Dubai Budget Itinerary and Travel Guide

Dubai is one of the 7 emirates that compose the United Arab Emirates. It is known worldwide for its luxury tourism. But as a budgetarian like us, we know that you wanted to explore this place without spending too much. That is why we created this Dubai travel guide and Itinerary to help you with your budget and guide you on your Dubai trip. Enjoy 🙂

HOW TO GO TO DUBAI

There are 2 international airports in Dubai, the Dubai International Airport (DXB) and the Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC).  You should check your preferred airlines on which airport they have a scheduled flight. Although a lot of airlines use DXB, there are few airlines that choose DWC as their airport.

Check out our article in How to Get Promo Flight, for some tips on how we get cheap airfare.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW BEFORE TRAVELING TO DUBAI

Seasons in Dubai –

• Summer – April to September –  It is generally hot and humid during this time, so make sure to dress comfortably. June to August are the hottest periods in Dubai. Temperature can rise to 40 degrees Celsius combined with unpleasant humidity.
• Winter – October – March. – Just to be clear, there is no snow during this period. This is the perfect time to wander around Dubai. The temperature gets colder to a more comfortable level. Also, there are attractions that open only in this season, like the Global village and Miracle Garden.

Visa – If you are a Philippine Passport holder, you need a visa to enter Dubai. Check our DUBAI VISA GUIDE for reference.

Power Plugs – They are using type G power plug. the one that has 3 cornered pins.

There are a lot of countries that use different kinds of power plugs. For frequent travelers or planning to be one, We recommend that you purchase a universal adapter. Less hassle and you don’t need to worry anymore about what type of power plug they used.

WI-FI – Common, Nowadays internet connection is a MUST! There are free Wi-Fi in malls but we suggest that you get your own. This will helps you a lot, especially, in getting the directions for your itinerary. For those who wanted to book in advance and get a discounted 4G sim card, you may book here 4G SIM.

Currency – UAE dirham or AED. For currency exchange, there are a lot of money changers Dubai where you can convert to local currency.

Time Zone – Dubai time zone is at UTC +04:00.

Food – Good news for those people that can’t skip a week without having a milktea (bubble tea, boba tea), or for those who are just craving for it after a tiring day.  There is a Milktea shop in Dubai, just go to BurJuman and you can find it inside the mall 🙂

For those who wanted Filipino food- There are Jollibee, Max’s, Chowking and Gerry’s Grill in Dubai. Also, we highly recommend DAMPA in DCC. seafood meals in a boodle fight set up 🙂 Yum!

Souvenirs – Check out “Day to Day discount store”. They offer souvenirs, like key chains, ref magnet, etc, for a cheap price.

DUBAI PUBLIC TRANSPORT

Dubai uses NOL Card for its public transportation. It is a reloadable smart card, like Korea’s T-money and Hong Kong’s Octopus card, that enables you to pay for the use of public transportation like, Metro, Buses, Trams and Water Buses. There are 4 Kinds of NOL card Red, Silver, Gold and Blue.

Red Ticket – Paper-based ticket that can be bought in the vending machine. This ticket can be used for one mode of transportation (Example: Bus Only or Metro Only) and can be loaded up to 10 trips.

Silver Card – A smart card that can be loaded up to 5000 AED. Unlike the Red Ticket, you can use it in any mode of public transportation. Cost 25 AED (19 goes to your balance)

Gold Card – Same with the Silver card but gives you the privilege to access the Metro’s Gold Class. Cost 25 AED (19 goes to your balance).

Blue Card or the NOL Personalized Card – It is a personalized card with additional security features like SMS and E-mail notifications. Cost 70 AED (20 goes to your balance).

Fares:

Reminders:

• Always make sure that you maintain the minimum balance for your NOL card. 7.5 AED  for Silver, Gold, and Blue cards while one trip for the Red ticket.
• Metro’s Gold class area is for NOL Gold cards holder only.
• There is an area designated for FEMALE ONLY, in Metro and in Bus.
• Tap in and Tap out your NOL Cards. If you do not Tap out your Nol Card will always deduct the maximum fare.
• Traveling between two different modes of transportation (ex. Metro then going to Bus) must be done within 30 minutes. By doing this, your Metro and Bus will be treated as 1 single journey. This is the reason why we don’t have an additional charge when we ride a bus from Metro going back to our Hotel.
• Eating and Drinking are prohibited in public transport
• There are Spot checks being made. Make sure to follow the rule so you don’t get a fine.
• Check out these BUS and METRO violations for additional reference.

For those who prepare Taxies, here are some information we have for you.

