Dubai attraktioner

E 11, also known as Sheikh Zayed Road, is the main artery passing through the city of Dubai, running north to south parallel to the coast. Named after the beloved first president of the United Arab Emirates, the road exits Dubai and runs all the way to Abu Dhabi, but the segment stretching between the Emirates Towers and the Dusit Thani Hotel serves as the main access point to almost everything in the city.

Lined with towering skyscrapers and prestigious hotels (World Trade Centre, The Fairmont Dubai, Shangri-La Hotel and Millennium Tower to name a few), the road has six lanes running in each direction, with the Red Line of the Dubai Metro running parallel for most of its length through the city.

Bur Dubai Village, located near the mouth of Dubai Creek, takes visitors back in time through a series of heritage villages complete with recreated architecture and local artisans practicing their crafts using traditional techniques. For shoppers, the village is a great place to find unique, handmade items to take home as souvenirs or gifts.

Long before the skyscrapers and palm-shaped islands, Dubai’s economy relied heavily on pearling. Teams of men would spend months at a time at sea diving for the rose-colored pearls produced in the Persian Gulf. One of the most unique experiences at the Bur Dubai Village is the opportunity to learn more about the city’s pearl diving culture and watch a demonstration of how it’s done.

Bur Dubai Village is open every day of the week, but Friday hours are limited and many of the shop will be closed. After you’ve toured the heritage village, set aside some time for a meal or drink by the waterside.

Dubai may have the world’s largest shopping mall, but for many visitors, the best shopping is found in the city’s traditional souks, or markets. Each of these historic markets specializes in one product or category of products, and one of Dubai’s most famous (and most pungent) souks is the Spice Souk.

Located in the eastern part of Dubai next to the Gold Souk, the Spice Souk includes a small area of narrow lanes lined by small shops selling almost any spice you can imagine. Huge bags and bins of colorful and fragrant spices -- everything from frankincense and saffron to dried chillies -- overflow into the streets. You’ll also find shops selling incense and sheesha, a type of tobacco smoked in a water pipe. If you come to buy spices, be prepared to haggle; knowing your basic numbers in Arabic will help.

Unlike anything you have seen in the world, Dubai’s Gold Souk is a market that showcases seemingly endless amounts of gold jewelry. With over 300 jewelers on site to accommodate all your gold related needs, the streets during the day are swarming with visitors from all around the world enjoying the spectacle of wall-to-wall gold, and course, the souk’s phenomenal prices.

Whether you are looking to buy or just peruse, the Dubai Souk is certainly worth your visit. With an average of 10 tons of gold available on the premises at any given time, you are sure to be impressed with the glimmering displays, with gold makes in virtually any style you could imagine—and even available in an array of colors including white, yellow and pink.

If you are feeling so inclined to make a purchase at the Souk, make sure you bring your haggling pants with you. It is entirely expected that you negotiate the price for any wanted goods.

To enter the only mosque in the UAE open to non-Muslim visitors, make your way to Jumeirah Mosque.

Designed to provide a better understanding of Islam, the tour is followed by a relaxed Q&A session. All visitors need to be accompanied by a registered guide from the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding.

The extremely photogenic mosque is a modern-day tribute to medieval Fatimid architecture, complete with pure-white minarets and domes.

Chances are, if you’re visiting Dubai, you’ll want to spend some time at the beach. While many of the big resorts limit beach access to guests only, the city has a handful of public beaches, and Jumeirah Beach Park is by far the best of them.

Jumeirah Beach Park opened in 1989 as the first beach park in Dubai. Today, the 30-acre (12-hectare) beachfront green space features volleyball courts, showers, playgrounds, picnic tables, food kiosks, barbecue areas and lifeguards monitoring the sandy stretch of beach. The facilities are the best you’ll find on pretty much any public beach.

In the past year some 5 million people visited Dubai’s Global Village—a bright lights entertainment hub with games, rides, food and fun. Travelers can find world-class shopping, a wide array of restaurants and live shows that range from cultural dance to daredevil stuntmen at this amusement park place in the heart of UAE.

Global Village highlights not only what makes Dubai’s culture and traditions so unique, but the UAE’s love of glitter and glam, too. Still, visitors agree that entertainment options here stretch far beyond the local flavor. Kid-friendly shows cater to a younger set, while international concerts and street performers offer something for the adults in the crowd, too. And for those who want to ride the rides, dozens of amusement park-style options are available for children, families and thrill-seekers.

