What might be an otherwise ordinary day at home, believe me when I say that one of the things you will want to do in Dubai is this: go to the mall.
Yes. Really! Dubai is known for having the best malls in the world, and those in the know are correct. Below is a shot from Mall of the Emirates, recently crowned “retail destination of the year.” Head to a corner of this mall and you’ll find that famous SkiDubai, home to the world’s largest indoor ski slope, and the first ever indoor black diamond ski run.
November 2008 witnessed the opening of the largest mall in the world: The Dubai Mall. While Mall of America outside Minneapolis leads the pack in terms of US retailer space, The Dubai Mall is almost three times larger!
Now, unlike our suggestion of haggling for a better price in the gold souk, you are not as likely to get away with it in the more formalized setting of the mall. No worries – there is still no charge for window shopping. The latest and greatest fashions and technology can be found at the many malls throughout. Below is a shot from the Deira City Centre.
The emirate is even home to the Dubai Shopping Festival, a month-long panacea of shopping. If you sell it, people will buy it. And you can get most anything in Dubai, just don’t forget to declare it on your way home.