10 new reasons to visit Dubai…again

If you were to choose a word to describe Dubai, it has to be “fast.” The way the city and its skyline changes, how things get built as if they were just stacking Legos that reach the skies (the floating bridge connecting old and new Dubai was finished in three months) — all these are reasons why Dubai keeps its tourism industry going.

You may think you’ve seen all of Dubai, but you haven’t. It’s just not possible because there’s always something new.

Superjet Worldwide Tours, which offers customized itineraries to Filipino travelers to Dubai and represented in the Philippines by Destinations Unlimited, recently revealed special packages that include new attractions suited to families.

Superjet managing director Masiuddin “Masi” Mohammed says, “This is the best time to visit Dubai, from November to March, because the weather is cool. In the daytime, it’s from 20 to 27; at night it’s below 20, so you can spend all day out in the theme parks.”

The second word to describe Dubai has to be “flash. “And this is the Dubai we all know — home to the tallest building in the world, Burj Khalifa, to Burj al Arab with its billowing sail silhouette and gilded interiors on the Persian Gulf, the Mall of Dubai with its designer labels, and the gold and spice souks for that authentic Middle East shopping experience.

Flash finds its way even to the desert safari or dune bashing (80 percent of the Emirate of Dubai is still desert). On our own dune bashing on Land Cruiser SUVs, we spotted some Hummers at the pit stop. 

Dune bashing is a mainstay in Superjet’s itineraries and for good reason — it’s a fun activity that’ll have you screaming and giggling as the vehicles slam the sand dunes. This activity is scheduled in time to catch the sunset in the middle of the desert and later to see the stars in a camp for an Arabian dinner.

Would you believe that this year, from January to September alone, Dubai received almost 11 million tourists? Yes, that many tourists for the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, one of seven in the UAE. And the Philippines ranked No. 11 in tourist arrivals.

One reason may be because Dubai has become very affordable, especially with Superjet and Philippine Airlines working together on the airfare and tours.

Masi says, “For just a little bit more airfare than Bangkok, Malaysia or Singapore, Filipinos can go to Dubai. Dubai is cheaper than Singapore sometimes especially for land arrangements. You can go to Singapore two or three times for tourism, but Dubai you can go five to 10 times because every year there are new attractions.”

Here are some of them.

1. Dubai Parks & Resorts. Dubai is remaking itself as the world’s largest entertainment destination especially for families.

The newly opened Dubai Parks & Resorts is composed of three theme parks and one water park. Legoland Dubai features over 40 Lego-themed rides, shows and building experiences. There are 15,000 Lego models and over 60 million Lego bricks used.

Motiongate Dubai is the Middle East’s largest Hollywood-inspired theme park offering a journey into the world of film. Bollywood Parks features everything Bollywood, from rides to shopping, food and live shows. Legoland Waterpark has a wave pool and 20 Lego-themed slides for kids ages two to 12.

Connecting the theme parks is Riverland Dubai, situated in the heart of the resort, and featuring four zones — the French Village, Boardwalk, India Gate and The Peninsula. Riverland has a one-kilometer waterfront and more than 50 restaurants and shops.

Maria Rowena Javier, Superjet business development manager, says that to make the most of the theme parks, it’s best for families to spend two nights at the 500-room Lapita Hotel (operated by Marriott) inside the resort and another two or three nights in a city hotel or serviced apartment.

“Make the kids happy first, otherwise they won’t stop bugging you when you’re in the city shopping,” says Masi with a laugh.   

2. IMG Worlds of Adventure. The world’s largest indoor theme park features four adventures — Lost Valley Dinosaur, Cartoon Network, IMG Boulevard and Marvel with their own gravity-defying rides, superhero attractions and shopping arcades, but there is one attraction that you must not miss even though you will want to skip it.

It’s the Haunted Hotel. Our fun and fabulous tour guide Marivin Aviles of Superjet says she’s been there four times and every time, she screams and gets scared out of her wits.

The Haunted Hotel is staffed by gruesome characters in full ghost, ghoul, zombie and butcher makeup who jump out of the shadows and corridors. They won’t touch you, but they will scare the hell out of you. The scariest section for me was the morgue-cum-anatomy lab (don’t ask why there’s one in a hotel). There are bloody corpses and body parts on tables, corpses hanging from the ceiling. And then….someone gets up from the table with a meat cleaver and comes at you.

In the Haunted Hotel’s lobby they will separate you into groups of three or four. What’s funny is that in our group there are four of us and we’ve locked our arms to each other so were moving as one — and we couldn’t get through the doorways!

You will feel that you don’t want to do it when you’re there, but do it. It’s scary but it’s so much fun…after.

3. Global Village. Every year, Global Village attracts over five million visitors. It’s like the world coming together in a miniature park with entertainment (they have live shows every night) and shopping.

Masi says apart from the pavilions themselves, the main attraction is the shopping. Looking for a Turkish carpet? Tunisian food or French cheese? Imagine all the products in the countries represented — and you can buy them there.

