First time to Dubai. Advice?
 

I'm thinking of spending a couple of days in Dubai, either in June or later this year. I'm assuming June will be blazing hot? Is public transit reliable, or should I hire a taxi/Uber to go from the airport to the hotel? What's the entry requirement right now? I'm fully vaccinated and recently got my booster. I hope I won't have to take a rapid test to enter the country.

Which Hilton, Hyatt, or Marriott hotel has the best elite recognition?

Is it possible to be largely cashless? I want to use my credit cards mainly.

Thank you.

If you're not used to hot humid weather skip the summer. You can use government operated taxis, Uber or careem. Metro and buses are available and efficient. As far as hotels you would probably need to decide "which area you would like to stay in first and then someone could give you advice on which hotel in that area is more elite friendly. I'm not sure which Hyatt is more elite friendly, but I like the Hyatt regency in diera because of the lounge access (breakfast, afternoon snacks tea, and dinner buffet with unlimited drinks), and lounge service and housekeeping are excellent in providing what you need (even though I never get daily housekeeping due to covid) and the price is reasonable I stay there long term so they upgrade to certain rooms not suites on long stays and I've been upgraded to suites on short stays. But to be honest I like the regular rooms for some reason. Maybe because the suite felt like an obstacle course (to me).If you've never been to Dubai and don't want to stay in old town, which is the only area I like ad rest of Dubai is skyscrapers more or less and beach areas which are tourists magnets. So, I stay away from those areas. If you decide to go in the summer, don't make the same mistake many other tourists make and wear tshirts, shorts and flipflops. You actually should wear a hat, clothing you would wear for something like fly fishing or hiking...nylon/polyester wicking clothing...long sleeves and long pants to keep the sun off your skin to stay cooler and not sunburned. Just some tips to help keep you cooler. Good luck.

You'll need cash to tip hotel staff, pay at small vendors etc. Entry into Dubai only needs covid tests if you're not vaccinated. You need to have medical insurance also.

Look on the IATA website for current updates.

Have you been to Singapore before? If so, would you say the weather is similar? I know what June weather is like in Singapore, and it was intense, but I could handle it.

As for the Hyatt Regency you mentioned, I think you and I are on the same page. I'm hoping the lounge will have a good food spread so I can have a nice meal. Is the dinner buffet free? I'm assuming you meant it's the hors d'oeuvre typically offered in a lounge from about 5-7 PM?

I'm assuming you meant to Dubai during the pandemic?

Hi,
I agree with Global Adventurer.

Depends on where you want to go. It will probably be worse than singapore with the heat and strong sun ( the radiant heat from the pavements and roads could make it worse)
However the malls and hotels have good a/cs.

With lounge access the evening snacks and drinks are free ( think singapore standard rather than US standard). You can make a meal of it ( you would get a better meal in a restaurant but the lounge is free)

The beach hotels ( Palm and JBR ) may be some distance from the metro but some JBR hotels are close to the Dubai tram which connects to the metro)

I did like the Conrad Dubai ( good pool., good lounge and across the road by covered walkway from the World Trade Centre metro stop ( machines take notes and cards)In november and march had daily housekeeping

Regards

TBS

June will indeed be blazing hot and incredibly humid - more so than Singapore. Public transit is reliable but its also worth considering the distance from the metro station to your hotel and doing that trek in the summer. Time of the day is largely irrelevant with the humidity at night reaching extremely unpleasant levels. Taxis are cheap and easily available. The fare from terminal 3 to the Palm Jumeirah area will be AED 150ish. And that's as far as you are likely to go in a single taxi ride.

Requirements for all passengers arriving in Dubai

From 26 February 2022, passengers travelling to Dubai from all countries (GCC included) must fulfil one of the below requirements:

1. Present a valid vaccination certificate(s) reflecting that the passenger is fully vaccinated with a vaccine approved by the WHO or the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and includes a QR code
2. Present a valid negative COVID‑19 PCR test certificate issued within 48 hours after the sample was collected and issued by an approved health service provider with a QR code
3. Present a valid medical certificate issued by the relevant authorities that the passenger has recovered from COVID‑19 within 1 month from the date of recovery to the date of arrival

It is possible to be largely cashless, I only ever use cash here when paying the car cleaners at malls. Besides that I never use cash.

