Dubai: The Desert Jewel

Located on the Arabian Peninsula, on the southern coast of the Persian Gulf, the largest of the seven emirates in the United Arab Emirates—Dubai, is nicknamed, “The Desert Jewel.”

And rightly so; its story has evolved in the space of a sole generation from a lazy Gulf port into a glittering metropolis, the fastest growing desert city on the planet.

Dubai’s label has an unembellished meaning for the traders who were responsible for this growth boom. A haven in the middle of the desert, Dubai is rapidly becoming the world’s playground, where bigger is always considered better.

Dubai’s attractions welcome over 2 million visitors every year. Tourists sunbathe with dolphins while staying on the world’s largest man-made islands, enjoying the view from the tallest building on the planet.

Behind the modern elegance of Dubai, the city has a rich history and is a display in the Middle Eastern and Islamic culture.

The volume and scale of construction in the city dwarfs humanity. Looking up at the rising skyline, one feels a rush of vertigo. As you look up, the outline of the future is already detectible, extending out into the sea or rising tall into the air.

On the ground below, people of all nationalities go about their everyday routines, pursuing their business in their own particular styles: Indian, Russian, British or Saudi. Dubai today is a series of corresponding universes—all run by the Sheikhs of Dubai. The sheikhs are the puppet masters, creating the Rome of the 21^st century.

Dubai’s oil is not infinite. The city has far lesser supplies than its capital emirate Abu Dhabi and therefore the sheikhs empowered Dubai with real-estate investment and finance mixed with a prominence on resort tourism, which resulted in an economic boom.

But Dubai's tourism is not just any tourism. It’s a tourism that attracts week-long visitors, weekend vacationers and second-homers too. The futuristic expectation of Dubai’s tourism entrepreneurs is global; already more of Dubai’s GDP comes from tourism than from oil.

It may have started with nothing but dunes surrounding it, but today Dubai is the city of bling, gold souks, luxury and skyscrapers, one towering over the other.

Dubai has established a reputation as a leading light in luxury travel as well as being the most appropriate place to bask in Middle Eastern culture. Whether your perfect holiday involves sun and culture or fabulous food and activities, you will find it all in this desert jewel.