• Airport taxies have a flag down rate of 25 AED while those on the streets have a flag down rate of 5 AED. 
• Minimum Fare is 12 AED. Meaning you need to pay 12 AED even if your fare is only 10 AED.
• There is a slight increase in the taxi fare in night time (Night time rates from 10 P.M. -6:00 A.M)
• Make sure to ask first the flag down rate. There are some taxi, especially those who are waiting in an area, that have a higher flag down rate than the normal 5 AED. Don’t get me wrong, these are approved rates that the driver applied for.

Dubai also has Uber and Careem in case you prefer them rather than the normal taxies.

WHERE TO STAY IN DUBAI

Dubai is known for its luxury, one thing is for sure. Try to avoid those luxury hotels especially when you are on a budget. Try to check your hotel if there is a nearby bus stop or whether the metro station and the bus stop are in the same zone. As we all know, public transportation in Dubai changes fare per zones.

During our stay in Dubai, we stayed at Chelsea Garden. Big shout out and thanks to our generous friends to our friend (Jhe and Je). This is a great place and convenient especially it is nearby the bus station and just 1 bus stop away from the metro station. 

Check below other budget hotels you may try

Rove City Center

Rove Downtown 

Roda links Al Nasr

In case you prefer hostels try these 2 budget hostels

At TheTop Bed & Breakfast and Super Stay

6 DAYS DUBAI ITINERARY

DAY 1

Abu Dhabi

The United Arab Emirates is composed of 7 emirates these are Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras Al Khaimah, Sharjah, and Umm Al Quwain. Out of these 7, Do you know what is the largest? Dubai? No… It’s Abu Dhabi, in fact aside from being the largest emirate it is also the capital of UAE.

Are you curious about how large Abu Dhabi is? hmm, let’s say that it is large enough to hold more than 80% of the land area of UAE :). But aside from being the largest emirate, Abu Dhabi also host the largest Mosque in UAE, Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. Actually, For us, its the highlight of our Abu Dhabi tour. The beauty of the Grand Mosque is really one of a kind.

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How to go to Abu Dhabi

• In case you opted DIY rather than a tour. You can go to Abu Dhabi from Dubai via Bus. Actually, Abu Dhabi is 1 bus ride away from Dubai (Fare 25 AED). There are buses going to Abu Dhabi in Ibn Battuta.
• For those who wanted to explore Abu Dhabi via a guided tour. We recommend booking here in advance to get you a discounted rate Abu Dhabi Tour. Plus it is also a hotel pick up and drop off which makes it more convenient.
• For those who are a fan of art museums, this guided tour will definitely suit you as this Abu Dhabi tour includes the Louvre Art Museum. Abu Dhabi  Full-Day with Louvre Art Museum

Reminder:

•  Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque is a religious place. Please observe to wear proper attire.
• Women and men must wear conservative, loose-fitting, and non‑transparent clothing such as long sleeve shirts (wrist length), long skirts (ankle length), and trousers
• Women will be asked to wear a headscarf and a traditional robe (Abaya) before entering the mosque. In case you don’t have one, there is a free abaya rental before the entrance of the mosque. You can find it before you pass through the guards for the inspection and X-ray scanner.
• For Men, shoulders must be covered and no above the Knee shorts.

DAY 2

Jumeirah beach

Walking on the beach in the early morning? Why not right? Imagine having breakfast after a relaxing morning walk in one of the iconic beaches in Dubai. ahhh that’s life 🙂 Jumeirah Beach is a public beach located in the Jumeirah district. Aside from being the longest public beach in Dubai, Jumeirah beach also offers white sand and a picture-perfect view of Burj Al Arab.

How to go to Jumeirah Beach

There is no metro station in Jumeirah beach, the nearest station would be Mall of Emirates.  From here you can either take a bus 81 (drop off at Maharba Masjid) or a taxi.

Burj Al Arab

A 7-star or a 5-star hotel? who cares! haha, let those hotel experts argue about it. But one thing is for sure, Burj Al Arab is one of the most luxurious hotels in the world. It offers its client value for their money, from chauffeur-driven Rolls Royce fleet to a state of the art suite definitely a 100% luxury experience.

Aside from being known globally for being a luxury hotel, Burj Al Arab is also famous for its architectural design which makes it one of the famous landmarks in Dubai.

How to go to Burj Al Arab

There is no metro station in Burj Al Arab, the nearest station would be Mall of Emirates.  From here you can either take a bus 81 (drop off at Burj Al Arab 1) or a taxi.

If you are already in Jumeirah Beach, you can just walk towards Burj Al Arab.

Note: This is a private establishment, they will not allow you to enter if don’t have any bookings or appointment.

