Hi everyone, my parents, sister, brother-in-law, and I visited the UAE in October 2023 for 7 nights, and it felt like the perfect place to take your Indian parents. Indian food was easily available, many people spoke Hindi, there were lots of places to just sit and see without actually putting in a lot of effort. The flights are short unlike to the Americas or Europe, no interview is required for a visa, and best of all, the place caters to all budget segments.

Our Itinerary

	When Awake
22nd Oct, Monday	Flew in UAE & Dubai Mall
23rd Oct, Tuesday	Gold Souk, Aya & Desert Safari
24th Oct, Wednesday	Miracle Garden, Mall of Emirates & Top Golf
25th Oct, Thursday	Abu Dhabi – Mosque & Ferrari World
26th Oct, Friday	Atmosphere (Burj Khalifa) & Dubai Mall
27th Oct, Saturday	Aqua fun Water Park & Global Village
28th Oct, Sunday	Museum of the Future & the Atlantis
29th Oct, Monday	Return to India

About UAE

The UAE is made up of 7 Emirates, with Abu Dhabi being the largest and Dubai being the most famous. These 7 Emirates are ruled by 7 families, and by default, the ruler of the largest emirate, Abu Dhabi, also becomes the ruler of the country.

Islam is the official religion of the country, and all (or most) of its citizens are Muslims. However, with the country becoming a hotspot for globalization, residents come from various countries and faiths. As a result, traditional and orthodox Islamic practices are not enforced on tourists or residents. One can wear anything, move around freely, take part in all activities, and believe in whatever they want, as long as it doesn’t interfere with Islamic practices. Sadly, homosexual acts are denounced, and public displays of homosexual affection can lead to legal trouble. However, what people do privately is generally not a concern.

The country is highly developed in terms of infrastructure, safety, tourism, and connectivity. It is considered very safe in terms of both molestation and mugging. Women can move around alone safely at any hour of the day.

Although Arabic is the official language, English is also taught in schools, and most people you meet will be fluent in it. Additionally, with a significant number of Pakistani and Indian immigrants, the penetration of Hindi and Urdu is also quite good.

The UAE is an expensive country, at least 2.5 times more costly than India in PPP terms. Places like the Burj Al Arab or Atlantis The Royal can cost upwards of a lakh rupees per night, but there are also more affordable options, especially in the Bur Dubai area. Bur Dubai is often regarded as an Indian-Pakistani neighborhood with multiple Indian restaurants, Hindi and Urdu-speaking staff, numerous budget hotels, and India-friendly markets.

The temperature in Dubai is scorching year-round, with some respite from December to February. November and March are shoulder months when the weather is somewhat pleasant as well. Although there is air conditioning everywhere indoors and in taxis, being outdoors during the day can be very tough. The evenings are much more pleasant.

Visa

Indians do need a pre-arranged visitor visa to enter the UAE, which costs around $100 per person. Unlike the Schengen visa, you are not required to submit many additional documents unless specifically requested. You will need your passport, a photograph, flight tickets, and a completed application form. The process is online, and the visa takes about 3-5 working days to be issued.

However, if you have an active US visa or a US or European residence card, you are pre-approved for a UAE visa on arrival.

Cost of the Trip

	Cost (INR)	Comments
Flights	30,000	Air India DEL-DXB Indigo DXB-BOM-BLR
Visa	8,000	e-visa MMT
Stay	55,000	The Canvas MGallery (4N) JW Marriott Marquis (3N)
Local Taxi	2,000	Total expense divided by 5 pax Airport trf/ Abu Dhabi trf not taken
Experiences	35,000	Top Golf, Desert Safari, Aya, Aquafun, Miracle Garden, Abu Dhabi Tour
Food	18,000	Includes a lunch at the Atmosphere, all breakfasts were free
Shopping	2,000	Dates, Nuts, Souvenirs
Total	1,50,000

Parento-Meter

On a scale from Very Low to Very High, I have rated places based on factors that Indian parents often consider. I acknowledge that this involves some stereotyping, but it could be helpful for many parents I know.