The Mall of the Emirates, Dubai’s second largest shopping complex after the Dubai Mall, houses 560 international retailers spread over 2,513,017 square feet (233,467 square meters) of retail space. Superlatives are plentiful — the mall houses the largest Carrefour supermarket in the city and five dozen stores made their Middle Eastern debut here.

While the shopping remains a huge draw to the Mall of the Emirates, even non-shoppers will find something to do. Ski Dubai (the first indoor ski slope in the region), multi-screen VOX Cinemas, Magic Planet arcade and family entertainment center, Peekaboo play area and the Dubai Community Theatre & Art Centre also make their home within the Mall of the Emirates. Two five-star hotels, the Kempinski Mall of the Emirates and the Sheraton Dubai Mall of the Emirates Hotel both adjoin the shopping mall.

Located in Diera, the Burjuman Centre is one of Dubai’s oldest malls, popular for its selection of high-street fashions. Built in 1991 and expanded in 2004, the shopping center now boasts more than 300 luxury and high end stores located across 2.8 million square feet of mixed-use space. Alongside the high-street brands, shoppers will find Saks Fifth Avenue, Dior, Versace, Cartier, Louis Vuitton and Valentino, among others.

The mall is currently undergoing another round of upgrades that will bring a multiplex movie theater, Carrefour supermarket and an expanded food court to the complex.

The Palm Islands is an audacious trio of palm-shaped offshore developments in Dubai. Home to a mix of leisure, residential, marina and commercial constructions, the islands form the shape of date palms linked to the mainland by causeways.

The most complete of these artificial island developments is Palm Jumeirah, near Dubai Marina in Jumeirah. Construction began in 2001, and the first residents moved into their new island homes in 2007. The glitzy Atlantis resort opened in 2008, and further construction of beaches, shopping malls, hotel resorts and theme parks is under way. Palm Jebel Ali will be constructed further west, near the Abu Dahbi border. The third development, Palm Deira, is under way on the other side of the Creek in Deira.

The World is an equally ambitious project taking place in the waters of the Arabian Gulf, 4 km (2.5 miles) offshore.

Housed in one of the biggest malls in the world, Ski Dubai is home to the world’s first indoor black run and the world’s largest indoor snow park. You can also try out a toboggan and sled runs, scale the climbing tower, and head inside the ice cave. Oh, and there’s king and gentoo penguins too, who pop out from their enclosure several times a day.

Opened in November 2005, the indoor ski resort has five slopes of varying difficulties, lengths, and gradients. For beginners there are small slopes, and you can also hire your own ski instructor. More practiced snowboarders can make the most of Ski Dubai’s Freestyle Zone, where snowboarders work on their stunts and tricks.

The first indoor ski resort in the Middle East, you’ll be skiing on real snow here, which means the the temperature is kept to a slightly chilly -4 degrees C. Winter clothes are included with your ski pass, so you don’t have to worry about the temperature, especially as you can order a hot chocolate.

The Lost Chambers Aquarium in Atlantis, The Palm takes visitors through a series of mazes and tunnels as they explore the underwater ruins of Atlantis. This imaginative aquarium houses some 65,000 aquatic animals, including 12 species of rays and sharks.

Unlike most aquariums, The Lost Chambers has a complete backstory, adding a cinematic quality to the visit. According to the hotel’s “myth,” a series of passages and ruins were uncovered as the resort was being built -- ruins that were later determined to be the Lost City of Atlantis. As you walk through the different marine exhibits, you’ll not only read information on the marine life but on Atlantean history and culture as well.

In front of the iconic Burj Al Arab, Wild Wadi Water Park has 30 rides and attractions themed around the tale of Juha, the Arabian folklore character. Nearly a million visitors come each year to play in the wave pool, ride the artificial surfing machines, soar down over 20 water slides, and splash in the 18-meter high waterfall that goes off every 10 minutes. Apart from its views of the Burj Al Arab and out to the Persian Gulf, Wild Wadi Water Park is probably most famous for its Jumeirah Sceirah ride. Climb up the 32-meter high tower with a friend, cross your arms and legs, and the floor beneath will open to slide the two of you down tandem water slides at speeds of up to 80 km/h.

For a more relaxing trip to Wild Wadi Water Park, float around Juha’s Journey Lazy River in a tube, or book one of the six VIP cabanas by the lazy river. There are also gift stores, fast-food and barbecue restaurants, and food stands that serve regular snacks as well as smoothies.