Dubai is a fascinating city that creates buzz in the Middle East for its new world offerings in an old world backdrop. With cheap tickets to Dubai and year-round warm weather, you might want to find out what makes Dubai a “must-see” destination. If you’d like to see for yourself – these photographs are a good starting point.

Dubai Gold Souk

If you've heard the phrase “all that glitters is not gold,” maybe you haven't been to Dubai yet. All jokes aside, Gold Souk's or markets are the place where you can find cheap gold. Bring your haggling skills along as you awe the shiny medals, platinum and diamonds that make you say "Ooh." and "Ahh". The bright and warm colors stand out in the simple markets and shine in the hot Dubai sun.

Burj Al Arab

Anyone who has seen photographs of Dubai has noticed the Burj Al Arab, even if you don't know it by name. This luxury hotel is the 4th tallest in the world and stands alone on an artificial island. The building looks like a ship and is "said" to be the world's only 7-star hotel. Whether or not you believe it, the building itself is quintessential to the Dubai skyline. We can only imagine how beautiful it looks on the inside of this luxury hotel.

Dubai Museum

While Dubai is getting so much attention for its modern marvels, we cannot forget about the historical beauties preserved inside. The Dubai Museum; located in the Al Fahidi Fort is the oldest building in Dubai. Built in 1787, the fort was used to guard against local raids from other tribes. It is the remains of the former city walls and the museum is designed around this fortification with exhibits and galleries of artifacts from old Dubai.

Man-Made Islands

If you didn't know, another oddity that makes Dubai famous are the Palm Islands. These artificial islands off the Persian Gulf were created to resemble a palm tree. These settlements house luxury hotels, apartments, restaurants and other interesting amenities. What is truly amazing is how it looks from above; this gorgeous strip of land that stands out. The best way to see it is by a helicopter or sea plane ride, or you can view it by daylight from the Observatory of nearby hotels.

Sand Dunes

Though Dubai has successfully developed itself as a city, we cannot forget the original geography of this land. Its location in the Arabian Desert makes it an excellent place to site golden sand dunes. It’s a grand opportunity to go beyond the city limits and to enjoy nature by sand boarding, going on a desert safari, or simply capturing photographs of a timeless shot of an Arabian sunset.

 

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Photo creidt: Jackie L. Chan