	Walking	Visual Appeal	Participation Required	Indian Food
Aya	Low	Very High	Very Low	Low
Desert Safari	Very Low	High	Low	Very High
Top Golf	Very Low	High	Mid	Mid
Aqua Fun (Beach)	Mid	Mid	Very High	Low
Global Village	Very High	High	Low	High
Abu Dhabi Mosque	High	High	Very Low	Low
Ferrari World	High	Mid	Very High	High
Miracle Garden	Very High	Very High	Very Low	Low
Atmosphere (Burj Khalifa)	Very Low	High	Very Low	Very Low

Our 8D7N Itinerary

22nd October, Monday

We all took the Air India day flight from Delhi to Dubai and reached Dubai around noon. DXB has multiple terminals. Had we taken Emirates, we would have landed in a much grander terminal of the same airport.

Nevertheless, there was a huge queue for immigration, and after about an hour, our turn came. We were just required to hand over our passports. The immigration officers have data against any pre-arranged visas and they stamp us in. No physical documents are needed. At the time, they were also handing out SIM cards from the telecom provider ‘du.’ The pack included a free SIM with 1GB of data, valid for only one day once activated. Data is quite expensive in Dubai. After using the 1GB for one day, one can go to their website to buy a top-up. The network is pretty good, like all others.

We had an airport transfer booked, which dropped us at our hotel—The Canvas MGallery Hotel in Bur Dubai. It is a nice hotel with spacious rooms, modern amenities, and a nice spread of breakfast. We would spend four nights here. We were quite hungry and decided to have lunch at a restaurant in the hotel. The restaurant happens to be by the famous chef Sanjeev Kapoor and is called Signature by Sanjeev Kapoor. We found it to be overpriced and nothing special. After lunch, we headed to our rooms and got ready to head out for the evening.

We used Careem in most places as it was cheaper than Uber. We booked a Careem to The Dubai Mall. The mall was huge with hundreds of shops, but all the brands there seemed to be very high-end. I got a feeling that even Zara was more expensive than Zara in other places. The people in the Dubai Mall looked so inheritance-rich, people who wouldn’t have worked a day in their lives but were super attractive and super loaded. The top floor has many outlets selling electronics, the relative budget brands would be Banana Republic, H&M and Zara, there is a Cheesecake Factory and even a Bikanerwala inside the mall. The mall has a huge aquarium that is open to all public, though it has a paid section too.

Later, we went to see The Fountain Show that happens between the Dubai Mall and the Burj Khalifa (both structures are right next to each other). It is good but not great. It keeps happening every evening at regular intervals. There is no fee for it.

We were quite tired after all the travel and walking 10,000 steps in the huge mall. We headed back to Bur Dubai and had dinner at a restaurant next to our hotel. The food was very tasty and affordable.

On a scale of -5 to +5, I will rate The MGallery Canvas Hotel a +3, Signature by Sanjeev Kapoor a -2, Dubai Mall a +3 and the Fountain Show a +1.

23rd October, Tuesday

We started the day by booking us a Careem for The Aya Experience. Aya is an artificial light-sound environment with multiple rooms and effects. It is located inside a mall and is quite close to Bur Dubai. The chambers create fascinating patterns and illusions. The place requires little to no physical exertion and is perfect for a day out with parents.

From here, we headed to a Lebanese restaurant to try some hummus and falafel, but to our disappointment, the food was really bad. After this disappointing lunch, it was time to head for the desert safari.

We had booked a private experience, and our cab driver came to pick us up at the restaurant. The dunes are about an hour away from Dubai. We reached the place and decided to start the dunes experience with quad biking. It was a lot of fun. I would suggest everyone try it. It was 150 AED per person for about 30 minutes.

From here, we sat back in our car, and the driver showed his skills in driving across the dunes. The sand-bashing experience felt really safe. It was somewhat thrilling when the car tilted on one side while speeding through the sand. It is also a parent-safe experience. The experience lasts for about 15-20 minutes.

