Dubai

[Lauren Spray]

We´ll be in Dubai in early April where I anticipate hot and humid temperatures.  How should a woman dress to be mindful of the conservative culture, but comfortable in the heat.  Suggestions?

 

P.S. I do know heat and humidity.  We live in Mexico.  The summers...ugh!

 

Thanks.

[Skoobdo]

Just wear long sleeves and pants made of nylon or polyester, that keeps the sun off of you and that will wick the perspiration.

 

Contrary to what I see a lot of foreigners wear out here, which is sleeveless shirts and even shorts, those actually make you hotter.  Most locals  will not be exposing their skin to the hot sun.

 

I wear Columbia sportswear.  Pants and breathable long sleeve shirts.  Not all of them look like hiking clothes, but if you want to stay cooler that's what you need, or long polyester dresses with a cotton/nylon thin sweater to cover your arms. And definitely a hat, sunglasses and s scarf around your neck to again, wick.

 

I have more than 12 years of traveling/hiking/living and boondocking in desert states within the U. S. and otherwise.  Light airy clothing covering your skin is a must.  Good luck.

 

 

[sddsddean]

Skoobdo has given you practical advice. However, from a cultural point of view, the only place you need to be 'conservative' is when visiting places of worship...obviously mainly mosques in Dubai. Women should have covered arms and legs and a head covering (scarf etc) and to be honest, men should be covered up too. Anywhere else, you can more or less wear what you want. It seemed very odd to be walking round the malls and see ladies in full burka etc (with designer trainers poking out underneath!), alongside girls in shorts and halter neck tops which left little to the imagination!

 

Simon

[Lauren Spray]

Thanks for the practical advice.  I will keep it in mind when it is time to pack. 

 

About 10 years ago, or so, we were walking around the mall in Dubai.  The women were covered head to toe with only their eyes showing...but oh, how beautiful were their eyes.  Made up like Cleopatra.  They had sparkles on thir sleeves and carried designer purses...then they went in to Victoria´s Secret.  We got a kick out of that.  They also went into the high end jewelry stores and the sales people took them in to the back room and brought out the special jewelry from the vault.

[UK Cruiser2]

On 12/4/2019 at 11:11 AM, Gordoncruickshank said:

Thanks Anne

The cruise starts in Athens and, at the moment, BA is far cheaper than anywhere else. I have been checking using Skyscanner for a while. It may be because the low cost options will not have their schedules done that far in advance.

 

 

We live in Newcastle and Emirates fly daily to Dubai from here,

[Skoobdo]

6 hours ago, Lauren Spray said:

 We live in Mexico.  The summers...ugh!

What a coincidence, I'm from the U.S. but actually started living in Mexico February 2018.  You must live in a coastal town with low elevation.  In Mexico City, which is very high in altitude, it's basically the same temperature year round, which is why I moved there.  And the humidity is low.  

[Gordoncruickshank]

1 hour ago, UK Cruiser2 said:

We live in Newcastle and Emirates fly daily to Dubai from here,

We can do it to either Glasgow or Edinburgh but the one way cost for business is £4833 and we still need to get to Athens to pick up the cruise. 
 

I don’t know how the TA managed it but he got the flights at just over £3000 business all legs. The same flights on BA are over £10k.

[Jayayeff]

9 hours ago, Lauren Spray said:

We´ll be in Dubai in early April where I anticipate hot and humid temperatures.  How should a woman dress to be mindful of the conservative culture, but comfortable in the heat.  Suggestions?

 

P.S. I do know heat and humidity.  We live in Mexico.  The summers...ugh!

 

Thanks.

Unless the weather is unseasonably warm, it should  not be very hot or humid in early April, just dress as you would if you were in the Med during summer or in the Caribbean....The really hot weather usually starts from May onwards... As Simon and Skoobdo have already noted you only need to be dressed ultra conservatively if you are visiting a mosque or other Islamic centre, regular Western summer clothing is fine everywhere else...

 

Anne..

[Lauren Spray]

7 hours ago, Skoobdo said:

What a coincidence, I'm from the U.S. but actually started living in Mexico February 2018.  You must live in a coastal town with low elevation.  In Mexico City, which is very high in altitude, it's basically the same temperature year round, which is why I moved there.  And the humidity is low.  

Yes, we live in Puerto Vallarta.  But, we built a house at Lake Chapala and we spent our first summer there last year.  At 5,000 feet elevation, it was very pleasant during the summer.  Smart move on our part.  I have not been to Mexico City in 50 years.

 

[Tidalmist]

On 12/3/2019 at 2:26 PM, Gordoncruickshank said:

We are finishing a cruise in Dubai next November (starts in October in Athens) on Azamara and I have been looking at flights. Currently I have flights on hold for a week and I am trying to make my mind up if I want to stay a few days in Dubai or just head to the airport and get back to a fairly cold Scotland and get back to work. The cruise is 17 nights and we are travelling to Athens the day before. 

