The hook
A city that rose from a small pearling and trading port to a skyline of record-breaking towers in a single generation, headlined by the tallest building on earth, all air-conditioned excess on the edge of the desert.
01Why it's worth it
Dubai is a monument to ambition and money. In a few decades it turned a modest creekside trading town into a global hub of superlatives: the Burj Khalifa, by a wide margin the tallest building in the world, palm-shaped artificial islands, enormous malls with indoor ski slopes and aquariums, and ever-more extravagant hotels. It is slick, safe, and a little soulless, and the manufactured spectacle is either the appeal or the turn-off depending on your taste. The more human, interesting side is the older Dubai around the creek: the Al Fahidi heritage district of wind-tower houses, the gold and spice souks, and the abras, little wooden ferries that still cross the water for a few cents. Underneath the glamour lies an uncomfortable reality of the migrant labour that built it, worth being aware of. As a stopover or a first taste of the Gulf, it delivers polish and heat; for depth, look to the old town and beyond.
02How to experience it
Do the Burj Khalifa and a mall or beach for the spectacle, but balance them with old Dubai: cross the creek by abra, wander the Al Fahidi quarter and the souks, and eat where the migrant communities do. Escape to the desert for a dune drive. Go in the cooler months.