We headed for dinner cum show amidst the desert after the safari. There are numerous setups, all offering similar packages. The package includes a courtyard-type setup with no roof, a skilled belly-dancer and a fire show entertainer, buffet meals (with lots of Indian vegetarian options as well), and paid shisha and alcoholic beverage stations. The entertainers at our setup were quite skilled, and it was an entertaining show. The food was decent. We headed back to our hotel and called it a night.

On a scale of -5 to +5, I would rate Aya a +2, Quad Biking in the Dunes a +4, Sand Bashing a +3 and Dinner cum Show a +2.

24th October, Wednesday

We got ready, had a good breakfast, and then booked a Careem to go to the Miracle Garden. It is quite far from Bur Dubai. It was a hot day with the sun blasting straight above our heads. Miracle Garden is a landscaping delight; it is a huge place that has been cultivated and curated into a garden where one would want to get pictures clicked at every second step. It takes about an hour to 90 minutes to cover the whole place on foot. It is a place that I would never go to with my friends or cousins, but parents will definitely like it.

From here, we headed to the Mall of the Emirates and had lunch. They have an indoor snow world with sledges and slides. It looks quite cute and fun, but we decided to skip it as our parents wouldn’t have done much inside. We, the children, ate lunch at The Cheesecake Factory while our parents sat at an Indian restaurant. It was now time to leave for our next booked activity.

A pre-booked car arrived to pick us up for Top Golf. It was quite close to the Mall of the Emirates. We arrived and got a slot with an hour’s wait. There is a good enough arcade downstairs at the same place. We spent the hour there. Then, it was time for our Top-Golf session. Up to six people can play from one stand. Food and drinks can be ordered there itself. This was the first time golfing for all of us, and it was much more difficult than we had imagined. Regardless, it was a lot of fun. Our parents thoroughly enjoyed it too.

On a scale of -5 to +5, I would rate The Miracle Garden a +1.5, The Mall of Emirates a +0.5, The Cheesecake Factory a +1, Top Golf a +3 and the arcade below it a +1.

25th October, Thursday

The day started with the usual routine of bathing and having breakfast at the hotel. A car came to pick us up for our Abu Dhabi tour. We headed to the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. The journey from Dubai to Abu Dhabi takes a little more than an hour, but the roads are so smooth and traffic-free.

The mosque is huge and beautiful. The complex leading to the mosque is a long path designed to manage a large influx of visitors. There are caddies and travelators to assist as well. It took about 2-2.5 hours from car park to car park. By then, it was lunchtime, and we were very hungry. We decided to eat lunch at the Ferrari World.

Ferrari World is an amusement park with all rides powered by Ferrari engines. They boast of the world’s fastest roller coaster, in addition to 50 other slow and fast rides. The amusement park is part of a bigger complex, half of which is a mall. We ate lunch at one of the restaurants in the mall.

Formula Rossa is the name of the fastest roller coaster, and the queue had a waiting time of about 100 minutes! There are other roller coasters like Flying Aces and Mission Ferrari, which are thrilling too, with wait times of about 30-60 minutes each. So, you end up spending hours in the queues. There is a fast track ticket option if one wants to pay that extra premium.

Ferrari World is not a very family-friendly place as most parents won’t ride the high-thrill rides it is known for. Nevertheless, they enjoyed the simpler merry-go-round rides and taking pictures with Ferrari cars all around.

We returned to Bur Dubai and went to Rasoi Ghar for dinner.

On a scale of -5 to +5, I would rate the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque a +3.5, The Ferrari World a +2.

26th October, Friday

It was check-out day from the Canvas MGallery Hotel and check-in day at the JW Marquis Marriott Hotel. October 26th happens to be my sister’s and my birthday. Yes, we are twins. We decided to spend the first half of the day moving hotels and then had made a reservation at The Atmosphere restaurant in Burj Khalifa.

