Dubai Stopover

After a four hour flight from Male to Dubai, we landed around 2.30pm. We were both struck by the vastness of the Emirates airport terminal. Our stand was near the end of the terminal so after a good 15 minute walk, including several powered walkways, we arrived at immigration and baggage reclaim – another vast area.

Thankfully, the immigration process was quick and we were soon at the carousel collecting our luggage. Leaving the baggage reclaim and walking through customs was remarkably stress free. Met immediately by our travel representative, we were directed to a waiting car which took us to the Hilton Dubai Jumeirah resort (approx. 35 minutes away).

In Dubai, Friday is a weekend day and it was Thursday afternoon, so traffic was heavier than normal. Emirates citizens tend to meet up on a Thursday night with friends or family.

We checked into our hotel and decided to view the facilities and the beach. What really struck us having come from the heat and humidity of the Maldives was the difference in air temperature. It was still a comfortable 24 degrees but it felt a lot cooler.

The Hilton is situated right on the edge of the beach with rows and rows of loungers available: enough for the entire hotel should everyone decide to descend onto the beach. When we visited (March 2016), there were building works next door to the hotel as well as out to sea where a new resort is in the process of being constructed.

After retreating to the Wavebreaker beachside bar, we enjoyed a couple of drinks and soaked up the atmosphere of our new vista. Dubai is becoming a party destination, but make sure you take plenty of spending money – a large beer and a medium glass of wine came to nearly £20 (March 2016 exchange rates).

As we were staying on a half board basis, the first evening we decided to eat in the buffet style Oceana restaurant. Each night there is a different theme and Thursday was Steak Night. You could eat as much steak as you could manage, cooked right in front of you to your liking. The range of dishes was absolutely amazing – even the fussiest eater would have been spoilt for choice!

After a long day travelling, we decided we would retire for the evening in preparation for the following day’s exploration of Dubai.

We awoke early and after a good breakfast at Oceana, we headed for Dubai using the metro. This relatively new transport system is all over ground on a raised platform. After a 15 minute walk from our hotel to the nearest station at Jumeirah Lakes Towers, we travelled fairly cheaply down to Burj Khalifa Metro station via Mall of the Emirates.

Our first impression of the Mall of the Emirates was that whilst you were quite clearly not in a shopping centre in the UK, it had the same feel. Many chains present in the UK have a store in malls within the city. One highlight was Ski Dubai – seeing people with hats, scarves and thick coats, when the outside temperature was in the region of 30 degrees, was quite surreal. After numerous shops, we made our way to the Dubai Mall ready for our trip to the top of the Burj Khalifa (well, the 124th floor anyway).

After a snack at the food court, we took a look at the Dubai fountains – a 30 acre man-made lake which has the famous dancing fountains and our first proper close up view of the Burj Khalifa. The lake is surrounded by cafés and restaurants as well as the Souk Al Bahar, which we did not visit due to being short of time.

It is possible to witness two sunsets in a matter of minutes, so we purposely booked a sunset visit to the Burj Khalifa. Please be warned - with security and interest in visiting this building you must allow plenty of time before your allotted visiting slot. I would also recommend upgrading to a “queue buster” ticket to save time on going up and down the tower minimising any delay.

After a staggeringly short elevator ride (approx. 70 seconds from the ground to the 124th floor), you are greeted by wondrous, breath-taking views out to sea. The tour allows you to walk all the way round the tower to get a true bird’s eye view of Dubai and the surrounding area. Despite the impressive view, you are still quite a way from the very top of the tower and can upgrade to ascend a further 23 floors (additional charge).

After our descent of the tower, we headed home via the fountains to watch one of the regular evening shows. Rather fittingly, the song was “Time to say goodbye” - a perfect end to a perfect holiday!