Our flight arrives from the US in Dubai for a layover around 6:30 PM and leaves at 3:15 PM the next day. We would love to get a birds'-eye view of Dubai either the evening we arrive or the morning before we leave, allowing for reasonable transit time to/from the airport, going through customs/immigration, a good nights' sleep, etc.
We would LOVE to experience Burj Al Arab, but thought it may be out of our price range and also maybe a little too fancy for and the clothes we'll likely be traveling in. Our next thought was that staying in the Dubai International Hotel in the airport would be quite easy... but is it really much more complicated to leave the airport and do you have any specific recommendations on hotels nearby?
Next - any recommendations for how to get a decent tour of the city in the time that we have? I see that Emirates offers a package for a city tour the morning we leave, which drops us off at the hotel by 1PM... not sure if that leaves enough time to get back to the airport, or if they'd just drop us off at the hotel instead...
Any suggestions on how to make the most of our time in Dubai?
Is getting the 96-hour transit visa for such a city tour a big hassle or quite easy?
Many thanks.
Dubai stopover ideas?
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There is a Rotana near the airport that is pretty good. The Burj Al Arab's cheapest room I think is around 5,000 AED ($1,300 US approx). It will take you around 15-20 minutes to get to the airport depending on traffic from there, sometimes even longer. If your hotel is not far from the airport and you check-in online you should be alright leaving the hotle at one (provided you checked out and left your bags behind reception), also depends on what airline you are on.
Dubai is spread out, so it takes some time to get where you want to go. If you stay at the airport, take a cab to the Bayistkya quarter, there is a lovely outdoor cafe near the entrance. It's part of the old quarter, from there you can easily make it to the Dubai Creek and catch an arba across the river for a dirham. There is a spice market and gold souk both very touristy but some of the stuff you see is interesting. That will take up most of your morning. Or you can hire a cab and drive down the beach next to the Burj Al Arab and take some photos then over to the Dubai mall, and if you want to go up in the Burj Khalifa I would get your tickets online ahead of time.
If you are American you don't need a transit visa. You get a stamp in your passport for 30 days from arrival.