Sun drenched Dubai offer travel enthusiasts the opportunity to experience unique sights and sounds. All tours and safaris are organized to the highest international standards, allowing visitors to relax and drink in enough memories to last a lifetime. The major companies are well-equipped to provide overseas tour operators with a full destination management service covering hotel bookings, airport transfers, ground transport and a daily programme of tours and activities with multilingual guides. They can also offer the required expertise for organising business-related travel, including original and exciting incentive programmes.

All the leading inbound tour-operators offer a range of standardised tours. For a full list of tour operators in Dubai, please contact the DTCM Head Office, One Stop Information Centre (OSIC).

City tours Dubai’s tour companies offer a variety of city tours of different durations and at different times of the day. As the city is compact and the roads good, it is possible to take in most of the city’s major landmarks and sights – as listed in the Attractions and Sights section – within a matter of hours. These would include the Creek, the souks, dhow-building yards, Sheikh Saeed’s House, the windtower houses of the Bastakiya area, Dubai Museum, Dubai World Trade Centre, Jumeirah Mosque and the stunning golf courses.

Shopping tours Specialised shopping tours offer an introduction to selected souks and major shopping areas in Dubai and nearby Sharjah. Such tours are especially attractive to visitors with limited time to organise their own shopping expeditions.

Creek tours An imaginative way of seeing Dubai is to take a tour of the Creek by traditional wooden dhow or carbin cruiser. Most of the major landmarks can be seen from the waterway. Daytime or evening cruises are available with food and beverages on board.

Desert safarisNo visit to Dubai would be complete without a trip into the desert. Such excursions which are best organised as part of a group tour, offer a taste of the true heartland of Arabia.The majesty and tranquility of the desert can be experienced in a choice of exciting half-day, full-day and overnight safaris. These action-packed trips cover varied terrain ranging from desert to mountain and take in remote camel and goat farms and isolated villages. Highlights of a safari in Dubai may include the following.

Dune driving Driving in sand is an adventure in itself, combining the excitement of a roller-coaster ride with the challenge of remaining mobile on the shifting surface. Courses in sand driving are available, with four-wheel-drive vehicles provided along with expert instruction.

Exploring the wadis A popular pastime with both residents and visitors is known as wadi-bashing – exploring the wadis or dry beds of streams that flow after the winter rains from the Hajar mountains. Many wadis offer scenes of unexpected beauty: attractive rock pools, some with water year-round, surrounded by greenery. Four-wheel-drive vehicles are required and are available for hire with or without drivers.

Sand-skiing Those with a taste for speed and enthusiasm for an unusual sport will enjoy sand skiing down the dunes of the Dubai desert. Special skis are used and high dunes in the interior of the desert are chosen as slopes. Sand-skiing can be arranged on request or as part of a full-day or half-day safari.

Camel ridingThe camel, a symbol of Arabia, is also a major tourist attraction. Camel rides are part of some tours and desert safaris. Tour operators and hotels can also arrange camel rides separately.

Desert feasts Particularly popular are safaris that culminate in the evening with spectacular sunset views followed by a traditional Arabian barbecue under the stars. These can be tailored to meet every taste from a romantic and peaceful experience to elaborate fun-packed evenings complete with music, belly- dancing, the smoking of hubble-bubble pipes and often a display of falconry.

Bedouin village Some local tour operators offer the opportunity to visit a Bedouin village outside Dubai. This provides an experience of the traditional desert way of life and may include camel riding lessons.

Camel racing A trip to the camel races, which take place on Thursdays and Fridays during the winter months, can be one of the most memorable highlights of any visit to Dubai.

At the racetrack on the fringe of the city, the races are vigorous and exciting and a village fair atmosphere prevails around the track with vendors offering blankets, rugs, beads and a variety of other rural wares spread on the ground. Owners urge jockeys on the finish line while trainers speedily follow the races in the four-wheel drives which plough through the dust of the inside track. The atmosphere is contagious!

Horse racing The sport of kings has rapidly become Dubai’s most popular spectator event, attracting crowds of over 15,000.Race meetings are held weekly during the cooler months at one of the UAE’s four racecourses. Dubai Racing Club, at Nad Al Sheba, the country’s largest and most spectacular track and home to the Dubai World Cup – the sport’s richest race – also holds meetings at night under floodlights. There is no gambling, but popular free raffles offer attractive sums of money as prizes.

Dubai by air Visitors with a head for heights and a weakness for the dramatic, can enjoy the excitement of a helicopter tour over the city.

Hatta One hour’s drive from Dubai city is the ancient fortress village of Hatta, home of the Hatta Fort Hotel, Dubai’s only mountain resort complex. The drive is an fascinating as the destination itself, taking the visitor through burnished sand dunes and mountains varied in colour. Tours cover the recently renovated old fort and a trip through Wadi Hatta with its lush greenery and diverse wildlife. The village, which is more than 200 years old, and Juma Mosque, which stands amid palm groves, are other tourist attractions.

Birdwatching tours With nearly 400 species of birds observed in the emirate, Dubai attracts many birdwatchers. Customised birdwatching tours range from a day or two to a week or more, and take in the full range of landscapes, from parks and golf clubs, to desert, mountain and Creek.