The Dubai Shopping Festival is packed to bursting with deals galore, and discounts in more than 6,000 retail outlets within the 70 malls in the city. The festival accounts for 30 per cent of annual retail sales in the emirate — in 2012 DSF attracted 4.3 million visitors to the city, with total spends of Dh14.7 billion, Dh8.9 billion of that figure on shopping alone.
Featuring quite prominently in the very name of the festival, shopping is a very important part of the social culture in Dubai. However, faithful Dubai residents understand that DSF isn’t only about shopping. Despite the abundant retail and shopping prospects, the experiences and memories gained forms a significant part of each DSF that goes by.
Unveiling the DSF 2014 Calendar of Events, Laila Mohammad Suhail, CEO, Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment, said, “With all eyes on Dubai post Expo 2020 win, we are fully aware that we have to rise up to the expectations as DSF 2014 is the first festival after the announcement. We have made extra efforts to make sure that DSF truly lives up to its reputation as a festival for all by identifying a number of additional and special areas of Dubai to host the numerous activities to enable maximum exposure and opportunities for visitors to experience the vibrancy of this extravaganza and also reap its benefits.”
Even if you have spent your entire life in Dubai, the city continues to surprise with new and exciting activities that will keep you busy for the rest of the year. From trying out Ski Dubai’s new zip line to finally enrolling in the Dubai Autodrome’s arrive-and-race karting championship, you are guaranteed to find something you would love doing, or something you have never done before.
Make sure that this DSF will be filled with experiences worth remembering.
The finest from around the world at the Global Village
For a microcosm of multicultural Dubai, head to the Global Village. Spread over an area of several dozen football fields, the venue can accommodate 17,000 cars, and anticipates five million visitors this year. Global Village is an extravaganza of sound, light, culture, gastronomy, and more.
For a Dh5 entry ticket, just about anyone can find nirvana inside — strolling through its festooned streets, striding across its cornucopia of stalls, or sitting back in an abra across its central lake. With some 65 countries represented in 35
pavilions, each featuring its own set of stalls and food outlets, there’s enough to keep ardent bargain hunters, avid fashionistas, and curious culture buffs equally interested.
The Yemeni pavilion is a great example. Here, grocers stock rare spices, assorted honeys and unusual cures and condiments piled sky high in attractive displays, and jewellers showcase equally high piles of beads and baubles — antique-looking silver, and brand new designs in turquoise and jade. Some of the region’s most unusual decorative items, such as curved knives and daggers, bejewelled carvings and befuddling objets d’art, round out the offerings here.
Daunting as the long ride to the venue may sound to some, the venue packs in enough action to make for a whole evening’s exploration and entertainment. The Global Village features several dozen little eateries and larger restaurants which together cover just about every cuisine of the world. It is not far-fetched in the least to start the evening with a Tamil tea-time treat, nibble on Central Mexican snacks, savour a sumptuous Middle Eastern dinner, and finally end the evening with dessert from Northern Italian.
It is also possible to keep the children out of your hair while you enjoy your stroll here. Older children can be dropped off at the Fantasy Island, a newly introduced fair concept featuring 12,000 shows, while younger ones can be entertained from the confines of buggies or strollers that are available for rent at the entrance.
Running until March 1, rides and attractions range from Dh15 to Dh75. Call 04 362 4114 or log on to www.globalvillage.ae for more details.
— Iona Stanley, Special to GN Focus
Get wet, wet, wet
Dubai offers many exciting options for water lovers. Adventure seekers can dive to sunken shipwrecks and discover exotic marine life at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel’s Pavilion Dive Centre (call 04 406 8828), where a variety of courses are available. Water parks Aquaventure at Atlantis The Palm (04 426 0000) and Wild Wadi (04 348 4444), close to the stunning Burj Al Arab, have a variety of rides priced around Dh200 per adult.
On the road and off it
Two of the many different options for adrenaline junkies in this city: drive an F1-style single-seater racer at Dubai Autodrome (04 367 8700), or Emirates Kart Centre (04 282 7111), or go off road across the sands in dune buggies or in 4x4s on a desert safari (around Dh350 per head, call Planet Travel and Tours at 04 282 2199). Which would you rather?
Fly over Dubai
Put a different perspective on Dubai’s iconic landmarks.
Seaplane operator Seawings runs tours from the Burj Al Arab to the Burj Khalifa and beyond from Dh795 (04 807 0708), while Arabia Horizons puts on the ritz with helicopter tours at Dh1,250 per person on a 25-minute sharing basis (04 294 9888). Desert fanatics might want to try hot-air ballooning instead. Rides from Balloon Adventures Emirates cost Dh995. Call 04 285 4949.
Dolphin delights
Marvel at the lovable and intelligent marine mammals in one of two ways. The Dh33-million Dubai Dolphinarium offers edutainment programmes from Dh120 per adult (04 336 9773). Or go swimming at Dolphin Adventure, Atlantis The Palm, where three vast lagoons offer a choice of interactions. Call 04 426 1030 for more details.
Fishing
Great weather makes deep-sea fishing an exciting venture. Companies offering fishing tours can organise additional activities, such as coastal cruising and water-sport activities, and depending on the duration of the trip, may have refreshments.
Call Club Joumana, Jebel Ali Golf Resort and Spa, 04 814 5555; Planet Travel & Tours, 04 282 2199; Al Wasl Cruising & Fishing, 04 295 0516.
Winged wonders
Learn more about the UAE’s rich heritage and its skill in falconry at the city’s Falcon and Heritage Centre. The centre has a souk for falcon traders and falcon breeders that comprises 20 shops, as well as a small mosque, a cafeteria and gift shop, in addition to an area outside for falcon training. Entrance is free. Call 04 338 0201.
