Top 10 Things to try when you arrive in Dubai
Contrary to popular belief, Dubai has more to it than just hopping from one mall to the other. The real Dubai offers a world full of colour, adventure, exotic spices, friendly people, and scrumptious food just waiting to be discovered. Here are our Top 10 Things to Do in Dubai
1. Food and Drink
With over 80% expat population, Dubai offers a wide variety of restaurants, bars, coffee shops and bakeries to satisfy every craving. For an authentic Dubai experience, visit Oud Mehta where Shisha bars and Shawarma joints are found every corner. Shisha smoking, synonymous with the Middle East, is about socialising and has been part of life in the Middle East for centuries. Shisha cafés are full of friendly conversations, with both men and women equally taking part, and in places where alcohol is not allowed, you will find shisha being used to lubricate a social get together. Shawarmas, the famous and perhaps the most eaten foods in Dubai is a dish made from lamb or chicken meat, accompanied with a colorful array of vegetables, fries, pickle and garlic sauce. The post-shopping, post-work shift or post-imbibing ritual is to head to the neon-lit Satwa neighbourhood for a late-night nibble or a full-blown meal. If you are feeling particularly adventurous, sip on some authentic Camel Milk! Easily available in department stores, the plain or flavored milk is a heavy, slightly salty but healthy drink.
2. Curio Shopping
Satwa is ideal for cheap souvenir shopping as well. There are a host of streets and small stores you can visit and you’ll be rewarded for your adventurism with some interesting curios that you wouldn’t find elsewhere in the city!
3. Spice Souk
Spend a leisurely morning chasing the drifting smells of aromatic spices – you can find everything from turmeric and chilly to vanilla, saffron, and exquisite potpourri blends here. Make sure you pick up a box or two of local dates. They’re sweet to a fault and make the perfect gift for friends back home. An entire adventure lays ahead when trying the Top 10 Things to Do in Dubai
4. Book World by Kinokuniya
This is a specialized and rare items book store. From classics to bestsellers to foreign language works to rare photographic compendiums to zany Japanese hairdressing magazines, the wealth of literature offered is amazing.
5. Antique Museum
Looking for souvenirs, Arabic lamps or decorative handcrafts for your home or for gifting purposes? Then the Antique Museum is a must! Antique Museum isn’t a museum at all, but rather, a twisting labyrinth stashed with exotic imports from around the globe.
6. Sports & Outdoor
Dubai is a desert filled with off-the-beaten path experiences. Watch word-class racing. Take your adventures to the sand with sand dune bashing. Or swing your clubs at internationally renowned golf courses. If this is not exciting enough, Dubai also offers a chance for outdoor skydiving where one can hurl themselves out of a plane at 13,000ft for a spectacular aerial view of the Palm Jumeirah. Water lovers and extreme sport lovers can try their hand at kite boarding which is a mix of surfing, wake boarding and kiting where the wind propels you over the water on a board. Kite Beach, at Wollongong Beach, is Dubai’s most popular kite surfing venue.
7. Hot Air Ballooning
Hot Air Ballooning is another Top 10 Things to Do in Dubai which is highly appreciated by tourists worldwide. Enjoy a magic carpet ride over an endless ocean of sand dunes, emerald green oases, gazelles and wandering camels. Witness a breath-taking sunrise with the backdrop of the majestic Hajjar Mountains.
8. Shark Safari
Put on a safety helmet and walk underwater to explore the Shark Lagoon at the Aquaventure Water Park with sharks, sting rays and fish for company.
9. Speed-boating
Buckle yourself and absorb the thrill of riding on a speed boat. Whether you have a need for speed, a genuine love for the region’s wonders or simply an occasion that needs to be celebrated, these boats deliver in style.
10. Dubai Autodrome
Never leave Dubai without trying the Autodrome. Our Top 10 Things to Do in Dubai Guide is perfectly adapted for any kind of activity so we saved the best for the last. Get behind the wheel of a racing car and feel its power as you hit top speed on Dubai Autodrome’s racetrack. The motor sports facility also enables drivers to test the performance of their own cars and motorbikes around a circuit.
So get ready to explore Dubai the Black Swan way and look beyond the Malls and Skyscrapers. To enquire about our trips to Dubai, write to knock@black-swan.in or visit us at www.blackswanjourneys.com
