On my way back to France, I had deliberately planned a long layover in Dubai with Emirates. But obviously, rather than spending those hours at the airport, the idea was to take advantage of the time to get a brief glimpse of the city.
I actually had a day and a half ahead of me, but the bulk of the sightseeing had to fit into the first day. It was impossible to see everything in that case, so I had chosen a few quite different places, including the Marina, the older districts around Dubai Creek, the Burj Khalifa, and the Burj Al Arab.
The schedule was already packed. I simply hadn't anticipated that an earthquake would also decide to make an appearance in the middle of the day…
What to do in Dubai in one day?
So yes, if you have a free day, voluntary or not (the stopovers are sometimes long, for my part, it was voluntary, my thirst for discovery pushed me to discover this city rather than just flying over it), it is always interesting to discover this city apart.
This is what my visit schedule was based on:
- Dubai Marina
- Dubai Creek
- Burj Al Arab
- Burj Khalifa
I had decided to leave my luggage at the airport to avoid being weighed down with it, as checking in at the hotel was not normally possible at this early hour (6am), obviously for a fee (25 AED for my big bag, or 5 euros for 12 hours of care, it's reasonable), but I also knew that this day would not be cheap.
So after discovering Dubai airport, I went to the metro at Terminal 3. My reasoning being first to go as far as possible, I headed towards the Marina, south of the city. Not that it was unmissable, but from the photos I had seen of it, it looked interesting, to photograph, that is, because that was my primary goal in visiting Dubai, to take photos in an urban environment.
So I discovered this marina, obviously artificial (I mean that the cove did not exist before) like of course the whole city, which has the air of an amusement park so much does everything seem sanitized and surreal.
But the city does not hide it, quite the contrary, because it has no shortage of attractions and is competing in ideas to know what to build and offer to its inhabitants (like skiing in the middle of the desert...) and to attract tourists, proof after all that it works since I am here visiting it.
The morning atmosphere is pleasant, it is not too hot yet, although it is not yet summer and therefore the temperatures will not exceed 40°C in the afternoon (compared to 45 and more in summer!). It is time for jogging, there are no crowds.
With all these buildings and shapes, there is plenty to do for those who love photography and especially architecture. At one point I was passing a group of workers on their lunch break. I thought about the living conditions of these 21st century convicts, they generally welcomed me with a smile, even inviting me to share a piece.
Once I had done the tour, I took the metro again for my next stop, back near the airport to Dubai Creek, the souk district.
I was not prepared and got off at the wrong station... I found myself at Rigga station, in practice if you want to get as close as possible you have to get off at the next station "Union" on the red line and then you can get closer by taking the green line to Baniya.
Getting around Dubai
A quick aside about transportation in Dubai. For this stopover, I mainly combined the metro and taxis, which remains a fairly logical solution for visiting Dubai in a short period of time.
The metro serves, among other places, the airport, Downtown Dubai, the Dubai Marina area, and Mall of the Emirates. Public transport operates using the NOL card . With a Silver card, a journey currently costs between AED 3 and AED 7,50 depending on the number of zones traveled. The card costs AED 25, of which AED 19 can be used for journeys. For limited travel, the rechargeable red ticket costs AED 2, with journeys ranging from AED 4 to AED 8,50.
Taxis remain a very convenient option when the metro doesn't drop you off directly near your destination. A ride hailed on the street currently starts at 5 AED during the day and 5,50 AED at night , with a minimum fare of 12 AED. From the airport, the starting fare for a standard taxi is 20 AED. Any Salik tolls are added to the fare.
Since Dubai is very spread out, the most efficient way to plan a stopover is often to plan visits by sector rather than making multiple trips back and forth as I did that day.
In my case: I had originally reserved a car at the airport to ensure maximum independence, but after reconsidering the cost and especially the fact of having to drive in an unfamiliar city (I wasn't as comfortable driving then as I am now), etc., I decided against it. Since I hadn't had to make a deposit in advance, I was free to cancel.
In the end, I was content with the combined metro/taxi service to cover the distances between my various points of interest.
Dubai Creek and the Souks
To get back to where I was, I got off the metro too early, the route from Rigga station to the spice souk that I was visiting was already 3.3 km, knowing that I was still continuing along the loop along the river for 1 additional km.
