We arrived in Dubai after a five‑hour direct flight from Nairobi. Air Arabia turned out to be a great airline — surprisingly good entertainment options, a kids’ meal box, and one new experience for us: an Arabic prayer over the speakers before takeoff. Once we sorted out our rental car and stepped outside the airport at 10 p.m., it felt like walking straight into a sauna. The city greeted us with 44°C (111°F) heat at night. Every time you step outside, it’s a literal slap of heat and humidity.
On one of our tours, a guest asked why the city looked so smoggy. The guide explained it wasn’t smog — it was steam. It’s so hot and humid that your glasses fog up like you’ve leaned over a pot of boiling water. We’ve been swimming and staying indoors as much as possible, but that heat is always waiting for you. It makes everything harder: sweat dripping down your back as you walk to the car, drying off from a swim only to feel sticky again moments later.
Our hotel — a Hilton near the Burj Khalifa — turned out to be incredibly fancy and a welcome reprieve from the heat. But after enjoying all the space in our Nairobi apartment, transitioning to a one‑room hotel with a single bathroom has been tough. It’s beautiful, but not kid‑oriented in any way: no kids’ areas, no clubs, and the kind of place where you feel like you need to constantly shush your children. After weeks of camps, space, and independence in Nairobi, being together 24/7 in tight quarters has been a shock to the system.
The cost of accommodations gave us a false sense of how expensive Dubai would be. Our fancy, relatively large hotel room was only $150 a night, so we thought things might be reasonable. Nope. Everything else seems to run 1.5–3× more expensive than at home. We were running low on sunscreen and stopped into a pharmacy — $80 for sunscreen. We’d read that sunscreen is pricey in Thailand and that you should bring your own, but I think the exception should be: unless you’re coming from Dubai, because surely it’s not this expensive anywhere else.
Eventually we stopped trying to do the math and accepted that we have to eat, no matter the cost. But every meal, every activity, every little toy is just so expensive, and it’s draining. After saying yes so often in Nairobi, it’s exhausting to constantly say no here. Being in such close quarters, we finally caved and took the girls to a play place for a few hours just to give everyone a break. Tickets were $80 per kid. The place was cool, with unique areas and shows, but wow. Coming straight from Nairobi, where we got so much more value for our money, makes the contrast even sharper.
Renting a car while we were here was absolutely the right choice. The rental was surprisingly cheap (~$200), driving feels similar to Toronto, and having our own transportation has been invaluable. Still, driving in a new place adds stress: unfamiliar signs, aggressive drivers, finding parking — all contributing to the general “Dubai intensity.”
Okay, enough complaining. Here are some things we’ve learned and genuinely enjoyed:
One of the highlights was a desert tour — though it took a lot of convincing ourselves to go. It’s just so hot, and we’ve had a string of hit‑or‑miss tours lately. But I really wanted to make it happen, and I’m glad we did. The tour company did a great job keeping you cool: moving you from an AC’d car to an AC’d building, to a quick camel ride, then dune bashing back in the AC’d car, followed by a quick sandboard and photo op before jumping back inside again. It was hot as a pistol, but we couldn’t come all this way and just go from pool to mall to restaurant. I’m really glad we pushed ourselves.
We also did a city tour and learned a lot. Thirty percent of the world’s cranes are in Dubai — the amount of construction is staggering. Eighty percent of residents are foreigners. English is everywhere. Citizenship is extremely difficult to obtain; even being born here doesn’t grant it. Dubai is one of the safest places in the world, with incredibly low crime rates. You can leave anything anywhere and it will still be there when you return. Apparently most police are undercover, so everyone is always on their best behavior.
We saw the fountain and light show outside the Burj Khalifa — the tallest building in the world — and it was magical.
And our hotel really is amazing. Possibly the nicest we’ve ever stayed in. The breakfast buffet, which is included, is phenomenal. I literally fall asleep looking forward to it.
We’re in Dubai for eight days. The first half has been good, but really draining. In one quick plane ride, we lost our space, childcare, beautiful weather, and reasonable prices. Dubai Part 2 is incoming — four days at Legoland — and we’ll report back on how it goes.
