According to one poll, Dubai is slowly moving up the top 10 list of the most popular inbound travel destination across the world. While this is excellent news for its tourism industry, which continues to go from strength to strength, this can spell bad news for those who like to seek out the most unique holiday experiences they can find, as by consulting guidebooks and standard travel sites you may find yourself steered towards the ‘textbook’ things to see and do when on holiday in the country.
With this in mind, we’ve scoured the internet to find some activities you can do in Dubai that are a little bit off the beaten track. Although you might still want to stay somewhere luxurious, if you’re the sort of person who likes to get out and explore uncharted territory, these are some activities for you.
1 – Visit the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve
You might be under the impression that Dubai is all just spectacular hotels and big thrills, but there’s a quieter, more natural side to Dubai, too, and you can experience it at the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve. Accessible through a number of concession holders, you can experience this 225km2 reserve of sand dunes that contains over 120 bird species, 43 mammals and reptiles and 57 plant species. You’ll be surprised by how much can live in such a dry environment.
2 – Feed Your Adrenaline Habit at the Dubai Autodrome
If you’re more interested in staying in and around central Dubai, you should consider taking a trip to the autodrome; only petrol junkies allowed. The autodrome is like a “motoring city” with race tracks and a racing school, and the venue is even home to a range of national and international racing events each year.
3 – Experience the Thrill of Dream Explorer Dune Buggy Driving
Do you consider yourself a bit of a thrill seeker? If you do, you should take a trip into the desert to experience the amazing sand dune buggy experiences. With the capacity to get up to 1800cc out of a twin-seat buggy, you’re bound to have a racing experience unlike any other. And the best thing about it is, only the bravest people will be able to claim they’ve done it.
So as you can see, if you look in the right places, there are plenty of niche, interesting things you can do that will take you off the tourist track in Dubai.