Travel| What To Do in Abu Dhabi and Dubai

Last week I told you all that I will be going to the UAE for a little vacation in the coming weeks. In anticipation for this trip, as I do with other trips, I needed to figure out what we could do while on vacation. When I told people that I was going some were excited because they want to travel there, others were like “What are you going to do out there?” So here is your answer.

At this point in my life, I’m not all about the “turn up” anymore. Don’t get me wrong, I still want to party and have a good time, but I also want to see the world. I’m always down for a good excursion or sightseeing. If I have the means to travel to certain places I don’t just want to be posted up with a drink in my hand, I want to experience different things. So here is what my boyfriend and I plan to do while in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. This is the final version of the list. It went through many revisions because he gave me the, “babe you’re doing too much” look when he saw my first list.

1. Yas Island Ferrari World– I’m super excited to visit the place with the world’s fastest roller coaster. I probably won’t get on it lol. My tolerance for rides has decreased significantly, but there are tons of activities to do. We will probably spend a lot of time on Yas Island because there is tons to do.

Yas Island, Abu Dhabi

Ferrari World

2. Grand Sheikh Zayed Mosque- This is the largest mosque in the UAE and took nine years to build. The late president of the UAE Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan wanted to create a place that united the cultural diversity of the Islamic world.

Grand Sheikh Zayed Mosque, Abu Dhabi

3. Gold and Spice Souks- A souk is an Arab market or market place. This is where you haggle your prices. No price is definite at the souks. I think I’m more excited for the spice souk than the gold souk, because I’m starting to love experimenting with different spices in my cooking, and I can see a plethora of these spices from the Bible…I mean who wouldn’t want some  frankinsense and myrrh?? Lol, I know I can find those here in New York, but visiting the souks would definitely be aesthetically amazing.

Gold Souk

Spice Souk

4. Desert Safaris- Camel rides, sandboarding, henna, belly dancing, sunset bbq? Please sign me up.

Camel Riding

Henna

Desert Safari

5. Burj Khalifa- The tallest building in the world. I mean how can you go to Dubai and not visit this place? The observation decks are at level 124 and level 148 of the 163 story building. They have tours that typically take up to 1.5 hours.

Burj Khalifa

6. Dubai Underwater Zoo and Aquarium- Located in the Dubai Mall, it is one of the largest suspended aquarium’s in the world. It houses thousands of aquatic animals. There are a number of things you can do here including the Aquarium Tunnel, Underwater Zoo, Glass-Bottom Boat ride, fish feeding, and various dive packages including caged snorkeling.

Aquarium and Underwater Zoo

I would also like to visit the Al Ain Palace Museum and Emirates Palace, but that’s only if there is time.

Al Ain Palace Museum

Emirates Palace

As far as travel, we will probably take taxis most places. Taxi Fare Finder is a great website to get estimated prices for your travel without getting cheated. They give you prices with no traffic, light traffic, and heavy traffic.

Also I’ve been using the Google currency converter to convert AED prices to USD, just so I can get an idea of how much we are going to be spending.

*Keep in mind that on Fridays many places do not open until mid afternoon (around 3pm) because Fridays is known as Jumu’ah or day of prayer. That should be kept in mind when planning your vacation.*

Has anyone been to the UAE, what places did you visit?