DUBAI??? Any information??? Schools, way of life??

[purpleduck]

Hi! My dh has been offered a job in Dubai.
I wouldn't go just yet as I am halfway through a course, but may go when I am finished.
Anyone have any experience of what it is like there? Are the schools good? How about the way of life, particularily for women.
We are very confused. The money is very good, but not sure if it would be worth it (he would be away, and prob would only go if we eventually went too)
HELP!!!

have lived in bahrain, just over the ditch anbd visited dubai. it's a supercity growing fast every day. if he's on an expat deal, the should be offereing schooling, which will be very good. way of life no probs, it's not saudi remember. can drive, drink, go partying. it's a busy place and traffic was getting to be a nightmare when I last visited. you'll enjoy it, i'm dying to go back to M.E. but doesn't look like a go at the moment.

try this site for expat woman

Thanks Brownsuga, will have a look.
What were you doing there, if you don't mind me asking? And how did your kids get on?

i worked for a construction company that was doing a plant expansion, met DH out there (he's a brit, an engineer). I didn't have kids, but all the xpat kids had a fab time. Families lived in villas in compounds with pools etc..., plenty of other kids to play with and all went to private school paid for by the company.

i would check the other conditions offered by the company, eg housing, schooling, home leave. i have a friend in dubai, last time i visited (almost 2yrs ago) he said everything had gone up 60% in cost, including housing, so if the company is providing housing this is better, they'll have to pay any rent increases.

dubai kids_mums

thanks!

Hi Purpleduck, we have lived in Dubai for the past 5 years and like everywhere else it has its pros and cons, BrownSuga is right the rent increases are horrendous and lots of families are leaving because everything is on the up!! Traffic is dreadful and the driving worse and expat packages are not what they were 5 years ago. Lots of companies now give a paypacket from which you are expected to pay housing, medical, bills and schooling and although cheaper than the uk private schools they are not cheap and like everything else there is usually a yearly increase, if you are thinking of coming to live here you will have to get the childrens names down for school places asap as there are not many places available, check out the expatwoman.com website for all the lowdown on Dubai. There is a huge forum on living here.

Despite all this we love it here and don't expect to come back to England for a few years yet.

I used to live in Dubai. I wasn't a mum then so didn't really take any notice of things like schools so sorry can't help on that one. This is just off the top of my head and is just my opinion - others may disagree.

Good points

nice walk on the beach after work
good restaurants
nice shops
kids can do fun stuff like sailing - nice outdoor life (but not in summer)
can be quite glam in parts - bling buildings, going out for posh nights out etc.
Sandy Beach Motel in Fujeriah
Rugby 7's!

Bad points

racism - the way indian/pakistani/philippino workers are treated
traffic is a nightmare esp on Sheik Zayed Road - many accidents/tons of pollution
lots of building work has ruined nice bits
you never really know whats going on - stuff like bank holidays are announced in the paper the day before - sounds trivial but it can drive you a bit mad
In summer its too hot to go outside

Hope this has not confused you further. Can you get out there for a short break to see what you think - its a lovely time to visit at the moment. Its the kind of place where you could get a pretty good feel for it over a couple of days as its not that big.

By the way I would say def Jumeriah is the nicest bit to live in.

Good luck.

The company has offered about double dh's uk income, tax free. However, it is in US dollars (so subject to fluctuation), and he has to pay rent, flights back home etc from that. It is s step up for him though.

Thanks for all the help so far

So interesting to read experiences of those who have done it. After months of swithering we are about to take the plunge. DH flew out to Dubai this week, kids and myself follow for a visit next week to try to sort schools and houses (the double nightmare) Wish us luck, really don't fancy traffic as we are spoilt where we are now.

Tarantella, let me know how it goes K?
What are you going out there to do?
Until then, good Luck!!!

Welcome to Dubai Tarantella.. good luck with house and school hunting do you know yet what area(s) you will be looking in?

forgot to say if you need any help just holler!!

Tarantella, Inthepink!!!
Any estimates on how much basics are over there?
Food costs etc?

Purpleduck, if you go on the expatwoman website there is a link to a survery that has just been done about the cost of living here, and I thnik there are also a lot of posts on the subject as this is one of the main topics of conversation!! If you click on UAE Information Board from the left hand side menu you can do a search from there, good luck. How old are your children??

Looking at a number of areas but feel it very much depends on school. Mirdiff has been suggested to my husband as you can get more for your money and with 3 children we are really needing 4 bedrooms but am not keen on being under flight path. Thinking of using a relocation agent to help with orientation but have made a number of school appts already. Feel as if I have been at this forever, just want ot get on with it now! In the Pink - all contacts appreciated so would be good to get in touch.

Tarantella, cat me - in laws live in Mirdif can give you more info, where will dh be working?

Hi Tarantella

Do I know you? Did you go to a Halloween party when visitng Dubai? If not apologies and good luck with the hunting. We have been in Dubai 8 months and love it. Yes some things do drive you mad but the weather makes up for so much, so does having a pool in the garden. 32 degrees today, we even had rain at the weekend (just a few drops, as Ds said if he breathed in they didnt touch him!). It is expensive to live here, 4 day 3 night school trip costing £300! and they're going by coach for 5 hours each way, so not too much to do on either of thoses days. Football is £5 a session, it was £2.50 in the UK. Stuff like that and because its sunny it seems like a permanent holiday so you buy ice creams and things. Makes me seem so cheapwhen I put it like that. As for location def live near DH work, then work schools out from there. Which school you chose may not have a place but people here move schools all the time to get what they want. If you have any questions as INthepink says please ask away.

Good luck

Sorry to highjack this thread purple duck but was going to post something similar- DH recently offered interview for job in Dubai so we're thinking yes/no, looking at property prices etc. We would want to keep our property in the UK as a fall back in case things didn't work out, but think this will mean we can't afford a deposit to buy in Dubai - is rental very expensive?

We have a 7 month old and plan to have more in the future - what's Dubai like for mums with young ones, and if you're pregnant? Nurseries? What happens when you have the baby etc. I'm hoping to get some work out there (physio) - anyone else working in a similar field have any advice?

Thanks!