The Burj al Arab and around
Some 18km south of the Creek, the suburb of Umm Suqeim marks the beginning of Dubai’s spectacular modern beachside developments, announced with a flourish by three of Dubai’s most famous landmarks: the iconic sail-shaped Burj al Arab hotel, the roller-coaster-like Jumeirah Beach Hotel and the fantastical Madinat Jumeirah complex. There are further attractions at the thrills-and-spills Wild Wadi water park and at Ski Dubai, the Middle East’s first ski slope, while more sedentary pleasures can be found at the vast Mall of the Emirates, next to Ski Dubai, of whose snowy pistes it offers superbly surreal views. Close to the Mall of the Emirates on the far side of Sheikh Zayed Road, the industrial area of Al Quoz provides an unlikely home to a number of Dubai’s leading art galleries.
The Burj al Arab
Rising majestically from its own man-made island just off the coast of Umm Suqeim is the peerless Burj al Arab (“Tower of the Arabs”). Commissioned by Dubai’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed, the aim of the Burj was simple: to serve as a global icon which would put Dubai on the international map. Money was no object. The total cost of the hotel was perhaps as much as US$2 billion, and it’s been estimated that even if every room in it remains full for the next hundred years, the Burj still won’t pay back its original investment.
Although not much more than a decade old, the building’s instantly recognizable outline has already established itself as a global symbol of Dubai to rival the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben and the Sydney Opera House. Even the top-floor helipad has acquired celebrity status: André Agassi and Roger Federer once famously played tennis on it, while Tiger Woods used it as a makeshift driving range, punting shots into the sea.
The Burj is home to the world’s first so-called seven-star hotel, an expression coined by a visiting journalist to emphasize the unique levels of luxury offered within (officially, of course, such a category doesn’t exist). Designed to echo the shape of a dhow’s sail, the hotel’s shore-facing side mainly comprises a huge sheet of white Teflon-coated fibreglass cloth, which is spectacularly illuminated by night. Most of the interior is actually hollow, consisting of an enormous atrium vibrantly coloured in great swathes of red, blue and green, supported by massive bulbous golden columns.
Staying here is a very expensive pleasure, and even just visiting presents certain challenges. Fortunately the building’s magnificent exterior can be enjoyed for free from numerous vantage points nearby.
Visiting the Burj al Arab
Non-guests are only allowed into the Burj with a prior reservation at one of the hotel’s bars, cafés or restaurants; call 
04 301 7600 or email 
BAArestaurants@jumeirah.com. The cheapest option is to come for a cocktail at the 27th-floor Skyview Bar (minimum spend 250dh/person). Alternatively, a visit for one of the Burj’s sumptuous afternoon teas (285–450dh) in either the Skyview Bar or at the Sahn Eddar atrium lounge is another possibility. If you want to go the whole hog, the Burj boasts two of the city’s most spectacular (and pricey) restaurants: Al Muntaha and Al Mahara.
Jumeirah Beach Hotel
The huge Jumeirah Beach Hotel (or “JBH”) is the second of the area’s landmark buildings, after the Burj al Arab. Designed to resemble an enormous breaking wave (although it looks more like an enormous roller coaster), and rising to a height of over 100m, the hotel was considered the most spectacular and luxurious in the city when it opened in 1997, although it has since been overtaken on both counts. It remains a fine sight, however, especially when seen from a distance in combination with the Burj al Arab, right next door, against whose slender sail it appears (with a little imagination) to be about to crash.
Wild Wadi
04 348 4444,
wildwadi.com.Daily: March–May, Sept & Oct 10am–7pm; June–Aug 10am–8pm; Nov–Feb 10am–6pm.220dh, children under 1.1m 175dh; locker and towel rental 50dh extra.MAPThe massively popular Wild Wadi water park offers a variety of attractions to suit everyone from small kids to physically fit adrenaline junkies, complete with fantasy tropical lagoon, cascading waterfalls, whitewater rapids and hanging bridges. Get oriented with a circuit of the Whitewater Wadi (MasterBlaster) ride, which runs around the edge of the park, during which you’re squirted on powerful jets of water up and down eleven long, twisting slides before being catapulted down the darkened Tunnel of Doom. Dedicated thrill-seekers should try the Wipeout and Riptide Flowriders, simulating powerful surfing waves, and the park’s stellar attraction, the Jumeirah Sceirah, the tallest and fastest speed slide outside North America.
Madinat Jumeirah
A vast mass of faux-Moorish-style buildings, the huge Madinat Jumeirah complex rises high above the coastal highway. Opened in 2005, the Madinat is one of Dubai’s most spectacular modern developments: a self-contained miniature “Arabian” city comprising a vast sprawl of sand-coloured buildings topped by an extraordinary quantity of wind towers, the whole thing arranged around a sequence of meandering palm-fringed waterways along which visitors are chauffeured in replica abras.