As you may already know, Burj Khalifa is the tallest building in the world. Its skydeck, “At the Top,” is on the 124th and 125th floors, and the restaurant “Atmosphere” occupies the 122nd and 123rd floors of the building. I don’t know why people go to “At the Top” paying around Rs 5,000 per person just for the view. Instead, they can come and eat food and get the same view 2 storeys down. Atmosphere has a minimum spend rule depending on the seat, time of the day, and time of the year. On October 26th, for a non-window seat at lunchtime, it was 250 AED or Rs 5700 per person. Since it was our birthday, they got us a small cake too.

We are vegetarians, so we were limited by the few options available on the menu. We ordered one of everything, and poof, 250 x 5 = 1,250 AED were spent. The presentation was excellent, but the taste was not so impressive. The view was good, but I feel we get this view every time a plane lands or takes off—no wow factor.

We had kept the day free. We headed to the Dubai Mall again in the evening and spent our time there. We shopped a bit and then had dinner in the mall. We went back to our hotel and slept.

On a scale of -5 to +5, I would rate the JW Marquis Marriott Hotel a +3.5, Burj Khalifa and its view a +2, The Atmosphere Restaurant a +2.

27th October, Saturday

We had breakfast and then headed to the Marina Beach to go to Aqua Fun Water Park. It is a floating amusement park with many slides, challenges, and things to jump around on. Even if you fall, you fall into the water, so no one gets hurt. The rides are quite physically demanding, and an adult needs to have basic fitness to partake in them. It’s a plus if you can swim as it removes the fear of falling into the water.

It was too strenuous for our parents to participate in, so they rented two sunbeds on the beach and ordered some food and beverages. There is a paid shower and towel facility available as well at the venue, so one need not carry them from their hotel. From there, we went to a restaurant for lunch and then crashed at our hotel.

Later in the day, we booked us an Uber for 165 AED to go to Global Village. Global Village is somewhat remote, which is why a lot of taxis don’t accept the booking and Uber charges handsomely. Global Village has pavilions of multiple countries, each decorated in a very grand manner, selling food and merchandise native to that place. The place is a temporary setup on a large ground. It starts in October and goes on beyond January. It is like a huge trade fair—a global trade fair.

I decided to meet a few friends working in Dubai for dinner. We went to a restaurant near the Dubai Mall called Navat. It was decent for vegetarians. They have teddy bears on each seat, which was unique. We then headed to the dessert outlet called Leto, famous for its Tres Leches in the Dubai Mall. It had egg, so I ordered an eggless dessert for myself.

On a scale of -5 to +5, I will rate Aqua Fun Water Park a +1.5, The Global Village a +4, Navat a +0 and Leto a +2.

28th October, Saturday

Today was a relaxed day. We had decided to take our time getting ready, enjoyed the hotel’s breakfast, and then headed to the Museum of the Future. It is on Sheikh Zayed Road and one cannot miss it when visiting Dubai. The structure is truly iconic. We hadn’t pre-booked, and to our unfortunate surprise, it was sold out not only for the day but also for the next 10 days. So, my advice would be to pre-plan the visit and book tickets in advance.

We had planned to spend the first half of the day there, but since we had this newfound time, we decided to head to The Atlantis Palm. Honestly, we just thought of seeing one of the most popular hotels in Dubai. There is an aquarium, a horror house, the Aquaventure water park, and some shops. We strolled around the area and then headed back for lunch.

In the evening, we decided to stroll around the hotel and then went to Punjab Grill for dinner. The food was terrific; I highly recommend going there. My sister and brother-in-law decided to explore the rooftop bar and one of the many restaurants at the JW Marquis Marriott. They spoke highly of both places.

On a scale of -5 to +5, I would rate the Museum of the Future (facade & lobby) a +3, Punjab Grill’s food a +3.5 and will not rate the Atlantis Palm as we didn’t take part in anything.

29th October, Sunday

I had my return flight quite early. I left for the airport, bidding adieu to the UAE.

Other Places that People visit

While doing my research on places to visit in UAE, I had come across a few other options too but then chose not to visit them for one reason of the other. Some popular ones are Dubai Frame (please skip, it’s just a frame), Gold Souk, Aquaventure Water Park (Atlantis Palm), Warner Bros (Abu Dhabi), The View at the Palm and beaches in Dubai.