DUBAI AND ABU DHABI - Is the hype real?

Ever since Samantha, Carrie, Charlotte and Miranda from Sex & The City went to Dubai & Abu Dhabi, I have always wanted to go.  So, when an unbelievable deal came our way, Dewitt and I jumped on it!


Brief History:  Dubai is a fairly new city, so everything is modern.   It is an Islamic country and there is a "call to prayer" five times a day throughout the city.  You can hear it and if you are in the mall, you will notice the locals disappear.

Hotels

We stayed at two 5 star hotels.  The Movenpick in Dubai and the Al Rahu Beach resort in Abu Dhabi.  The Movenpick had a Starbucks, a rooftop pool and buffet breakfast was served daily.  The service at this hotel was absolutely 5 star and above.  The staff was very responsive and offered one night of entertainment.  It is located in a central location .  We did notice that after a certain time, the restaurants were frequented by men only.  (If you know why, please comment below). Next door was a club with mostly locals, and one night Dewitt, being the social butterfly that he is, threw a party for our group.  It was truly awesome.  Every now and then they played some American music and the average age was 25-30.  We fit in perfectly!

Abu Dhabi - We stayed at The Al Rahu Beach Resort.   It was even more amazing.  We were escorted individually to our rooms.  Large rooms and state of the art everything.  There was a round window that separated the bedroom from the bathroom that could be frosted or see thru,  double shower heads and the floor to ceiling Windows overlooked the beach/pool area.  This hotel is located near the mall and next door to a pub/club.

Breakfast was included and was twice as much food as the first hotel.  They had a late night jazz room, spa, indoor pool, sauna, jacuzzi, 3 other restaurants on the premises and a large infinity pool and beach  surrounded by the desert.   Service could of been better, the new staff, could not speak English and food took 3 hours to come for a group of 10.  One night we reserved a cabana on the beach with candlelight and tiki torches..the tiki torches did not work because the waiter did not know where to find the lighting fluid, when we asked for napkins, he gave us tiny cocktail paper napkins, never got the water we requested and food took over an hour to come.  In all fairness, the food was excellent at this hotel, and they compensated us for the mishaps the next day.

Excursions and city highlights

Dubai is a big city of lights.  Everything is over the top.  The biggest, brightest and the best!

The Safari tour is a must.   It included dinner, camel ride, desert racing in a truck,  belly dancing and a show.  We also did a dinner cruise one night that was awesome as it took you through the canal and the city is lit up at nigh. The DJ on the cruise played all the line dance songs including the Cupid shuffle and the wobble!

The world famous mosque in Abu Dhabi is breathtaking.    We were told in advance to cover your legs, arms and heads.  Perhaps we didn't get the memo because when we got off the bus, they made 15 of us, including me get back on the bus to cover up some more.  Three quarter sleeves, partially thin clothing and a wrap were not enough, so we purchased the Abaya which is the national dress for women in most Arab Countries.  Although the Mosque's dress code is very strict the dress code for tourist in other areas is a little more relaxed.

The key is to be respectful, no see through clothing, mini skirts, or tank tops. etc.  The Mosque is a lot stricter than in other areas of the city.  The women of Dubai are very fashionable in their dress.  Their Abayas are donned with sequins and all kinds of beautiful decorations.  They wear lots of eye makeup and are absolutely beautiful even though they are covered up.  The men are meticulously dressed  in their all white Dishdash. They are always so clean and well-shaven.  I did not see one person in a dingy or dirty white one.  I am told they change several times a day.

The Gold Souk and the Spice Souk - Souk means market.  Very aggressive sales pitches here.  You should price your jewelery here and compare the price of gold by the gram before you leave the U.S. This will help you barter when you get there.

Weather - it gets hot in the desert.  Fortunately we went during their winter.  Only 80-90 degrees.  I am told that it can go up to 140 degrees during their summer months.

Food - Did not find any of the restaurants where the food wasn't great.  A blend of American food mixed with their ethnic food was always delicious.  If you like Tabouleh and hummus, it is fresh and very good.  The Address restaurant was amazing!

Money - The conversion when we went was thirty-two cents US to $1 dirham.  Expensive?  It is all relative.  A bottle of water was $3 and a glass of wine or cocktail $15.  There are ways to cut corners by eating in local restaurants, etc.  The Gold Souk (gold market) is a great place to shop for gold.  You can spend most of your day there.  Go with something specific in mind and you can negotiate pricing if you know what you are talking about.  Dinner cost approx $200 for two without drinks per night.  Since Breakfast was included in all of our hotel stays, we skipped lunch.  The local fast food restaurants and starbucks were reasonably priced.

Great trip.  Great group, and we didn't come home feeling like we spent too much money.  For what we got, we felt it was worth the experience.  Except for the plane ride, we would go back.  I hear Emirates airlines might have more flexibility to move around.  Please let me know with your comments below.