu options are. For more casual dining you won't have a problem.

one full day.... take yourself to Dubai Mall, see the fountains, sit in a cafe at the foot of the Burj and people watch, (if you book ahead, get a ticket to go up to the observation deck) have a fabulous meal there, shop, ride the metro up and down to get an overview of the city, then finish off at a smart cocktail bar, you can do all those things in one venue there.

And Dec 25th will be business as usual in DXB. Enjoy, I shall be there too:cool:

Excellent advice. I will arrive in DXB on the evening of December 24. Dec. 25 I will have a tour 10:30 Bastakiya Heritage Tour and then at 1:00 a Cultural Lunch at the Center for Cultural Understanding. On Dec. 26 I will go on a desert safari at 3:00 pm. I am leaving Dec. 27—the flight leaves at 11:20 pm. Any suggestions for what to do on that last day? I don't want to over-extend myself. I will be staying at the Al Manzil Hotel, near the Burj and the fountains. Thanks!

Beach ?

There are a number of paid beach clubs or a perfectly acceptable public beach at Jumeirah. Depends on your complexion and tolerance for heat of course, but a couple of hours in 20-25 degrees in the morning should be nice, followed by lunch in the shade and a few drinks. Don't forget to drink plenty of water.

There would still be time for a shower, more shopping perhaps and a leisurely dinner before leaving for the airport.

I'm going next in February for the cricket :)

Beach ?

There are a number of paid beach clubs or a perfectly acceptable public beach at Jumeirah. Depends on your complexion and tolerance for heat of course, but a couple of hours in 20-25 degrees in the morning should be nice, followed by lunch in the shade and a few drinks. Don't forget to drink plenty of water.

There would still be time for a shower, more shopping perhaps and a leisurely dinner before leaving for the airport.

I'm going next in February for the cricket :)

For some reason I never associated the beach with Dubai. I like your idea; I wouldn't mind coming back some color. I just don't want to nurse a sunburn on the way back. Thank you!

Excellent advice. I will arrive in DXB on the evening of December 24. Dec. 25 I will have a tour 10:30 Bastakiya Heritage Tour and then at 1:00 a Cultural Lunch at the Center for Cultural Understanding. On Dec. 26 I will go on a desert safari at 3:00 pm. I am leaving Dec. 27—the flight leaves at 11:20 pm. Any suggestions for what to do on that last day? I don't want to over-extend myself. I will be staying at the Al Manzil Hotel, near the Burj and the fountains. Thanks!
Good choice of hotel - my favourite in Dubai. I'd be interested to hear how your cultural lunch goes as I've been wanting to try that for myself for a while.

Good choice of hotel - my favourite in Dubai. I'd be interested to hear how your cultural lunch goes as I've been wanting to try that for myself for a while.

I will let you know when I come back at the end of December. I am really looking forward to it. I know there is not a lot of authentic culture in Dubai so I want to take advantage of anything that is authentic.

Define "authentic"! I would argue that Dubai is authentic, in so far as it authentically represents a country that is only 40 years old...

I will let you know when I come back at the end of December. I am really looking forward to it. I know there is not a lot of authentic culture in Dubai so I want to take advantage of anything that is authentic.

this is a common misunderstanding, there is local culture but not one that is shared with tourists, the tribal culture is based on extended family and home, and religion, and unless you are a Muslim or a member of a family that effectively excludes you from taking 'advantage'!

The Bedouin history is a proud one, they had a culture before the shopping malls and glitz came!

Excellent advice. I will arrive in DXB on the evening of December 24. Dec. 25 I will have a tour 10:30 Bastakiya Heritage Tour and then at 1:00 a Cultural Lunch at the Center for Cultural Understanding. On Dec. 26 I will go on a desert safari at 3:00 pm. I am leaving Dec. 27—the flight leaves at 11:20 pm. Any suggestions for what to do on that last day? I don't want to over-extend myself. I will be staying at the Al Manzil Hotel, near the Burj and the fountains. Thanks!

that is a fantastic itinerary, and a lovely hotel too!
If you really want to see the old country, arrange a tour to the Mountains near Masafi, or there are some archaeological sites out towards RAK too, but I am not sure where and which are open to public.

Otherwise, I would recommend the souks, Spice and Gold, and a trip on a dhow with dinner on the Khor.

Or for a very authentic Dubai experience, sit roadside at a cafe or Restaurant and people watch! One of my faves is Automatic in Deira, busy, bustling and a Dubai institution!:D

Or see this site for more suggestions http://www.uaeinteract.com/recreation/activities_dubai.asp (http://www.uaeinteract.com/recreation/activities_dubai.asp)

I will let you know when I come back at the end of December. I am really looking forward to it. I know there is not a lot of authentic culture in Dubai so I want to take advantage of anything that is authentic.

