I love the story behind Dubai becoming a tourist destination. Oil was discovered there in 1966. Not huge amount by Arab standards. The ruler, Sheik Saeed Al Maktoum saw that the oil would run out and decided to invest it in creating long-term wealth for his country.
His recipe, as he saw it was based on five elements: almost endless sunshine, seaside location, shopping, safety, and sports. And he began building. A common joke in Dubai is that the national bird is the crane. A building crane. Dubai is located smack dab in the middle of Asia, Europe, and Africa. A natural destination for tourists looking for something different, he pulled from Dubai's Arab traditions and brought in Western luxuries. He attracted heavy investors for hotels, sports facilities and shopping. Vacation homes were designed and built on an innovative series of atolls designed like Palm Trees, Globes, etc.
The Sheik has passed away, but his heirs have continued to build Dubai into a world class leisure, sport and even business destination. The skyline is filled with innovative architecture, shopping centers have alpine ski runs, five-star hotels line the streets, yet the souks are still there, as are the Bedouin villages and the camels. Dubai has managed to remain true to its traditions while creating a new world.
The city offers a wide variety of dining options and night life. Most dining is offered by the hotels, because the hotels can sell alcohol, while most other restaurants cannot. This is an Islamic country after all. So the hotels serve the locals as well as their guests and they offer service and selection on a world-class level. There are a surprising number of clubs, discos and bars open until late.
Avid sportsmen love Dubai because the climate makes it possible to be outdoors virtually every day. The variety of activities is astounding: you can deep-sea fish, ice skate, golf on a championship course, or sand skiing in the desert.
And when you need a rest, Dubai plays host to the best ranked teams and players from around the world in a variety of sports.
Events staged in Dubai are the Desert Classic PGA Golf Tournament, The Dubai Tennis Open, and the Dubai World Cup. And Dubai continues to add to its visibility and list of events each year.
The cosmopolitan atmosphere of Dubai is encapsulated in a range of activities from polo to volleyball, ice-skating to hockey, bowling to darts, chess to show jumping and dressage.
But while many of the sports taking place in Dubai originated overseas, tradition is never forgotten. Camel racing is a spectacular and highly popular sport throughout the winter months and the annual sailing dhow race - an event which features smaller versions of the traditional dhow - draws the crowds in their thousands for a sight from another century and that is the very essence of Dubai - a synthesis of old and new.
His recipe, as he saw it was based on five elements: almost endless sunshine, seaside location, shopping, safety, and sports. And he began building. A common joke in Dubai is that the national bird is the crane. A building crane. Dubai is located smack dab in the middle of Asia, Europe, and Africa. A natural destination for tourists looking for something different, he pulled from Dubai's Arab traditions and brought in Western luxuries. He attracted heavy investors for hotels, sports facilities and shopping. Vacation homes were designed and built on an innovative series of atolls designed like Palm Trees, Globes, etc.
The Sheik has passed away, but his heirs have continued to build Dubai into a world class leisure, sport and even business destination. The skyline is filled with innovative architecture, shopping centers have alpine ski runs, five-star hotels line the streets, yet the souks are still there, as are the Bedouin villages and the camels. Dubai has managed to remain true to its traditions while creating a new world.
The city offers a wide variety of dining options and night life. Most dining is offered by the hotels, because the hotels can sell alcohol, while most other restaurants cannot. This is an Islamic country after all. So the hotels serve the locals as well as their guests and they offer service and selection on a world-class level. There are a surprising number of clubs, discos and bars open until late.
Avid sportsmen love Dubai because the climate makes it possible to be outdoors virtually every day. The variety of activities is astounding: you can deep-sea fish, ice skate, golf on a championship course, or sand skiing in the desert.
And when you need a rest, Dubai plays host to the best ranked teams and players from around the world in a variety of sports.
Events staged in Dubai are the Desert Classic PGA Golf Tournament, The Dubai Tennis Open, and the Dubai World Cup. And Dubai continues to add to its visibility and list of events each year.
The cosmopolitan atmosphere of Dubai is encapsulated in a range of activities from polo to volleyball, ice-skating to hockey, bowling to darts, chess to show jumping and dressage.
But while many of the sports taking place in Dubai originated overseas, tradition is never forgotten. Camel racing is a spectacular and highly popular sport throughout the winter months and the annual sailing dhow race - an event which features smaller versions of the traditional dhow - draws the crowds in their thousands for a sight from another century and that is the very essence of Dubai - a synthesis of old and new.
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Chris Linch operates a hotel website that can save you a lot of money. Click on the following link for the cheapest hotels.
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