By the time I got back to the nearest station (Baniyas), I had walked almost 7 km, all on foot... Luckily the temperatures were mild and I'm a pretty good walker.
It took me 1 hour to collect my bag from the airport and head to the Dubai Internet City district so that I could finally check into my hotel (the Comfort Inn) and it was already past 13 p.m.
For simplicity, I took a taxi to avoid lugging all my stuff around on the metro, it cost me about 75 AED (15€). I rested for about an hour before deciding to go eat, to keep it simple I settled for the hotel restaurant, on the ground floor.
At the time, I felt the need to extend my "break". So I stayed in the room a little longer, testing the games on the TV when suddenly, the earth shook...
My first earthquake
It was April 16, 2013, the earthquake took place on the other side of the Gulf of Oman, on the border between Iran and Pakistan.
With an intensity of 7.8 there, it was at least 35 deaths to deplore. In Dubai, the tremors felt were equivalent to an earthquake between 4 or 5 on the Richter scale. At the time, I didn't really realize it, in my head, I stupidly said to myself, it's the wind that makes the building sway, realizing the absurdity of my reflection, being only on the 5th floor and especially there is no wind...
I suddenly realize: "But it's an earthquake!"
Not that scared, I lay back down, as if nothing had happened, on the bed once the shock had passed. Until a few minutes later the hotel alarm sounded, screaming through loudspeakers to evacuate. Even then, I didn't really realize it at the time, but coming out of my room to listen to where the noise was coming from, I then heard the speech...
And there I was, rushing down the stairwell (thank goodness I wasn't at the top...) to join the other people from the neighborhood gathered at the foot of their respective buildings. While waiting for permission to go back up (to make sure there wouldn't be any aftershocks) I was able to chat a little with a French couple on vacation here for a week. After this particular episode, I quickly went back up and this time went to continue my visits of the day, it was already past 16 p.m....
Direction Burj Al Arab
My goal was to reach the public beach next to the famous 7-star hotel, but again, I misjudged the distances, because it is still 3km from the nearest metro stop (at the Mall of Emirates). Not discouraged, I walked straight towards my goal, I also came across a few other foreigners who clearly preferred to walk too.
After 2km, I pass by a place that I seem to remember the photos of and decide to go and have a look. It is the Madinat Jumeirah souk, which is part of a gigantic resort. It took me 20 minutes from the metro station (compared to 30 minutes of travel, including 2 metro stops/stations and the walk from my hotel).
But by the time I had gone around the Disneysouk, I found myself faced with a choice to make: either I went as planned to the Burj Al Arab and would therefore not be able to see the Burj Khalifa any closer than at night, or I headed straight to the tower at the risk of missing the sunset on the beach near the Burj Al Arab hotel.
At that moment, I decided to go to the tower, because it is still the tallest tower in the world and I preferred to see it (better) during the day.
So here I am again in a taxi and, 40 AED (8€) lighter, I arrive at the foot of the impressive 828m tower. I won't linger too long, just enough time to admire the spectacle of the fountains at the foot of the Burj Khalifa.
So that left me with the opportunity to rush back to the Burj Al Arab, get a super nice taxi and arrive just in time for the sunset on the beach, perfect timing.
Another stroke of luck, there was a kind of "festival" sponsored by one of the princes of the ruling family, right at the end of the beach and with the aim of promoting local culture. The fact is that with modernity, these skills are disappearing...
I stayed there for almost an hour before leaving, after tasting a local specialty, watching a dance performance with children, adults also doing a kind of "tribal" dance and soaking up this particular atmosphere.
This time I'll take a taxi rather than walk to the Mall of the Emirates station. On the way, I'll take a quick look around the mall to see what it's like, and then I'll head back to my hotel.
That concludes this rather unusual day in the United Arab Emirates. This day cost me a whopping 100 euros. I think that with a little better planning, it's possible to do it for less.
The next day, I would allow myself a lie-in and wait patiently for departure time, this time I would take the metro with all my luggage, challenge accepted! And in the A380 that took me to Paris (my first return to France since my departure for Thailand!!), I saw this mushroom city moving away. Good Bye Dubai!
→ I repeated the experience of a long stopover in the region, this time in Oman. You can find my day of sightseeing in Muscat , between the Mutrah Corniche, its souk and the royal palace.
