I visited Dubai in February 2023 with my husband and my preschooler son, and it was EPIC! Dubai is a wonderful destination for families. There’s so many amazing attractions in Dubai, I hope my recommendations will help you narrow them down when planning your itinerary. There’s just too many things to do and see and not enough time!

WEATHER AND CLOTHING: The weather in late February was PERFECT, not too hot and not too cold (25C/77F during the day and 20C/68F at night). I was in summer dresses the whole week and took a scarf/shawl for the breezy evenings. My husband and son were in t-shirts and shorts during the day but needed a light hoodie/jacket for the evening. I highly recommend visiting from December to February, as it is the best time to visit for folks who don’t like being too hot.

GETTING AROUND IN DUBAI: We’re very independent and active vacationers so we rented a car. It was the best choice for us because we had so much freedom to go everywhere we wanted, including a day trip to Abu Dhabi, which was absolutely amazing! I would say if you’re used to the level of aggressive driving and traffic in larger cities in the U.S., you will be fine driving in Dubai yourself. All the signs are in English and Arabic. Plus gas is cheap and parking is free at most malls. Even street parking is free or low cost in most cases. Only US$50 a day for renting a new Peugeot SUV to go wherever whenever you please without relying on taxis or others. Can’t get more liberating than that 😉 We saw long lines for taxis at certain attractions like the Dubai Mall and the Miracle Garden so we were very happy that we had our own car instead of having to wait in those lines.

ATTRACTIONS AND DISAPPOINTMENTS: Ironically, the attractions that we paid the most for (Dubai Aquarium, Lost Chambers Aquarium at the Palm Atlantis, Museum of the Future) were the most disappointing for us. Perhaps because our expectations were higher for those, but the cost to value ratio were so off 😅 Lost Chambers cost almost US$100 for 2 adults and a child and it was really small!! It took us only 30 minutes to get through it. Same with Dubai Aquarium – it was like US$150 for the 3 of us and it really wasn’t that big inside. The most impressive thing in it was the gigantic fish tank that you can view for free from inside the Dubai Mall 🥴 Museum of the Future was about US$40 per person and most of the interactive displays weren’t even functional…Felt pretty ripped off by that.

THE WINNERS:

My preschooler son ADORED the BUTTERFLY GARDEN, which is right next to Dubai Miracle Garden and owned by the same company. I think it’s often overlooked by most visitors but I thought it offered such an intimate experience for butterfly lovers. You cannot touch their wings obviously because it would destroy them but if they choose to land on you (and they will because there’s so many of them) you can let them crawl onto your hand and take really cool pictures. Go to the Butterfly Garden first because it closes early at 6pm, and then to the MIRACLE GARDEN because it opens late and you can take magical pictures at dusk. And then to top the night off, we went to the nearby GLOBAL VILLAGE. This place was so huge, filled with numerous international food and shopping options, plus free shows for people of all ages! There’s a children’s theater plus other performance stages throughout. You can spend the entire evening there and not get bored😎 Very cheap to get in and it also stays open very late.

Another must I would recommend is a day trip to Abu Dhabi. We went to the Louvre, Corniche Beach and Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. The architecture of both the Louvre and the Grand Mosque were stunning, and Corniche Beach was really serene and beautiful. The Grand Mosque opens late until 10pm and it was the most magnificent mosque I had ever seen (aside from Hagia Sophia in Istanbul). Everything was gleaming in white marble and colored marble inlays, an indescribable fragrance of roses and incense were emanating throughout the place, I have never experienced anything like that 🌹 It’s not as crowded at night and gorgeous when lit up. And it’s free!!

Desert Safari: I was a bit apprehensive about this with a young child but we had so much fun. I never knew that the desert could be so beautiful. We really enjoyed the dune bashing, sand surfing, the dinner show, camel ride experience, etc.

La Mer vs. JBR (The Beach, Blue Waters): These are shopping and dining complexes at different beaches in Dubai. La Mer is very quiet and family-oriented, with good dining options and a movie theater. Most of their shops were closed for business though so I wouldn’t recommend it for shopping, but it was good for dining and chilling on the beach after. Also they have little cars that kids can rent and drive around (50 AED for 20 mins) and my son loved that. If you spend more than 100AED at any of the establishments at La Mer, they will validate your parking for 3 hours. Same at The Beach and Blue Waters at JBR but these are way more crowded and bustling nighttime hotspots, with hookah and sports lounges, blasting music and showing football games, etc. I found JBR area to be the most touristy and the prices definitely reflected that ($12 for bubble tea, etc.)

IF YOU HAVE EXTRA TIME: Visit the Old Dubai Historical district, take the cheap ferry (cash only) to cross Dubai Creek to Gold souk for a traditional Emirati experience 👍 Also Souk Medinat Jumeirah mall offered good photo ops with the canals, traditional souk architecture and the Burj Al Arab but it was too stuffy inside the mall itself and I didn’t like the dining options. No cafés or places to sit down even!

FOOD OPTIONS AND BUDGETING: The food options in Dubai were quite overwhelming in a good way. Basically you can find any cuisine you desire to fit any budget. As a family of 2.5, we found simple Pakistani breakfast at a casual eatery on the outskirts of town for just $10, a delicious lamb Biryani meal and Emirati breakfasts at traditional style restaurants for around $30-40, mid-range restaurants serving all kinds of international cuisine (we ate mostly Asian and Latin cuisine) for $60-80, and upscale dining with a full view of the Dubai Mall Fountain show and partial view of the Burj Khalifa for $200+.

Now to answer some of your burning Dubai travel questions~

Can you rent a car and drive yourself around in Dubai?

This is a question that I see all the time on Dubai travel forums and the resounding answer is YES!!! Despite what all the negative nellies say about aggressive drivers and traffic and whatnot, Dubai is perfectly driveable for drivers used to big city driving.

Is Dubai safe?

ABSOLUTELY! In fact, it’s one of the safest cities in the world. You don’t have worry about safety at all, not even petty crimes like pickpocketing. The only bad thing I heard about Dubai is cab drivers ripping you off (overcharging you). That’s it!

I hope this helps with planning the Dubai vacation of your dreams! Bon voyage 🤗❤️