destination
Overview
The UAE pairs Dubai and Abu Dhabi in one compact trip, with frequent international flights and a large range of ticketed attractions. Entry rules depend on the traveller's passport, while attractions can take a bigger share of the budget than local transport or casual food.
November to March is the season; summer is 45°C and outdoor plans die by 10 am. This page covers visas, the two main cities, money, and getting around. Use it to plan; use the city pages to book.
Entry rules vary by nationality, passport type and trip purpose. GCC citizens have separate arrangements, while many other passports receive entry permission on arrival for a nationality-specific period.
Other travellers need a pre-arranged entry visa through an eligible airline, hotel, sponsor or visa service. Product names, fees, validity and processing estimates differ by channel. Check the official UAE authority and the submitting channel, and keep travel refundable until approval.
Indian ordinary-passport holders have a conditional 14-day visa-on-arrival route with specified foreign visas or residence permits. The newer six-country categories apply to residence permits, not ordinary visitor visas. See the UAE visa-on-arrival guide and confirm with the airline before departure.
November to March is the only comfortable season. Days are 25-32°C, evenings are pleasant, and everything outdoor — desert safaris, Global Village, Miracle Garden — runs at full tilt. The outdoor seasonal attractions close for summer around late April.
April to October is very hot; June to September regularly crosses 43°C. The upside: hotel prices drop hard, and indoor attractions (Dubai Mall, Ski Dubai, IMG Worlds) work fine. If you only care about malls and indoor parks, a summer trip is the cheap way in.
Two calendar notes. The Dubai Shopping Festival (roughly December to early January) stacks sales and fireworks onto peak season. During Ramadan, most tourist restaurants stay open by day, but expect quieter daytimes and shorter attraction hours.
Dubai is where most first trips happen. Burj Khalifa, Dubai Mall, desert safaris, Marina cruises, Miracle Garden, and a dozen theme parks — you will not run out of things to book. Give it 3-4 days minimum.
Abu Dhabi is the capital, 90 minutes from Dubai by road. Ferrari World, the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, and the Louvre Abu Dhabi make it a solid full-day trip — or a 2-night stay if you have a week. The free Grand Mosque is strict on dress, and entry slots book out on weekends.
A useful split for families: Dubai for the icons and desert, Abu Dhabi's Yas Island for the parks — Ferrari World, Warner Bros. World, Yas Waterworld and SeaWorld sit next to each other, and multi-park passes cost less than separate gates.
The UAE is one of the easiest long-haul trips with children: short transfers, clean facilities, and baby-change rooms in every mall. Dubai suits mixed-age families — aquariums, KidZania and calm beaches for little ones, waterparks and dune-bashing for teens. Yas Island fits the 6-and-up crowd best, since its parks lean on rides with height limits.
Match plans to age. Toddlers do best with beach mornings and air-conditioned aquarium afternoons. Kids 6-12 get the most from theme parks. Teens rate the desert safari and Ski Dubai highest — but dune-bashing is rough, so book a camp-only safari for under-5s (most operators offer one).
Heat is the real constraint. Even in the November-March season, plan outdoor stops before 11 am or after 4 pm, and keep water on you — kids dehydrate faster than adults here. One tip: the metro and malls are stroller-friendly, but abras and safari 4x4s are not, so bring a carrier for babies.
The UAE is card-first: Visa and Mastercard work everywhere, including taxis and metro ticket machines. The dirham is pegged at about AED 3.67 = $1, so prices don't move with exchange-rate swings.
Carry a small amount of cash (AED 200-300 / $55-$82) for small shops and tips, changed at city exchange houses rather than the weak-rate airport counters. And check your card's foreign-transaction fee — many cards add 2-3.5%, which adds up on a trip where attraction spends are high.
Food is the easy part of the budget. Old Dubai (Bur Dubai, Deira, Karama) is full of South Asian and Filipino canteens serving full meals for AED 15-30 ($4-$8), and vegetarians do especially well there. Mall food courts cover every cuisine at mid prices.