There’s an undeniable whiff of Disneyland about the entire complex, admittedly, although the sheer scale of the place is strangely compelling. The Madinat also offers some of the most eye-boggling views in Dubai, with the futuristic outlines of the Burj al Arab surreally framed between medieval-looking wind towers and Moorish arcading.
The obvious place from which to explore the complex is the Souk Madinat Jumeirah, though it’s well worth investigating some of the superb restaurants and bars in the Al Qasr and Mina A’Salam hotels, several of which offer superlative views over the Madinat itself, the Burj al Arab and coastline.
Mall of the Emirates
malloftheemirates.com.Daily 10am–10pm (Thurs–Sat until midnight).MAPThe second-largest mall in Dubai (outdone only by the Dubai Mall), the swanky Mall of the Emirates is one of the most popular in the city, packed with hundreds of shops and crowds of locals and tourists alike. Centred around a huge, glass-roofed central atrium, the mall is spread over three levels, crisscrossed by escalators and little wrought-iron bridges, and topped by the pink, five-star Kempinski Hotel. For dedicated shopaholics it’s arguably the best place in Dubai to splash some cash – and there’s also the added bonus of surreal views of the snow-covered slopes of Ski Dubai through huge glass walls at the western end of the mall, or from one of the various restaurants and bars overlooking the slopes, such as Après.
Ski Dubai
800-FUN,skidxb.com.Daily: Sun–Wed 10am–11pm, Thurs 10am–midnight, Fri 9am–midnight, Sat 9am–11pm.2hr ski slope session adult 180dh, children 150dh; ski slope day pass 300/275dh; snow park 130/120dh.MAPAttached to the Mall of the Emirates, the huge indoor ski resort of Ski Dubai is unquestionably one of the city’s weirder ideas: a huge indoor snow-covered ski slope complete with regular snowfall amid the sultry heat of the Gulf. Accredited skiers and snowboarders can use five runs of varying height, steepness and difficulty, including the world’s first indoor black run. There’s also a Snow School ski academy for beginners and improvers, as well as a twin-track bobsled ride, a snowball-throwing gallery, snow cavern and adventure trail, plus tobogganing and snowman-building opportunities.
< Back to The Burj al Arab and around
Shops
The Camel Company
Dubai’s cutest selection of stuffed toy camels, plus camel mugs, camel cards, camel T-shirts and so on. Other branches at Dubai Mall, Souk al Bahar, Mall of the Emirates and Ibn Battuta Mall.
Citywide chain selling a good range of superb limited-edition photographs of Dubai as well as other fine-art photography and superior postcards. Other branches at Dubai Mall, Mall of the Emirates, Souk Al Bahar and JBR Walk.
Gold and Diamond Park
goldanddiamondpark.com.Daily 10am–10pm.MAPThis low-key little mall is the place to come if you want diamonds, which retail here for up to half the price you’d expect to pay back home. You’ll also find a few other precious stones and platinum jewellery for sale, plus a small amount of gold. Some places can also knock up custom-made designs.
Harvey Nichols
04 409 8888,harveynichols.com.Daily 10am–10pm (Thurs–Sat until midnight).MAPThe flagship shop of one of Dubai’s flagship malls, this suave, minimalist three-storey department store offers a vast array of international labels, including British classics like Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen.
Al Jaber Gallery
04 341 4103,aljabergallery.ae.Daily 10am–10pm (Thurs–Sat until midnight).MAPDubai’s leading purveyor of low-grade Arabian “handicrafts”. Look hard enough and you might find some half-decent stuff, including attractive old traditional wooden boxes and coffee pots, though the shop is perhaps best regarded as a source of hilarious kitsch. Kids will love it. Other branches at Deira City Centre, Dubai Mall, Souk Madinat Jumeirah and Marina Mall.
Mall of the Emirates
malloftheemirates.com.Daily 10am–10pm (Thurs–Sat until midnight).MAPPerhaps the best one-stop shopping destination in the city (see Mall of the Emirates), with around five hundred stores to browse, good places to eat and drink and the surreal snow-covered slopes of Ski Dubai to ogle.
Pride of Kashmir
prideofkashmir.com.Daily 10am–10pm (Thurs–Sat until midnight).MAPOne of the city’s leading handicrafts chains, more upmarket than Al Jaber Gallery but perfectly affordable. Stock usually includes carpets and kilims alongside assorted antiques, pashminas and traditional-style wooden furniture. Other branches at Souk al Bahar and Souk Madinat Jumeirah.
Souk Madinat Jumeirah
At the heart of the Madinat Jumeirah, this superb re-creation of a “traditional” souk serves up a beguiling mix of shopping, eating and drinking opportunities. Like all good bazaars, the layout is mazy and disorienting, although you’ll never be far from where you want to be. Shops include branches of Al Jaber Gallery, Pride of Kashmir, The Camel Company and Gallery One.
