Driving in Dubai: Advice & Tips
Drive on the right-hand side in Dubai. The country has an impressive network of first-class roads connecting all parts of the city and surrounding are...
Find out more about driving in Dubai
Other places to visit in Dubai
Jumeirah is a beautiful district of Dubai known for its diverse range of inhabitants from Europeans to Pakistanis to Filipinos. Top attractions here a...
Popular tourist destinations to visit in Dubai
History of Dubai
Nomadic cattle herders were the first human settlers in Dubai in approximately 3000 BC. The first evidence of the land being used for agricultural purposes in Dubai comes from the period when Date Palm trees began to be grown locally around 2500 B.C. Islam was introduced to the country by the Umayyad Caliphate in the 7th century A.D. and this has been the religion of the country ever since. The Ummayads were the first Muslim dynasty of the world and their arrival in Dubai heralded a period of revitalization of the country by opening up old trade routes, supported by activities like fishing and pearl diving.
In 1833, Dubai was established as a separate sheikhdom. Oil was discovered in Dubai in 1966 and this event changed the fate of the country to what it is today – a vibrant, ever progressive business centre. The UAE dirham, which is the uniform currency of the UAE, was introduced in 1973. The influx of global companies in Dubai that we see today was started by the establishment of duty free policy in the Jebel Ali Free Zone, introduced in 1979, providing companies with unrestricted import of labor and export of capital.
There are numerous places of historical significance in Dubai and it is best for tourists to hire a car in Dubai to visit these. The Heritage and Diving Village, located in the Shindagha district is a living museum that offers an insight into the traditional lifestyle in the Dubai emirate. Entry here is free and you can buy interesting artifacts at the museum shop. Right beside this village is the Sheikh Saeed Al Maktoum House. Built in 1896, this museum displays some very rare photographs, coins, stamps and other memorabilia of the Al Maktoum family. Bayt Al-Wakeel is a historically significant building in Old Dubai and it served as the first location for import and export in the early years of the emirate. The Grand Mosque, Jumeirah Mosque and Dubai Museum are other historical landmarks of the country.
The geography of Dubai
Dubai is located to the south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula. Dubai has the second largest land territory area-wise in the UAE after Abu-Dhabi. This country lies directly within the Arabian Desert. In the south, the border of Dubai is aligned with Abu-Dhabi, in the northeast with Sharjah and in the southeast with the Sultanate of Dubai Oman. The Creek, which is a natural inlet in the Persian Gulf, divides Dubai city into two parts. It is an interesting geographical feature of Dubai. The geographical location of Dubai is such that it facilitates easy connectivity to all neighboring Gulf States, as well as South Asia and East Africa by sea or land. The landscape of the country is dominated by desert with extensive sand dunes, oases, and dry river beds. Look for a cheap car hire in Dubai and enjoy its spectacular sights like the range of mountains close to the Gulf of Oman, many offshore islands, coral reefs and salt marshes.
Weather in Dubai
There’s nothing surprising about Dubai’s weather. It is desert land and it has a hot arid climate. Experts say it is best to stay away from Dubai in the hot summer months but go if you must at that time, hire a car in Dubai to save yourself from heat stroke. In the months from June to September, mid-day temperatures reach as high as 42°C-45°C and sometimes even 48°C! In night, temperatures usually dip in the range of 30s°C but the humidity rises, again making things quite uncomfortable. Throughout the year most days here are hot and sunny, though that isn’t much of a problem to the visitors as they are likely to spend most of their time indoors in efficient air-cooled surroundings. A better time to go to Dubai is between December and March as the weather is much more tolerable with daytime temperatures ranging between 22°C and 30°C. The winter season is a short one in Dubai with an average high of 23°C and overnight lows of 14°C. As for rains, it again won’t be much surprising to note that there is no particular rainy season in Dubai. It can rain even in summers though the period between January to March has the most rainfall days.