Dubai

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Hi everyone, i am going to Dubai to visit my boyfriend 20-26th April, but he will be working some of the time. Does anyone live there that can recommend a tour bus around the city or can you suggest anything else to do during the daytime. I know there is an indoor ski dome quite near to where i am staying which i will visit at least once, but besides swimming, sunbathing and the indoor shopping mall of Emirates, what does anyone suggest? thanks

Do the city bus tour, takes you to all the main sites and you can hop off anywhere along the route. Book online if you want t go up the burj khalifa. Go to souk madinat for dinner. Have a visit to a huge mall!

thanks teddymummy.... how long did you spend there?

Don't miss out on doing a desert safari, we were collected mid afternoon to do it... Your boyfriend may already have done it! Wander around the souks, pay as a day guest at one of the posh hotels eg Royal Mirage, gives you access to the beach/pool and from what I can remember lunch was included in the cost (been awhile since I did it though!)

Only been for a week, but used to live in Saudi and hubby has done a lot of trips there. Friends and family living there now. They also say safari is good. Brunch at one of the big hotels. Visit hotel Atlanta on the palm.

teddymummy is it totally illegal to share a hotel room with my boyfriend? He thinks it is and has just booked the hotel room in my name, as i cant legally stay at his villa....

Get the Entertainer book delivered to his villa, if he hasn't already got one. There are BOGOFs for every company that does a Tour and hundreds of restaurants.

We went for 7 days and saved about 200euros in prices for waterparks, buffets, meals, bus tours, ice creams etc.

It was recommended by a useful MNer on here and I would heartily pass on that recommendation.

A big thing to do in Dubai is brunch on a Friday. This happens in hotels mainly from 12-4pm. Get a copy of time out for the best recommendations.

And if you want to visit the top of the Burj tower, book online and book well in advance, you save loads with an online booking and it gets filled up very very quickly.

Another thing to do is the fountain display at the Dubai Mall, so book a table with a view on the terrace to enjoy it.

It's also nice to explore the Altlantis, and waterparks on the monorail and the Entertainer will give you vouchers for all the restaurants and attractions.

A stay at one of the desert hotels would be quite a nice treat for you too

We had vouchers for wild wadi, two for one, and it saved a lot of money. Picked them up at the mall shaped like a pyramid (!) on the bus tour.
I don't know if its actually illegal to share a room with your boyfriend? You should be discreet about it I suppose.

Why cant you stay at his villa???? does he live in shared accomodation or something??

Yes it is 'illegal' to share a hotel room if unmarried but everyone does it and unless you do something to cause attention to yourself (i am talking loud room parties, being drunk and disorderley etc) then nothing will be said to you and you wont be asked any questions.

You can book in advance and go up the burj khalifa which saves you about 300dhs, as on the dy just turning up is alot more than pre booked.

Go down to old dubai and go on abras over the creek, go to the souks and pick up some bargains.
Madinat is a great hotel to wonder round and have lunch, lots of little souk shops (do not buy from here though, buy from the actual souks not in a hotel as you will pay about triple for everything)

Go down to MOE (mall of the emirates) and do Ski Dubai (again this will be in entertainer) and then go to Dubai Mall to see the aquarium (again voucher in enetertainer that lets u see aquarium the underwater zoo upstairs and a boat ride over top of aquarium)
At dubai mall go and have a nice lunch and watch the fountain show, which i persoanlly think is better than the fountains at the bellagio in vegas.

Wild wadi or atlantis (wild wadi i think much better but most expats hate the atlantis hotel, very touristy and not that good!)

If you go down to Karama it is a town full of shops selling fake designer goods, some love it, some hate it.

Go for a massage or have nails done at one of the hotels or in the mall.

Down by the Marina there is a great little boat tour Captain jacks or something like that, you cant miss it.

The one and only royal mirage is a beutiful hotel and has a roof top bar for pre dinner drinks and then has a fantastic resturant on the beach called 'beach bar and grill' which is amazing.

'Frankies' is an amazing resturant (frankie detorris and marco pierre whites) down by JBR on the walk.

Friday brunch at the Al qusar is a dubai insitution! 4 hours of every food and drink imaginable!

Either of Gary Rhodes resturants are amazing.

The cheesecake factory at either Mall of the emirates or dubai mall is good for a lunch and cheesecake!

If i think of anything else i will add.