The UAE, dune to skyline.

The desert night everyone books first, the 124th floor, the Grand Mosque an hour down the E11, the gold souk and the abra across the Creek. These are the days most Emirates trips get planned around.

★★★★★★★★★★4.9· 68,962 travellers on the most-booked run

Red sand at Lahbab or the softer tracks at Al Awir, dune bashing before the light goes, then a camp with camels, henna and a grill. These three carry the most travellers; the full list splits the rest by how much desert you actually want.

• 1Desert Safari, Quad Bike, Camel Ride & Al Khayma Campfrom $32
• 2Desert Safari, Quad Bike, Camel Ride and Sandboardingfrom $29
• 3Desert Safari with BBQ Dinner & Quad Biking Optionsfrom $30

The classic evening

Dune bashing, camp dinner, back by ten

6–7h· hotel pickup· biggest groups

Collected around four, an hour of 4x4 over the red dunes, sandboards while the light turns orange, then a camp with camels, henna and a buffet under the lanterns.

The morning run

Out at sunrise, back for lunch

4–5h· cooler sand· smaller groups

Away by seven while the tracks are empty and the sand still holds the night’s cool. Same dunes, same quad bikes, none of the evening convoy — and the whole afternoon is still yours.

The overnight

Sleep out, wake to silence

Overnight· stargazing· sunrise camels

The day trippers leave at ten and the desert goes completely quiet. Bedouin tents, a fire, far more stars than you expect this close to a city, and a camel out at first light.

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Three bands, and what a day in each actually buys. A good day out here starts at about the price of the taxi in from the airport.

Under $60

589 tours

Entry tickets, camel rides, the abra across the Creek and the shared desert evenings that fill every hotel lobby.

• 1Burj Khalifa Levels 124 & 125 Entry Ticket + Optionsfrom $43
• 2Desert Safari, Quad Bike, Camel Ride & Al Khayma Campfrom $32
• 3Desert Safari, Quad Bike, Camel Ride and Sandboardingfrom $29

$60–$150

715 tours

The full days: Abu Dhabi and the Grand Mosque, a morning on the dunes, marina yachts, dinner cruises with the buffet included.

• 1Premium Safari, Camel Ride & Al Khayma Camp 3-Buffetsfrom $79
• 2Abu Dhabi Premium Full-Day Sightseeing Tourfrom $99
• 3Burj Khalifa Sky Level 148, 124, & 125 Entry Ticketfrom $122

$150 and up

602 tours

Private drivers, twelve minutes over the Palm in a helicopter, sunrise balloons and boats you have entirely to yourselves.

• 1Sightseeing Helicopter Ride from The Palmfrom $195
• 2Marina Ziplining with Photos, Video and Mealfrom $190
• 3Exclusive 1HR Jet Ski Tour- Burj al Arab & Atlantisfrom $172

More travellers take these than anything else between the Empty Quarter and Ras Al Khaimah — and what each one is actually like on the day.

1

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.3 · 90,891 reviews

Burj Khalifa Levels 124 & 125 Entry Ticket + Options

Go up Burj Khalifa Levels 124 and 125 for fast elevator access and 360-degree Dubai views, with optional café treat, souvenir, and aquarium.

From · $43

Read our review →

2 ★★★★★★★★★★ 4.9 · 68,962 reviews Desert Safari, Quad Bike, Camel Ride & Al Khayma Camp from $32 3 ★★★★★★★★★★ 4.9 · 43,505 reviews Desert Safari, Quad Bike, Camel Ride and Sandboarding from $29 4 ★★★★★★★★★★ 4.9 · 33,424 reviews Safari, Quad Bike, Camel Ride, and Buffet Dinner from $46 5 ★★★★★★★★★★ 4.9 · 32,185 reviews Red Dune Safari, Quad Bike, Camel Ride, BBQ Dinner from $29 6 ★★★★★★★★★★ 4.9 · 30,335 reviews Premium Safari, Camel Ride & Al Khayma Camp 3-Buffets from $79 7 ★★★★★★★★★★ 4.9 · 26,728 reviews Abu Dhabi Premium Full-Day Sightseeing Tour from $99 8 ★★★★★★★★★★ 4.6 · 23,827 reviews Burj Khalifa Sky Level 148, 124, & 125 Entry Ticket from $122

Beach clubs and shopping malls turn up anywhere warm. A half-mile tower, an island dredged into the shape of a palm and a mosque of 82 domes belong to this coast alone.

Half a mile up

The Burj Khalifa

Tallest building on earth since 2010 and nothing since has come close: 828 metres, 163 floors, a lift that reaches level 124 in about a minute. Levels 124 and 125 are the standard ticket; 148 adds an outdoor terrace and a far shorter queue. The hour either side of sunset costs more and goes first.

1. 1Burj Khalifa Levels 124 & 125 Entry Ticket + Options★★★★★★★★★★ 4.3 · 90,891 reviews
2. 2Burj Khalifa Sky Level 148, 124, & 125 Entry Ticket★★★★★★★★★★ 4.6 · 23,827 reviews
3. 3Burj Khalifa Level 124, 125 & Sky Views Entry Ticket★★★★★★★★★★ 4.2 · 3,596 reviews

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Dredged from the Gulf

The Palm Jumeirah

Sixteen fronds and an eleven-kilometre breakwater were pulled out of the seabed and then built on. The shape only reads from above — from The View observatory at the top of the trunk, from a helicopter out of Atlantis, or from a speedboat running the outer crescent.

1. 1The View At The Palm Observatory Entry Ticket★★★★★★★★★★ 4.6 · 22,529 reviews
2. 2Jetski to Burj Arab-Atlantis w Pic, Video & Icecream★★★★★★★★★★ 4.9 · 22,260 reviews
3. 3Aquaventure World Waterpark Ticket at Atlantis Dubai★★★★★★★★★★ 4.5 · 11,895 reviews

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Eighty-two domes

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

Abu Dhabi’s great mosque holds forty thousand people under 82 domes, over the largest hand-knotted carpet in the world. Entry costs nothing and visitors are welcome outside prayer times; the dress code is strict and enforced at the gate, and the marble is at its best in the last hour of light.

1. 1Abu Dhabi Sheikh Zayed Mosque Guided Tour★★★★★★★★★★ 4.9 · 9,962 reviews
2. 2Dubai To Abu Dhabi: Grand Mosque, Royal Palace & Etihad Towers★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 7,632 reviews
3. 3Abu Dhabi Grand Mosque & Louvre Museum Full-Day★★★★★★★★★★ 4.8 · 6,227 reviews

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