Ro

OP, that Hyatt I mentioned has a full complete breakfast buffet and a full complete dinner buffet and it's all free. The lounge is open all day. There's inside and outside seating, so you can eat outside if you're concerned about covid or if you want a more private space to eat or smoke (if you do). The housekeeping staff will give you as many items you need if you don't want service. But they do a thorough cleaning daily if you want it. There's no covid restrictions other than wearing masks in public areas.

I liked the hotel because there's a full service (including meats and vegetables) grocery store and a pharmacy in the mall on the first floor. No need to leave to get last minute things.

I lived in hotter temperatures before. Like almost 135 degrees Fahrenheit on the Colorado River in imperial dam are of California. Yes.it gets 135 there. And the mosquitoes are so bad they fog the entire area every night in the summer. It's so hot I had a inverter sitting on my vehicle seat unplugged and the cord melted into the seat 😁. I don't think it's that hot but close enough.

You guys are amazing!!! Thank you for the help. My main problem is that I don't have enough time in 2022 to go to all the places I want. Dubai is starting to look like either I go in June, or it'll have to be in 2023. I haven't done any intercontinental travel since February 2020, and I'm trying to make up for lost time.

I will tolerate anything but mosquitoes are a hard pass! Just picturing that makes my skin crawl.

Ro

Do you mean Dubai can get to 135 in the summer? Are mosquitoes a problem in Dubai?

Is that Hyatt lounge open 24/7? Is there any food provided outside of breakfast and dinner? I think I may have found my hotel. I'm a Globalist too!

​​​​​​​I recommend you avoid Winnipeg, Canada in the summer.

To be totally honest with you, June is still not the worst time to be here. While it will be quite unpleasant, there is less likelihood of dealing with hordes of tourists at all major attractions, you get way more for your money in terms of hotels and you're guaranteed sunshine. Just make sure to take all the usual precautions that you would for any hot & humid destinations and keep some part of your budget set aside for taxis / Ubers.

Edit: to address the follow-up question in your next post OP, temps rarely reach 120 and mosquitoes aren't a problem for the most part.

Ro

I'm sort of a transit kind of guy. I'm assuming Dubai has a subway system? Will it take me to most of the places that I want?

Yea, I know what you mean. I'll definitely be prepared to dress appropriately. I wear long-sleeve shirts and pants even in Singapore. The main trick for me in hot and humid cities is to drink plenty of water.

Broadly speaking the metro should cover most of your tourist requirements. The Dubai Mall has a station nearby which is connected via an airconditioned walkway and the same for Mall of the Emirates. Old Dubai (Al Seef, Shindagha, Gold Souq, Deira) has several stations. If you're truly determined the tram can be used to move around Dubai Marina and JBR and the Palm Monorail will take you until the Pointe at the end of the trunk. It is definitely possible with some planning. You can get yourself a Nol card - that's similar to Singapore's EZLink and you'll be covered for all transport.

Ro

Can the Nol be loaded with a credit card?

Temps won't be as high as 135. It's not the temperatures in Dubai it's the humidity combined. No, there's not food all day long in the lounge. It's open from about 6:30am to about 11:00pm. Dinner is over at 8pm, but you can order enough drinks to last until they close. You just can't order anymore after 8pm. So you can just get 3 extra glasses of wine or 3 glasses with shots of liquor and some ice/soda on the side or whatever and stay until they close if you wish. There's no lunch, only afternoon tea/coffee and cookies. But the lounge is open all day regardless what time the meals are served.

Personally, I stopped eating breakfast there because I would eat too much and couldn't enjoy dinner. I don't see how you would be hungry for lunch after eating all you can eat breakfast. I know I wasn't. I seldom ate anything else outside of the free meals except some chips or yogurt for snacks sometimes that I purchased from that onsite store.

That's music to my ears! It sounds like Dubai is sort of similar to the Greater China Region, where elite recognition is quite good. The breakfast can be insane, and after loading up on that, I do skip lunch and just go to the lounge for dinner.