DUBAI 3-DAY TRAVEL GUIDE

Hello Loves! Its been a while since my post, holidays can be bit crazy with family, trips, events etc. I recently visited my home country India for my best friend's big fat Indian wedding. On my way back my friends and I decided to have an extended layover in Dubai (my second visit since Jan 2018) haha. Honestly, Dubai is the NYC of middle east, it's got everything and more. Personally I love Dubai it has such an incredible culture to explore but also the modern touch as the city is still very much developing. Btw this is my second visit to Dubai see my first post here

Where we stayed: Jumeirah Madinant

So the Jumeriah Hotel chains are one of the finest hotel chains in Dubai, I have stayed at the Ritz Carlton and nothing beats the impeccable hospitality of Jumeirah hotels. There are four resorts within the Madinant Jumeirah umbrella and we decided to stay in Jumeriah Mina A' Salam. The resort has plenty of restaurants including Mexican, Greek, etc. My favorite during the day was certainly Shimmers Restaurant, by the beach. It was very relaxing to have brunch by the beach and they also have one of the best sheeshas if you're a smoker. For dinner, we tried Treschic, an upscale restaurant on the ocean. It was off the resort and connected via a foot bridge and it's perfect for couples because it offers incredible views with romantic ambiance.

The four resorts are easily accesible via man-made river on a gondola ride or buggy ride which are available 24/7. We also visited the Souk (market) adjacent to the resort for unique souvenirs and touch of middle east. I would suggest to only sparingly because the prices are hiked up due to the resort, save the big bucks for global village (more on this later).

Let's talk about the room. We opted for an ocean view Arabian deluxe room. The details of the room were excatly what you would imagine an Arabian room to look like with the carving on the door, huge bathroom etc. We had a balcony with incredible ocean views (pictured above) and it's definitely worth the extra money, because it truly made a difference in our stay by waking up to this everyday.

What to do:

Day 1

The resort itself offers so much to do but so does Dubai city, however, we decided to dedicate an entire day to just relax and explore the resort. We relaxed by the beach, and in the evening went on the gondola ride to the souk. I had the best Gelato by the souk at a place called Trattoria Toscana. Later in the evening we had the best drinks and dinner at Treschic (seafood restaurant above the ocean). There's always live entertainment in the resort so we were never really bored.

Day 2:

Burj Khalifa and the city

There are two ways to see incredible views from the tallest building in the world (Burj Khalifa) one is visiting the 124+125 floors, or VIP to 148th floor. We went with the VIP option and I think its definitely worth the extra money. We were greeted with arabic tea, dates and sweets upon reaching the top and best of all we did not have to wait in the long line that many visiting 124+125th floors have to wait. I think its a must see when in Dubai. Later that evening we stayed around the area to see Dubai fountain show near Dubai Mall. The area near Burj Khalifa has lot of restaurants and bars to spend an incredible evening dining with a gorgeous view.

Day 3

Dinner in SKY, Dubai Souk and Global Village

So on the third day we decided to explore Dubai, We started the day with brunch on a yacht which is something very unique to Dubai. We booked our group tour using getyourguide.com and had one of the best experiences including a great customer service eon the yacht. That was a perfect way to see Atlantis Dubai from the water.

Later that day we visited Dubai's Gold Souk which is basically world famous for endless shops filled with all kinds of gold jewelry. We spent about 2 hours there but could've easily spent an entire day. There are so many shops with intricate and beautiful gold jewelry. I couldn't help myself but buy a little something for myself haha.

In the evening we decided to have high tea in SKY. This is one the most incredible and unique experiences that I have ever had in my travel ventures. Luckily the day we went, there were no other parties, so we had a private high tea in sky, they also offer dinner in sky. Our high tea was around 5pm which made for a perfect shot of the sunset. We were up in sky for about 60 -70 minutes. It was truly an amazing experience that I would highly recommend.

Later that night we took an uber to Global Village, which basically has various pavilion for each of the country. Each country's pavilion has local food, clothes and other souvenirs. There is an entry fee of 15 AED. I did most of my shopping here for dates, nuts, spices and various other things. There are always shows and performances from each country happening every hour, its a great time to spend a Sunday evening.

overall I had an incredible time at Dubai. The city is lively at any given time of the day with so much to see and do. I would definitely go back in a heartbeat. It has become one of my favorites places, the only downside is the 12 hour flight from Boston, but totally worth it for me!

Hope you guys enjoyed this post.

I'll try to post more regularly, I'm still getting used to my new job and schedule. Hope you all have a wonderful week ahead!

Xx

Nikita