DESTINATIONS AFFORDABLE DUBAI MIDDLE EAST
get great-quality food for less than the price of a takeaway in the UK.” These are close to some of Gold
Medal’s most popular properties which, the operator says, “won’t break the bank but still offer a superb level of service”. These include the Amwaj Rotana Jumeirah Beach Residence, which is right on The Walk, and Movenpick Hotel Deira.
w ACTIVITIES: SEE FOR FREE Spectacular entertainment comes free of charge at the world’s largest music and lights show in downtown Dubai. Shooting water 500ft in the air, the ‘dancing fountain’ comes to life at 1pm and 1.30pm and then from 6pm to 11pm daily.
In Dubai Mall, the vast window
into the aquarium is also free to visit, offering a hypnotic view of more than 30,000 aquatic animals and a great way for families to while away some time at no expense. If they do want to explore further, entry to the
LEFT: Dubai
Aquarium
HOW TO SELL Getting
around is
cheap in Dubai compared with cities such as New York or
London. On the Dubai metro, single tickets cost 30p or about £2.50
for a day pass, and a taxi fare across the city is just a few pounds.
underwater zoo and tunnel costs £13.25 through Travelcube. The ultimate sightseeing highlight is a £22 trip to the viewing platform on the 124th floor of the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building by quite a distance. Other top attractions include an exciting 4x4 dune-bashing safari with a Bedouin camp barbecue and
VIDA DOWNTOWN DUBAI
Tried & Tested The last time I visited Dubai, I spent a
huge amount of time getting lost in a vast resort hotel, heading down blind alleys in lookalike corridors in the quest to find my room. So it was a refreshing change to check into Vida Downtown Dubai, dubbed by some as the emirate’s first boutique hotel when it opened two years ago. With 156 rooms, including a swanky two-bedroom executive suite, it’s small compared with the majority of its towering cousins dominating the Dubai skyline. It certainly doesn’t have the stamp of a corporate brand, with plenty of fun and individual touches, from the high-tech bedrooms with mouse-driven interactive Wi-Fi and entertainment system (which does take a bit of getting used to), to the pool that’s transformed into a cool evening chill-out zone with the addition of low tables to the four-poster sun loungers. A standout feature is the choice of
four dining options, which include a Japanese restaurant, bistro with its own
ABOVE: Leap of Faith, Aquaventure 80
travelweekly.co.uk 15 October 2015
entertainment (from £45 for adults and £38 for children through Do Something Different). Or get a full day’s entertainment from the action- packed waterparks Aquaventure at Atlantis the Palm, or Wild Wadi in the Jumeirah complex, both £45 for adults, or £38/£37 respectively for children, when booked with Attraction World.
mouthwatering French-inspired bakery where the locals come to buy their breads and pastries, and a three-in-one eatery that takes on a number of guises. The most novel is the weekly ‘urban picnic’ for Friday brunch, a Dubai ritual where hotels compete for the best all-you-can-eat-and-drink spread. Vida provides guests with hampers they can load with food and drink, some of it served in glass jars, and tables are adorned with fake grass mats. It’s another imaginative touch at a
property that has broken the mould of Dubai’s typical hotel scene. In addition to Virgin Holidays, other operators that sell Vida include If Only, Premier Holidays and Beachcomber Tours.
Tested by Jeannine Williamson
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