The Cultural Centre canceled everything for Christmas Day except for the Jumeirah Mosque program. That really screwed up my schedule. However, they were able to schedule my into a morning walking tour Dec. 26 starting at 9:00 am. Very nice tour of the Bur Dubai area given by a native Emirati. That was followed by a cultural breakfast at 10:30. It was well worth it. We all sat on cushions and had coffee, beans, vermicelli, some sort of pancake with honey and something that looked like a beignet with cream cheese. Also tea. Very nice, informal cultural info given. For example, how the host raised his daughters, dating protocol, how the abaya is worn and why, etc. The conversation was generated by questions from guests. Highly recommended.

Hi

Im thinking of potentially booking to go to Dubai at Xmas and have been looking at Hotels

I can currently get a great deal at the Creek Hilton with via BA.com, BA have currently also given me a 10% discount code of flights, however I can not use this AND get the decent Hilton price.

Is it worth me booking the flights with BA now and looking for a hotel at a decent rate late on, or are hotels over Xmas likely to be busier than normal? With Dubai being both a top business AND leisure destination, its very hard to gauge what availability may be like.

On another note, is there any chance that the Hilton would match the quote that BA are currently offering? I've emailed them but had no reply back as yet.

Cheers
Ben

Hotels in Dubai will be busy over Christmas, book early as cheap deals won't come.

What counts as a good rate? Hilton Creek is OK but not one of Dubai's best. Unless you have status there would look elsewhere. Did a quick scout on Hotels.com and some 5 star hotels for 3 nights (24 to 27)

Sheraton Creek - £450 all in, it's just across the road from Hilton, of similar age and is actually on the water (Hilton is across the road)

Intercon Festival City - £418, stunning new hotel with great restaurants, on the Creek too

Grosvenor House - £577, a bit more expensive but in the touristy marina end, beautiful hotel and amazing bars and restaurants. Beach facilities across the road at the Royal Meridien

Looking around there's some great options at less than £200 a night, really depends what you're looking for.

Hotels in Dubai will be busy over Christmas, book early as cheap deals won't come.

What counts as a good rate? Hilton Creek is OK but not one of Dubai's best. Unless you have status there would look elsewhere. Did a quick scout on Hotels.com and some 5 star hotels for 3 nights (24 to 27)

Sheraton Creek - £450 all in, it's just across the road from Hilton, of similar age and is actually on the water (Hilton is across the road)

Intercon Festival City - £418, stunning new hotel with great restaurants, on the Creek too

Grosvenor House - £577, a bit more expensive but in the touristy marina end, beautiful hotel and amazing bars and restaurants. Beach facilities across the road at the Royal Meridien

Looking around there's some great options at less than £200 a night, really depends what you're looking for.

Thanks for the advice. As first time visitors would you recommend the Marina area over the Creek area (we were planning on 5 days)? We're off to Mauritius early next year, so beach activity is not a huge plus but we will want to spend a fair amount of the time relaxing but will want to mesh this up with seeing some sites etc. so a good all round location would be ideal

I have Gold at Hilton and SPG and have just been been looking at the Sheraton, which looks like good value, the Hilton seems to have the benefit of the access to the Jumeriah Hilton facilities too, if we chose to take the shuttle there, whereas I don't think we'd have anything similar at the Sheraton.

Will take a look at the Grosvenor and Intercon.

Thanks again!

Grosvenor is a SPG hotel, take a look on the master thread but I'm sure I've seen Gold getting suite upgrades and lounge access before.

There are the 2 ends to Dubai, the Creek and the Marina, which have most of the hotels. The Creek is 'old' Dubai, the Marina is less than 10 years old.

Creek end has the souks (spice, gold, textile, fish etc), water taxis, the museum (OK for an hour), Bastikya art area and you can generally walk around. That said, 5 days there is a bit too much, you'll find you're always in a taxi to somewhere else.

Marina end has lots of the newer touristy stuff, including being close to The Palm/ Atlantis, Burj Al Arab, Mall of the Emirates (inc Ski Dubai), JBR walk (a busy strip of restaurants and bars), boat cruises, beach.

In the middle you have the "Downtown" area including Dubai Mall and Burj Khalifa.

In short, in your 5 days you'll probably go everywhere and getting around is cheap (a taxi from Creek to Marina is less than £10, or get the Metro for £1.50-£2) but for eating out, bars and just generally seeing "5 star" Dubai I'd pick the Marina end.