Overview

Dubai, where astonishing new architecture rises beside the timeless Arabian Gulf and sand dunes rise like silent ocean waves

This sheikdom of deserts and beaches boasts a sophisticated lifestyle and enough of the exotic to make it exciting.

Dubai is an east-meets-west phenomenon, a wealthy United Arab Emirate where white beaches, azure waters and endless deserts stand cheek-to-cheek with towering skyscrapers, domed mosques and haute-couture shops.

The hotels are often high-rise but always standard-setting, their innovative architectural designs highly visible reflections of the money-is-no-object approach to... well, everything.

Visit between October and May when the temperatures are pleasurable and the warm waters and sybaritic spas are sure to have the greatest effect.

The list of recreational activities here is endless, the championship golf courses vying with water sports, swimming pools and yachting marinas for your attention. Away from the hotels there’s dune-driving in the desert, moonlit dinner cruises along the river, excursions into the Hajar Mountains, or shopping malls and gold souks to explore.

Whilst Dubai is very much an exotic taste of the Middle East, the refreshingly modern attitudes ensure very few culture shocks.