Plan around AED 550-800 ($150-$220) per person per day in Dubai, hotel included, with one big attraction. Attractions are the swing item — everything else is cheaper than most visitors expect.
A sample day in season looks like this:
Some tickets are refreshingly cheap: the Dubai Frame runs around AED 50 ($14), Global Village entry is about AED 25-30 ($7-$8), and the abra boat across Dubai Creek costs a few dirhams. Desert safaris with dinner and pickup run roughly AED 150-300 ($41-$82) per person. Booking attractions online usually beats gate prices, and combo passes help once you plan three or more paid stops.
The Dubai Metro is clean, cheap, driverless, and covers most tourist stops — Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall has its own station with a walkway into the mall. Fares with a rechargeable Nol card run AED 3-7.5 ($0.80-$2) per trip, and trains run until around midnight.
Taxis and Careem (the local ride-hailing app) fill the gaps; both are metered and honest. A cross-city Deira-to-Marina taxi runs about AED 50-70 ($14-$19). For Abu Dhabi, intercity buses cost around AED 25 ($7) each way, or book a day tour with hotel pickup — simpler with family. Desert safaris always include pickup and drop.
One booking-order tip: fix your Burj Khalifa slot first — sunset slots are the scarcest ticket in the city — then build the day around it. Everything else usually has same-week availability.
Five days based in Dubai covers the essentials without rushing. The distances are small, so you keep one hotel the whole trip.
Families with a week should split it: four nights in Dubai, then two on Abu Dhabi's Yas Island with a multi-park pass, ending at the airport just 30 minutes from the parks.
Good to know
Best Time
November to March — warm days, mild evenings, everything outdoors open
Currency
UAE Dirham (AED); pegged to the dollar at roughly AED 3.67 = $1
Visa
Entry route depends on nationality and passport; check the current UAE government rule before booking
Timezone
GMT+4
Flight Time
One of the world's biggest air hubs — around 7 hours from London, 3 hours from Mumbai, 7.5 hours from Singapore
Good to know
It depends on your passport. Some nationalities receive a visa or entry permission on arrival, while others need a UAE entry visa in advance through an eligible sponsor or channel. Stay periods and fees vary, so use the UAE government's current nationality checker before booking.
Four to five days: one for Burj Khalifa and Dubai Mall, one for a desert safari, one for a theme park or Miracle Garden, and one for Abu Dhabi as a day trip.
Standard 'At the Top' tickets (floors 124-125) start around AED 169 ($46) for non-prime hours. Sunset slots cost more and sell out days ahead; floor 148 starts around AED 400 ($109). Book a dated ticket online — gate prices are higher.
Dubai for a first trip: more attractions, more hotels, better metro. Base in Abu Dhabi only if theme parks are the point — four big parks sit side by side on Yas Island, and park-hotel bundles beat commuting from Dubai.
Attractions are the biggest cost, not food. Budget meals in old Dubai run AED 15-30 ($4-$8) and the metro is cheap, but big-ticket attractions cost AED 169-385 ($46-$105) each — tickets for two people can cost more than the hotel.
Summer, June to September. Hotel prices drop hard because of the 43°C+ heat. It works if your plan is malls, aquariums and indoor theme parks, but outdoor sightseeing shrinks to early morning and evening.
Not automatically. Gold follows a global market price, while making charges, VAT refunds, card rates and Indian customs duty can erase the apparent saving. Compare the final invoice and landed cost. Our Dubai gold guide covers the current customs rules.
Indian ordinary-passport holders generally need a pre-arranged UAE entry visa. A conditional 14-day visa on arrival is available with specified US, UK, EU or other residence documents. Fees and timelines vary by route; see our Dubai visa guide for Indian travellers.
Online now
Real humans on WhatsApp and phone — before, during and after your trip. We typically reply in minutes.
Prefer email? [email protected]