Restaurants
Après
04 341 2575.Daily 11.30am–1am (Thurs & Fri until 2am).MAPCool bar-restaurant with surreal views over the snowy slopes of Ski Dubai through big picture windows and a good range of international food (mains 85–160dh) – anything from bouillabaisse to fish and chips, plus excellent thin-crust pizzas (around 70dh). It’s also a fun spot for a drink, with an extensive drinks selection and kick-ass cocktails.
La Parrilla
Perched atop the Jumeirah Beach Hotel, this Argentinian-themed steakhouse boasts superb views of the Burj al Arab, excellent Argentinian, Australian and Wagyu steaks (165–475dh) and an appealing splash of Latin atmosphere, with live music and tango dancers nightly (except Sunday) – ask nicely and the manageress might even sing you a song.
Left Bank
Jostling for elbow room among the string of incredibly popular places along the Souk Madinat Jumeirah waterfront, this sleek modern bar-restaurant is a good vantage point if you can bag a table on the outside terrace. The regularly changing menu (mains 90–165dh) features an eclectic selection of good (if pricey) international food – wild sea bass or confit duck leg through to curry of the day or Lancashire hotpot. Or just come for a drink.
Al Mahara
Perhaps the more appealing of the Burj al Arab’s two signature restaurants, Al Mahara looks like some kind of fantastic underwater grotto, entered through a huge golden arch and with seats arranged around a giant fish tank. There’s a range of gourmet international seafood to choose from plus a couple of meat options, although the prices are enough to make you weep into your obsiblue shrimps. Mains around 370dh.
Pai Thai
This beautiful Thai restaurant is one of the city’s most romantic places to eat, with stunning Burj al Arab views from the candlelit terrace and live music murmuring gently in the background. Food includes all the usual Thai classics, such as spicy salads, meat and seafood curries – not the most original menu in town, although given the setting you probably won’t care. Mains 80–200dh.
Pierchic
One of the city’s most spectacularly situated restaurants, perched at the end of a breezy pier jutting out in front of the grandiose Al Qasr hotel, and with unbeatable views of the nearby Burj al Arab, Jumeirah Beach Hotel and Madinat Jumeirah. The short, mainly seafood menu has prices to match the location, with a selection of international-style fine-dining fish and seafood offerings, ranging from Dover sole to Canadian lobster, plus a couple of meat choices. Mains around 200dh.
Zheng He
Classy Chinese restaurant dishing up top-notch fine dining. There’s nothing particularly innovative about the menu (mains 90–180dh), although quality is high and the setting memorable, with seating either inside the svelte restaurant or outside on the beautiful Burj-facing terrace.
Bars
360°
The ultimate Dubaian chill-out bar (if you don’t mind the high prices and sometimes erratic service), spectacularly located at the end of a long breakwater which arcs out into the Gulf opposite the Jumeirah Beach Hotel and Burj al Arab, and offering sublime after-dark views of both. Occasionally there’s an entrance charge when visiting DJs are in residence; you may also need to reserve in advance if planning to arrive before 10pm – check the website for details.
Bahri Bar
Superb little Arabian-style outdoor terrace, liberally scattered with canopied sofas, Moorish artefacts and Persian carpets, and offering drop-dead gorgeous views of the Burj and Madinat Jumeirah – particularly gorgeous towards sunset.
Barzar
The bar here is pretty nondescript, but the big terrace outside is one of the Madinat’s best chill-out spaces, with views of the fake Arabian wind towers and waterways and lots of bean-bags to crash out on over drinks, plus a good range of shisha.
Skyview Bar
Landmark bar perched near the summit of the Burj al Arab, with colourful psychedelic decor and vast sea and city views – coming for a drink here is currently the cheapest way to see the inside of this fabulous hotel. The huge drinks list majors in cocktails (from 100dh), but also sports a decent spread of wines, spirits, mocktails and even a few beers; alternatively, go for the lavish, seven-course afternoon teas (450dh). There’s a minimum spend of 250dh per person, and you’ll need to reserve in advance via email.
Uptown Bar
Superb views of the Burj al Arab and southern Dubai are the main draw at this place, located on the 24th floor of the Jumeirah Beach Hotel. There’s indoor and outdoor seating, plus a reasonable drinks list, although the decor is disappointingly humdrum for such a fine location.
Club
Pacha comes to Dubai
Dubai looks set to get its first international superclub in early 2014 with the arrival of global über-brand Pacha, hot from its Ibizan homeland. Occupying a prime location in Souk Madinat Jumeirah, Pacha Dubai will host regular big-name visiting DJs who will command a huge new floor space carved out of the area formerly occupied by the long-running venues Trilogy and Jambase. Check Time Out Dubai for latest details.