4. Outlet Village. It’s another important “village” in Dubai that will have you screaming. This time with glee and this time in a Medieval Italian Village setting. Maria says all the designer and high street brands are here such as Armani, Lanvin, Gianfranco Ferre, Tommy Hilfiger and Adidas. In fact, even Galeries Lafayette L’Outlet is opening soon.

5. Mall shopping. Maria says that January is the best time to visit if you want to shop. “Dubai holds a month-long shopping festival from Jan. 8 to Feb. 8, and it’s a super sale — it’s 70-percent off and zero taxes.”

Everywhere? Yes, everywhere! Take your pick from Dubai’s top malls: Dubai Mall, which is worth a visit so you can watch the dancing fountains of Burj Khalifa every half an hour in the evening. But our group, composed of travel agents and owners, preferred the Mall of the Emirates — and the supermarket Carrefour for chocolate pasalubongs.

Other top malls in Dubai are Mercato Mall, Ibn Battuta, Wafi Mall,  Dubai Marina Mall, Dubai Outlet Mall, Burjuman Centre, and Dubai Festival City Mall. 

6. Abu Dhabi is just two hours away.The must-not-miss place to visit here is the Grand Mosque or Sheikh Zayed Mosque. In every sense of the word, it is grand — and breathtakingly beautiful. I thought the design is deceptively simple on the outside with its 82 white domes but once inside the courtyards and main hall, the materials show the massive wealth of the Abu Dhabi Emirate. (Abu Dhabi and Dubai are the only two with veto power among the seven emirates.)

The columns are inlaid with gold, semi-precious stones and mother-of-pearl. Inside the main prayer hall are seven chandeliers from Munich, Germany, with millions of Swarovski crystals; the carpet is the world’s largest, made by 1,200 carpet knotters.

The mosque can accommodate 40,000 worshippers. And if Dubai’s flash is visible in its skyscrapers, Abu Dhabi’s is reflected in the quiet spaces of the Grand Mosque.

7. Superjet itineraries and service. What makes Superjet different from other tour operators in Dubai is their personalized service and attention to detail. “We really take care of our travelers,” says Maria. “We go beyond customization. Let’s say our passengers want to experience one night in Burj al Arab and save on the other nights with a lower-category hotel,  we make the adjustment. Our tour guides go the extra mile to give exceptional service.”

I’ve been on many guided tours and it felt different being guided by a fellow Filipino abroad — it felt like being with a friend. Our tour guide Marivin Aviles was very knowledgeable about Dubai’s history and contemporary life, she was funny, firm with the time but also flexible when majority of the group wanted to adjust the time spent in one place or another.

There are weekly departures for Dubai tours with Superjet, but they also cater to individual travelers who can get a group price for their airfare with PAL “as long as there’s a hotel and tour component from Superjet.” They also assist in securing visas for individual tourists and businesspeople.

Destinations Unlimited CEO Crisel Medalla says, “Superjet knows the Filipino tourists and what they like in terms of hotels and restaurants, which is very important. Plus they have the flexibility to cater to requests.”

8. The hotels. We stayed at Fraser Suites and Hotel, which has very big hotel rooms and even bigger serviced apartments fit for families. There were several we visited including Ibis, Hues, Radisson Blu and Holiday Inn. Of the five-star hotels in the center, The Palace Downtown Dubai sits in a fabulous location adjacent to the Mall of Dubai and with a view of the Burj Khalifa. Its lunch buffet is the best in the area with a wide selection of western and Middle Eastern food.

9. The souks. Two markets in Deira or Old Dubai not to be missed are the Gold Souk and Spice Souk; there is also the Perfume Souk and Textile Souk. Like in any traditional market, you must haggle with the vendors.

10. The Filipinos in Dubai. Filipinos in Dubai are nothing new. They helped build the city into what it is today. Touring the hotels, all the sales managers we met are Filipinos, and wherever you go, you can hear our language being spoken. “Dubai is like Little Manila,” Masi says.

Maybe that’s another reason why Filipino travelers keep going back to Dubai.

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Check out Tanya Lara’s travel blog at www.findingmyway.net. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter @iamtanyalara.

For inquiries on Destinations Unlimited-Superjet packages to Dubai, call the following:  Makati — Ark Travel: 816-1999, 815-2296; Rakso Travel: 651-9000; Baron Travel: 817-4926, 8178318; Royal Travel: 843-7347, 844-5829; Mango Tours: 893-0002. Manila — Las Palmas Travel: 400-5916 to 19; Multi Destinations Travel: 526-8451 to 55; Triple Eight Travel: 522- 1111, 526-9961; Binondo —Pan Pacific Travel: 243-6666; Mandaluyong — Oltremare Travel:  635-2152 ; 635-2605. Quezon City — Trip Saver Travel : 418-7538, 218-0402. Muntinlupa — The Marvels of Travel: 809-3431, 809-0225. Pampanga — Shadow Travel: (045) 624-6435. Oriental Mindoro — Book and Learn Tours: (043) 441-3226. Cebu — Uniorient Travel: (032) 253-1866 to 69.

Philippine Airlines flies daily to Dubai; and to Abu Dhabi on Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Visit www.philippineairlines.com.