Souk Madinat

Another tourist attraction that can give you an amazing view of Burj Al Arab is the Souk Madinat. It is an Arabian theme bazaar that offers a variety of products, from coffee shops, jewelry, perfumes, souvenirs, international food restaurants and many more.  Souk Madinat also has a five-kilometer waterway wherein you can enjoy by hopping into an abra – a traditional Emirati boat.

How to go to Souk Madinat

There is no metro station in Burj Al Arab, the nearest station would be Mall of Emirates.  From here you can either take a bus 81 (drop off at Burj Al Arab 2) or a taxi.

If you are already in Burj Al Arab, walking to Souk Madinat will just take a couple of minutes.

Opening Hours

Shops: 10:00 – 23:00
Restaurants: 08:00 – 02:00

Atlantis

Finally,  after years of exploration and debates whether it’s true or not, Atlantis has been found. HAHA just kidding. This iconic hotel is situated at the top of the crown of the world-famous Palm Island, which gives you a perfect view of the Arabian Gulf and Dubai skyline. Aside from the sceneries it offers, it also has attractions and amenities for all generations like world-class dining, Aquariums, and Aquaventure Waterpark.

I really suggest that if you have time and budget, try their Aquaventure waterpark and the lost chamber aquarium. Aquaventure Waterpark is the number 1 waterpark in the region while the lost chamber is the UAE’s largest aquarium with 65,000 marine animals. Get your discounted ticket here Aquaventure and Lost Chamber

After a fantastic time Atlantis, the best way to end the day is by having a mouth-watering dinner buffet in Safron. It is a restaurant inside Atlantis that offers a fine selection of regional delicacies.

How to go to Atlantis

Unlike some locations in this Dubai Itinerary, Atlantis has a tram station nearby. Here is the step by step instructions for you.

1. Tram stations are connected to 2 Metro stations, DAMAC and DMCC. so choose which is more convenient to you.
2. From the metro station, follow the signage going to the tram.
3. Once in the tram station, Alight in Palm Jumeirah station.
4. From there, follow the signage going to the monorail station. If its heading inside a car park don’t panic, your in the right way.
5. The end of the monorail station is Atlantis, you can even see the aquaventure waterpark below.
6. This is the best way going to Atlantis, especially it gives you a top view of the whole Palm Island unlike going there via taxi.

Tip: Get a roundtrip ticket, it would cost 30 AED per head. If you only buy for a 1-way ticket it would cost you 20 AED.

If you are following our itinerary and don’t want to go back to tram stations, you can get a taxi from Souk Madinat to Atlantis. It will cost about 25-30 AED

Opening Hours
Aquaventure Water Park: 10:00 – 18:00
Lost Chambers Aquarium: 10:00 – 22:00

DAY 3

Mall of Emirates or BurJuman

The best time to wander around Dubai is during the afternoon, by this time its not too hot to walk around and explore the alleys. I know! We understand that as a wanderer,  you want to maximize your time in exploring the place. That is why we suggest, that during the 1st half of the day you try to explore their malls like the Mall of Emirates and Burjuman.

Aside from the variety of shops, you can also find inside Mall of Emirates the first-ever indoor ski resort in the region. Ski Dubai. While BurJuman, is nearer in the gold souk station, it is also the place wherein you can buy your favorite drink. Yup! yup! Bubble tea! They have a Happy Lemon inside the Mall 🙂

How to go to Mall of Emirates or BurJuman

Metro Stations are connected to these establishments. Mall of Emirates station and BurJuman Station

Gold Souk

If you are into jewelry and gold, this is the best place for you. Here, you can find lots of jewelry shops offering varieties of designs, it is up to you what carat or stones you wanted. Some shops here offer a 5% tax rebate for tourists, just make sure you bring your passport with you and inform the shop that you are a tourist. Aside from tax rebates, some shops here also offer huge discounts, so try to huggle and check other shops first before buying.

How to go to Gold Souk

Nearest metro station: Al Ras Metro Station, from here Exit 2 and walk for a couple of minutes towards the gold souk.

Dubai Creek

Maybe you’re seeing a lot of pictures in Dubai wherein they are riding an abra with a nice picture-perfect background of a body of water and buildings. If you were wondering where was that shot taken from, the answer would be at the Dubai Creek.

In order to have that shot, you need to ride an abra which costs 1 AED per person. The abra will just cross the creek from Deira to Bur Dubai vice versa, which will last only for a couple of minutes, so make sure to plan ahead your pose.

Tip: Abra, is a transportation system by the locals. Probably you will have locals with you when you take an Abra. What we do and suggest is that you rent the entire Abra (cost 20AED). This will gives you ample time and space to have a picture-perfect shot. 😀

How to go to Dubai Creek

It is just outside the Gold Souk, just cross the street and you will see the Abra terminal.

