Ahlan Wa Sahlan! Welcome to the United Arab Emirates. The largest city in the UAE is well known for its plethora of wealth and opulence (a vending machine for gold, anyone?), but it’s also known for its history and culture. On arrival into Dubai Airport please clear customs and collect your luggage before locating your shuttle transfer representative (if you have pre-booked this service). This Shortbreak Adventure is operated by our local operator Desert Adventures, and includes a transfer to your hotel. Please look for a Desert Adventures representative wearing an orange T-shirt and carrying a sign with your name. Once all passengers have arrived, you will be transferred to the City Max Hotel Al Barsha. The hotel is conveniently located about 25 minutes from the airport and opposite the mall of Emirates. The rest of the day is free to spend as you wish. Maybe head out for some retail therapy, take the complimentary shuttle to the beach, enjoy the roof-top pool or discover food from Lebanon, India and Iran. The Metro is a simple and convenient way to experience some of the other iconic sights such as the Burj Khalifa, or the impressive Dubai Fountain show at night!

Explore Dubai with a half-day tour of the city. You will be picked up around 8:30-9am – simply wait in the hotel lobby for your Desert Adventures representative. Drive through the heritage area of Bastakiya, full of courtyards, wind towers, and narrow alleyways designed to give pedestrians shade from the sun. Merchants from Iran settled this area in the 1900s, and they built houses sophisticated for the time, including towers that funnelled breezes down into the buildings in an early form of air-conditioning. Next, visit the ornate Al Fahidi Fort and its museum, built in the early 1800s to protect the settlement from rival Bedouin tribes, and later the residence of the ruling sheikh. Ferry across the Dubai Creek in a traditional Abra (water taxi). Before roads and cars, Abras were the only way to cross the Dubai Creek. This is the most atmospheric way to soak in the sights and sounds of the bustling creek. Follow aromatic smells as you wander through the enticing spice souq centred around the creek, and then enter the largest gold market in Arabia, where precious metals and jewels glitter all around. Later, make a stop at the imposing Jumeirah Mosque for excellent photos. In the afternoon, ride through the dunes on a desert safari then continue on to a Bedouin campsite. Here you can enjoy Henna design, Arabic Gava, local dresses, belly dancing, soft drinks, tea or coffee, a hubbly bubbly and a delicious barbeque buffet. You will be dropped back at your hotel at around 9-9:30pm this evening. Notes: A more conservative dress code applies for some of the sights. Entrance may be denied if these are not followed. On Friday the museums and Souqs are closed in the morning and will reopen in the afternoon. For this reason your itinerary will be amended to accommodate this. Please speak to your booking agent for more information. The desert safari does include some high-speed dune racing. These activities are operated on a share basis and you will be joined by other travellers. Special Information

This Dubai Experience comes to an end today. There are no activities planned for the final day and this trip finishes after breakfast. This experience includes a departure transfer back to Dubai Airport. You will be collected from the Hotel's main lobby approximately 3 hours before your scheduled departure flight. Your pick up details will be confirmed in the welcome pack you receive on Day 1. There is plenty to see and do in Dubai and we highly recommend you extend your stay in Dubai. Please speak to your booking agent about additional post tour accommodation.