One day in DubaiThree Dubais in one day
Start early in Downtown with “Record-breaking Dubai”: the Dubai Mall, the fountain and the Burj Khalifa, with the Opera to finish. When the heat builds, the mall cools you down. Have luqaimat for lunch at the Arabian Tea House in Al Fahidi, then follow “Before oil”: the wind towers, the fort and Sheikh Saeed’s house. At sunset, cross the Creek by abra to Deira for “Djinn, sea spirits and golden mirages”, from the Spice Souk to the Gold Souk. Have an Iranian kebab for dinner.
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Morning
Record-breaking Dubai: from the Burj Khalifa to the Opera
- The Dubai MallMore than a mall: a ten-million-litre aquarium, an indoor gold souk and the gateway to the Burj Khalifa lake.
- The Dubai FountainJets of up to 150 metres dancing to Arabic and classical music, created by the designers of the Bellagio fountains in Las Vegas.
- Souk Al BaharA souk of arches, lanterns and wind towers built in the 21st century: Gulf tradition turned into stage design.
- Burj Khalifa828 metres inspired by a desert flower: the world’s tallest building changed its name on the very day it opened.
- Dubai OperaA glass theatre shaped like a dhow, the Gulf’s sailing ship, opened by Plácido Domingo in 2016 and able to turn into an open hall.
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Lunch
Try Luqaimat and Emirati breakfast at Arabian Tea House. Al Fahidi Street, barrio histórico de Al Fahidi, Bur Dubái
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Afternoon
Before oil: wind towers, pearls and the Creek of Bur Dubai
- Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood (Al Bastakiya)A maze of alleys and wind towers built by Persian merchants, which came close to disappearing under the bulldozers.
- Al Fahidi FortDubai’s oldest standing building: a coral tower from around 1787 that has been a fortress, a residence, an arsenal, a prison and a museum.
- Grand Mosque, Bur DubaiIt began as a Quranic school around 1900 and now boasts the city’s tallest minaret, some 70 metres of pale stone.
- Bur Dubai Souk and the CreekIndian fabrics under a wooden roof and the coming and going of the abras: for over a century the Creek was Dubai’s main street.
- Al Shindagha, the tip of the CreekOn this spit of land between the Creek and the sea the Al Maktoum settled in 1833, and Dubai’s political history begins here.
- Sheikh Saeed Al Maktoum HouseThe coral house where Dubai’s ruler lived from 1912 to 1958, witness to the fall of the pearl trade and the arrival of oil.
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Early evening
Djinn, sea spirits and golden mirages: the legends of Deira
- Deira Old Souk Abra StationOn this Creek jetty begins the legend of Baba Darya, the «father of the sea» who, sailors said, climbed aboard at night.
- Spice SoukAmong sacks of frankincense, dried limes and harmal seeds, the souk’s scent holds the Gulf’s old relationship with djinn and the evil eye.
- Al Ahmadiya SchoolDubai’s first formal school, founded by a pearl merchant in 1912, and the midday creature used to frighten children.
- Perfume SoukOud, musk and rose: on this street of perfumers people still remember Umm Al Duwais, the woman whose scent heralded death.
- Gold SoukHundreds of golden shop windows and an old warning from the sea: Khattaf Rafai, the mirage that showed gold to lead fishermen astray.
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Dinner
Try Iranian kebab at Al Ustad Special Kabab. Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah Street, Al Fahidi, Bur Dubái