Dubai Luxury Yachting Guide

Dubai is a city that lives for attention: from the Dubai Shopping Festival to the flamboyant array of indulgent pleasures constantly on offer. Like no other city on Earth, Dubai’s exotic amenities have reinvented the meaning of ‘adventure’ whether it be skiing a mammoth indoor slope or putting practice on top of a skyscraper, Dubai will set your heart racing

Essentially a desert city of plenty, Dubai is the most modern and progressive of its SIX United Arab Emirate brothers, making it the ideal gateway for new travellers to the area through which they can acquaint themselves with the unique style of modern living and the rich customs of the past within this intensely traditional epicentre.

Driven by Sheikh Mohammed, touted as a leader who doesn’t say ‘no’, Dubai attracts an immense amount of travellers to its hedonistic shores. Giving the meaning of VIP an astronomic wallop, Dubai will give you anything that you desire. Add to this that Dubai is a duty-free zone, and those travellers with shopping on their minds are bound to swoon.

Burj al-Arab Hotel
Those with a nose for extravagant luxury will want to head for the Burj al-Arab Hotel, touted as the world’s only 7 star establishment whose staff check for reservations at the gate in order to allow entry. The Burj Dubai is the world’s tallest structure and growing daily: while the final height remains a mystery, it is expected to pass 800m by its September 2009 completion.

Palm Islands
Those with sun-soaking in mind can head to the Palm Islands, the three largest artificial landmasses of their kind. The Palm Jumeirah is 5km square and will be able to accommodate 250,000 people and is composed of the three parts: The Trunk, which is for residences, shopping and tourism, The Fronds, which are for beachfront residences and The Crescent, which serves as a beautiful breakwater for the Trunk and the Fronds.

Old Dubai
Not every area of Dubai is dripping in ostentation: those who head to the area of Old Dubai, known also as Heritage Village, during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan will witness the local Emirati’s immersing themselves joyfully in traditional songs, dances and customs. Head to the creek and watch the water traffic of traditional wooden boats called dhow, some of their sedate owners smoking flavoured tobacco known as sheesha.

The recently restored district of Bastakiya is one of the last pockets of ‘Old Dubai’ and is home to many reconstructed buildings of the traditional style. The entire district is infused with an atmosphere of rich tranquility while the multi-ethnic centres of Karama and Satwa are vibrant and bustling.