Culture & Guides
Neighbourhoods, galleries, kitchens and the people shaping the city day to day.
Latest in Culture & Guides
Dubai Is Coming Back Outside: When the City's Seasonal Attractions Reopen After Summer 2026
Global Village opens October 14, Dubai Safari Park opens October 12, and Miracle Garden, Garden Glow and Ripe Market follow through autumn. Here's every confirmed and expected reopening date for Dubai's 2026-27 outdoor season.
Etihad Rail Is Coming to Dubai: What Changes From September 30
On September 30, Etihad Rail's Dubai station opens at Al Yalayis, connecting the city to a national passenger railway for the first time and linking it to Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and beyond.
Dubai Landmarks Set for Major Reopenings as the City Enters Its New Season
Global Village and Dubai Safari Park are set to return in October, while the Museum of the Future and Burj Al Arab remain closed for major transformations.
Dubai Is Hiring Again. So Why Is Finding a Job Still So Hard?
The UAE labour market is recovering, but employers are more selective, competition remains intense, and AI is changing what it means to be employable.
Vaccinations in Dubai: Where to Go, What It Costs, and Which Certificate Actually Counts
A vaccination certificate is only valid abroad if the clinic that issued it was authorised to issue it. A practical guide to clinics, school records, the yellow card and the ten-day rule that catches travellers out.
The Dubai Driving Licence: A Verified 2026 Guide to Getting, Exchanging and Renewing One
Fifty-seven countries can swap a licence without a road test, but the federal list says fifty-two, and the gap catches people out. A verified guide to every route, cost and document, checked against RTA's own figures.
Dubai Food Culture: A Complete Guide to Emirati Cuisine, Customs, and Where to Eat
From Bedouin roots to a 200-nationality melting pot - a complete guide to Dubai food culture, traditional Emirati dishes, dining customs, and where to eat authentic food.
About Culture & Guides
Dubai is often described as a city without a past, which is a convenient story for people who have not looked. The creek was a working harbour long before the towers arrived, the coral-and-gypsum houses of Al Fahidi still stand, and the pearling economy that funded them shaped families who are still here. This section covers the parts of the city that do not photograph as easily as the skyline.
We write neighbourhood guides that assume you want to walk rather than be driven - Al Fahidi and Al Seef, Deira and the gold and spice souks, Satwa and Karama, Alserkal Avenue and the warehouse galleries of Al Quoz. We cover the food properly: Emirati staples built from dates, camel milk, rice and Gulf fish, and the two hundred nationalities who have since layered their own cooking on top, from a Michelin tasting menu to a two-dirham shawarma.
Culture here also means the institutions - the museums, the biennials, the independent bookshops and the arts organisations that have grown up in the last two decades - and the ordinary customs that a visitor gets wrong: how Ramadan reshapes the day, how majlis hospitality works, when to use your right hand. Every guide is reported on foot and dated, because a listing that has quietly gone stale is worse than no listing at all.