Al Bastakiya

Located at the Bur Dubai district, this historic district was first established in the 19th century with the help of the textile and pearl merchants of Dubai. In early 2000, the place was renovated and now become home to a variety of shops and restaurants.

There are Dhow Cruise terminals in the area, it will tour you around the Dubai Creek while having your dinner buffet-style 🙂 Get discounted rates here Dhow Cruise

How to go to Al Bastakiya.

Ride a taxi from Bur Dubai Abra station. You can immediately see taxi’s around the abra station.

DAY 4

Dubai Park and Resort

Another first in the region, Dubai Park and Resort is an integrated resort that is comprised of three theme parks (Motiongate, Bollywood Park and Legoland) and one waterpark (Legoland waterpark).  Out of the 4, we tried Motiongate and Legoland.

Motiongate is a Hollywood inspired theme park. They have attractions for kids, like Melman go around and smurf studio tour. For those who wanted a little bit of thrill, not to much, try Madagascar mad pursuit.

I think the highlight of our Legoland tour is the replicas of the different landmarks in the world. What amazed us is that these replicas are all made of legos, they have structures of the top 10 tallest buildings in the world, Mosques, Pyramids, iconic structures like Burj Al Arab and other famous landmarks.

How to go to Dubai Parks

Nearest Metro station: Ibn Battuta 
Take a bus DPR1  going to Dubai Parks.

Tip:

The bus from Ibn Battuta to Dubai parks is not that frequent. 1 bus trip per hour, so make sure to check the bus schedule here.
In the event that you miss the bus, you can explore for the meantime the Ibn Battuta Mall. It has 6 different halls/court, China, India, Persia, Egypt, Tunisia, and Andalusia that you can choose from.

Opening Hours
MOTIONGATE- Saturdays to Wednesdays 11:00 – 20:00; Thursdays and Fridays 11:00 – 21:00
Bollywood Parks- Daily 14:00 – 23:00
LEGOLAND-  Saturdays to Wednesdays  10:00 – 18:00; Thursdays and Fridays 10:00 – 20:00
LEGOLAND Water Park- Daily 10:00 – 18:00

DAY 5

Desert Safari

After a tiring day in Dubai Park, give your self an enough time to relax and recover before going again to another fun activity. As much as we wanted to have a full-day itinerary, exploring theme park is really tiring plus we already spent 4 full days wandering around the UAE. Luckily, day 5 of this Dubai itinerary won’t need the early part of your day. Desert Safari is best to be done during the golden hour, that is why most of the tour agency offers this activity during the afternoon.

Here you can experience the thrill of dune bashing, sandboarding, camel riding, ATV and enjoy the performance of the belly dancers, fire dancers, and Tanoura performers.

Avail the discounted tour here – Desert Safari Hotel pick up

DAY 6

Dubai Mall

Do you know what is the largest mall base on its total area? Mall of Asia? No! its Dubai Mall 🙂 How big is it? Its size is only about 12 million square feet. 🙂 Yeahhh… that’s huge. No wonder that this mall contains about 1,200 shops, 120 restaurants and cafes, an ice rink, a game center, and a massive aquarium.

How to go to Dubai Mall

Metro Station: Dubai Mall. From the metro station, you need to walk for a few minutes. Just fol

Opening Hours: Daily 10 AM- 24:00

Palace Downtown

This may be the best place that can give you the picture-perfect intagrammable background of Burj Khalifa. To be honest, we really search for this place on the internet and we don’t know why we had a hard time identifying this location.

Palace Downtown is a 5-star hotel located near Dubai Foutain and Burj Khalifa. though its a hotel, we are lucky that the open space in front of the hotel is still open to the public.

How to go to Palace Downtown.

Once you reach the Dubai Fountain, Straight ahead to Souk Al Bahar. From there, find the exit signage going to the Palace Downtown.

Burj Khalifa

Save the best for last, right? Having a height of 829.8 meters and more than a 160 stories, Burj Khalifa is not only the tallest building in the world but it also holds the record for the tallest free-standing structure in the world, Highest outdoor observation deck in the world, Highest number of stories in the world, Elevator with the longest travel distance in the world and many more. This is truly a perfect example of how Dubai wanted to break the world records 🙂

We suggest that you take this opportunity to try and check out their observatory. Especially, if you don’t have fear of heights. There are 2 types of tickets for the observatory, the cheaper will take you to 124 and 125th floors while the other one will take you to their sky lounge which is on the 148th floor. Unfortunately for us, our budget only goes as high as the 125th floor but will make sure next time we can try the sky lounge on the 148th floor. Book in advance and get a discounted price here Dubai Observatory