So real talk — my situationship at the time was also planning a UAE trip and my first thought when my friend suggested it was "absolutely not, I am not accidentally running into him at the Burj Khalifa." That was my entire reason for almost not going. Not money, not distance, not logistics. Potential awkward encounter with a guy who never texted back properly.
Anyway. I went. Didn't see him. Had the trip of my life.
Unbothered, moisturized, thriving.
Dubai — I owe it an apology
I spent years making fun of Dubai. "Oh it is just for
people who want to look rich on Instagram." "It is not even a real
city, it is just vibes and construction." I said these things. Out loud.
To people.
Then I stood under the Burj Khalifa and my brain just...
stopped working for a second.
There's no photo that prepares you for it. I've seen it in
pictures literally hundreds of times and it still got me. My friend had to tap
my shoulder because I'd just gone completely still staring up at it like a
confused pigeon. The scale of it makes no sense. Your eyes don't know what to
do with it.
I went up to the observation deck at sunset and genuinely if
you don't have "watch the sun go down over Dubai from the Burj
Khalifa" on your bucket list, add it right now. The desert on one side
going orange and pink, the Gulf on the other side catching the light, the whole
city just sprawling out below you looking completely unreal. I stood there for
way too long and missed our dinner reservation and did not care even slightly.
BUT here's the thing — and I cannot stress this enough — the
touristy stuff is not where Dubai's actual soul is.
The abra ride across Dubai Creek? One dirham. ONE. It's this
rickety little wooden water taxi that's been crossing that creek forever and
you're squished next to people who are just trying to get home from work and
it's slightly chaotic and perfectly imperfect and it is more authentically
Dubai than anything with a ticket price and a gift shop. Take it before you do
anything else. First day, first hour if you can.
The Deira spice souk at night genuinely rewired something in
my brain. The smells hit you before you even enter — saffron and dried roses
and oud and something I still cannot identify and have been trying to recreate
at home with zero success. The gold souk next to it is just genuinely unhinged.
There's so much gold it starts to look fake. You'll walk out having bought
nothing and feeling like you somehow need to lie down.
Dubai Mall — look, yes it's a mall, yes it's enormous, yes I
spent three hours there and bought things I cannot justify. There's a full
aquarium inside. Inside a shopping mall. A WATERFALL. I don't know who approved
these decisions but I respect them completely.
Desert safari was the thing I was dreading most and the
thing I talk about most now. The dune bashing in the 4x4 had me making noises
I've never made before in my life — equal parts screaming and laughing, mostly
screaming. The camel ride was peaceful and the camel was judging me, I could
feel it. And then the evening part, sitting in a tent as the desert went dark
and quiet around us, eating traditional food under actual stars with no city
noise anywhere — that's the version of Dubai nobody's Instagram shows you and
it's the best one.
https://www.theglobaltraveltips.com/2026/03/a-complete-travel-guide-to-dubai.html
Abu Dhabi walked so Dubai could run
The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque has to be one of the most
beautiful things I have ever seen with my physical eyes and I've been saying
this to everyone who will listen since I got back. I walked in and went
completely silent. Not because someone told me to. Just because the building
demanded it.
The white marble. The 82 domes. The carpet here is the largest
hand knotted carpet in the world. This still looks delicate somehow.
Sharjah
It does not have the glitz. Doesn't want it. What it has is
actual history and culture and this genuinely calm energy that feels like
someone turned the volume down after Dubai's constant stimulation.
The Museum of Islamic Civilization — okay I need you to
understand that this is one of the best museums I've visited anywhere in the
world. Not just in the Gulf. Anywhere. The collection is extraordinary and it's
presented in a way that actually makes you want to learn things which is
apparently not a given with museums.
The heritage area in the old city has been restored
carefully and walking through it feels completely different to anywhere else in
the UAE. It's quiet. The buildings are old in a real way. There are cats
everywhere and nobody seems to know why but nobody's complaining either. I sat
in a little square for like forty minutes just existing and it was the most
peaceful I felt the entire trip.
Heads up though — Sharjah is completely dry. No alcohol sold
anywhere in the emirate. Plan accordingly and also maybe appreciate the novelty
of it.
The food
The random shawarma I ate there was in the list of top food
in my entire life. It was not pretty. It was not photographable. The place was
bright fluorescent lit and had three tables and the guy making it had clearly
been making it for twenty years and knew exactly what he was doing. I think
about it regularly. I might go back just for it.
The biryani situation in Dubai is exceptional and this should surprise nobody — there are huge Pakistani and Indian communities there and the food that exists to serve those communities is the absolute real thing.
Let's talk money because not everyone is a millionaire and that's okay
The "UAE is only for rich people" thing is
genuinely outdated and I want to put it to rest.
Dubai Metro is your best friend, your ride or die, your
constant companion. Clean, fast, air-conditioned which matters more than I can
express, covers everywhere you actually want to go, costs almost nothing. Get a
Nol card on day one and just use it constantly. Stop taking taxis everywhere,
you don't need to.
Eat where people actually live and eat. The price difference
between a tourist-facing restaurant and a local spot is genuinely huge and the
local spot is usually better anyway. I regularly ate proper full meals for
20-25 dirhams. That is six dollars. For a full meal. In a city people think is
unaffordable.
Book early if you're going peak season and look at hotels
slightly outside the main tourist strips — cheaper and honestly barely less
convenient.
One thing to not cheap out on: desert safari. Please. The
budget operators are noticeably worse and it ruins the vibe. Spend properly on
this one thing and cut costs everywhere else.
When to go — I'll be quick
November to March. That's it. Perfect weather, comfortable
evenings, actual human livable conditions.
June through August is 45°C and humid and even the people
who live there just stay inside. Don't test it. You will lose.
If you want information about Australia, visit here:
https://www.theglobaltraveltips.com/2026/04/top-10-places-to-visit-in-australia-in.html
Some important tips
You should be well dressed at religious sites and then specially
in public. Not excessively, just respectfully. It's someone's home country, act
accordingly.
Water. Always. Even when it's not that hot. Especially when
it is.
The laws are strict and actually enforced — look them up
before you go, follow them, don't try to be clever.
English is everywhere. Genuinely everywhere. You will have
zero communication problems.
The driving culture is aggressive and slightly unhinged. If
you're renting a car, just know that going in and adjust your expectations.
Okay final verdict
My friend was right. I was wrong. The UAE absolutely slapped
and I've already started a "reasons to go back" note in my phone that
currently has eleven items on it.
If you're on the fence — just go. It's one of those destinations that has genuinely different versions of itself for genuinely different types of people and something is going to get you. Maybe it's the desert. Maybe it's the mosque. Maybe it's a shawarma from a fluorescent-lit spot in Deira at 11pm that ruins all other shawarma forever.
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