 

I suspect that a day or so is not going to make much difference but I need to make my mind up by the 11th for the flights. I am tending towards just heading home from the ship as we will have been away for nearly 3 weeks by then.

 

Any view to help clear the mist would help! 

Just read your information. We sailed on Azamara 2 years ago, Athens to Dubai, and I have to say it was one of our very best cruises. Should you like more info. Please let me know. I would be more than happy to help. By the way,we did stay a few days after the cruise and loved it so much we are returning in April!

[Skoobdo]

Public announcement:

 

Dubai Cruise Port Terminals (DP World), has stopped all of their cruise port staff from traveling to China, due to the CoronaVirus with a few exceptions.

 

http://Coronavirus outbreak: DP World suspends staff travel to China https://www.khaleejtimes.com/business/local/coronavirus-outbreak-dp-world-suspends-staff-travel-to-china

Edited January 28, 2020 by Skoobdo
spelling

[Skoobdo]

2nd try.... hopefully this link works.

 

https://m.khaleejtimes.com/business/local/coronavirus-outbreak-dp-world-suspends-staff-travel-to-china

[BSR]

On 1/21/2020 at 9:15 AM, Tidalmist said:

Just read your information. We sailed on Azamara 2 years ago, Athens to Dubai, and I have to say it was one of our very best cruises. Should you like more info. Please let me know. I would be more than happy to help. By the way,we did stay a few days after the cruise and loved it so much we are returning in April!

Can you recommend a hotel in Dubai?

[Skoobdo]

The UAE just announced their first known CoronaVirus case today.  The individual flew in directly from Wuhan, China.  The UAE had not identified the city where this patient is being treated in the UAE nor did they mention when or which airline they flew in on.

[Skoobdo]

To Anne:

 

I just want to thank you again for recommending the Al Seef Heritage Hotel!

 

I checked in this morning for my 20 night stay, and OMG it's just fabulous. I have to say this is the best hotel (villa), I've ever stay in. And I've stayed at a lot of places from motels to 5 star hotels, but this place reminds me of my youth. I have two balconies with creek and souk views.  Birdseye view of the band pavilion. Absolutely fantastic! Hats off to you. Excellent advice👍👍👍

[Jayayeff]

5 hours ago, Skoobdo said:

To Anne:

 

I just want to thank you again for recommending the Al Seef Heritage Hotel!

 

I checked in this morning for my 20 night stay, and OMG it's just fabulous. I have to say this is the best hotel (villa), I've ever stay in. And I've stayed at a lot of places from motels to 5 star hotels, but this place reminds me of my youth. I have two balconies with creek and souk views.  Birdseye view of the band pavilion. Absolutely fantastic! Hats off to you. Excellent advice👍👍👍

It’s certainly ‘different’.. However, I hope the room you have is quieter than the one I had when I spent a weekend there last year.  Mine overlooked one of the souk alleys and there was a shop opposite that sold ‘antiques’, one of which was a very scratchy record player, that the shop owner played well into the night!!!!  😱🤣😱🤣

 

Anne...

[Lauren Spray]

Question for Anne..

 

Besides the Gold and Spice souks, what other souks are open in the evening in Dubai?  Karama?  Deira?  I read that Deira is supposed to be the largest night market (is this the right word?), but I can´t confirm that it is open.  Thank you.  I appreciate all information that you have previously posted.  It has been very helpful in planning.

[Tidalmist]

On 1/28/2020 at 4:32 PM, BSR said:

Can you recommend a hotel in Dubai?

We stayed at the Marriott Al Jaddif and loved it! We were on the executive floor with access to the lounge included. They have a shuttle bus to the Dubai Mall. Overall it was great value for the money!

[BSR]

16 hours ago, Tidalmist said:

We stayed at the Marriott Al Jaddif and loved it! We were on the executive floor with access to the lounge included. They have a shuttle bus to the Dubai Mall. Overall it was great value for the money!

Thanks.  I will look at the Marriott.

[Jayayeff]

On 2/1/2020 at 10:12 PM, Lauren Spray said:

Question for Anne..

 

Besides the Gold and Spice souks, what other souks are open in the evening in Dubai?  Karama?  Deira?  I read that Deira is supposed to be the largest night market (is this the right word?), but I can´t confirm that it is open.  Thank you.  I appreciate all information that you have previously posted.  It has been very helpful in planning.

Sorry for late reply - I have been away on a cruise around the Seychelles!!!    Other than offices, banks etc.. all markets, malls etc are open until late in the evening, as are many of the leisure parks.... 
 

Anne...

[Lauren Spray]

Thanks for the reply, Anne.  I hope you enjoyed your cruise.