Craig C. Leslie Shopping in Dubai is one of the favourite pastimes of tourists to the UAE. The country’s largest emirate offers everything from perfumes to technology, but not all products are bargain and reliable.
You should go to Dubai for quality cosmetics, exotic fruits and dried fruits, various spices, cheap bags and suitcases, gold jewellery at the price of silver in the CIS and diamonds. The quality of clothing in the UAE is high, but you must not go here for brand-name goods (outlet stores are not included) – their prices here are not different from ours. The same is true for home appliances, it doesn’t make sense to buy them in Dubai outside of the clearance period.
Of course, shopping in one of the world’s richest countries is not cheap, but thanks to low taxes on imported products, shopping in Dubai is more affordable than in many European countries. Where do you buy quality items in the UAE? What is the difference between outlet or mall and which Dubai shopping malls are really worth visiting? Everything you need to know about local shopping is in this article.
Dubai Mall
You can stay in the mall for several days at a time. It has everything:
- The largest gold market – 220 shops;
- Theme Park – 7,600 m2;
- Fashion Island – 70 luxury brand shops;
- Children’s Entertainment Centre – covering 8,000 m2;
- Several cinemas;
- A huge oceanarium and much more.
Dubai Mall of the Emirates
Dubai’s second-largest shopping centre is 600,000 sqm. It has boutiques ranging from high-end brands such as Debenhams, CK, Versace, D&G to budget brands such as H&M, Zara and more. The Mall of the Emirates houses a hypermarket offering a huge range of fresh produce and one of several dozen cafés offering a delicious lunch.
The Mall of the Emirates is most appreciated by travellers because of its many and varied entertainment options. It is home to the Middle East’s first indoor ski resort, Ski Dubai, which is 3,000 square metres in size and can accommodate 1,500 people at a time. All year round its snowboarding tracks, toboggan tracks and ski trails are covered with artificial snow and the temperature throughout the Ski Dubai, including the ice caves, remains at -5℃.
The Mall of the Emirates also has a cinema, several amusement parks and an art centre. You can play billiards and bowling, go on rides, visit a quest, play a few rounds of golf or relax in one of the spas. There is always room for your car on one of the floors of the 3-level car park.
Ibn Battuta Mall
Ibn Battuta Mall in Dubai is not just a mall, it’s a real landmark in the UAE. It isn’t huge in size or low in price, its highlight is the interior design. The country’s most beautiful Mall is named after the traveller Ibn Battuta and is divided into 6 areas that he visited: Egypt, China, Persia and others. Each area has its own symbols presented in the form of fountains, sculptures or paintings – Ibn Battuta Mall gives you a closer look at the culture of the Ancient East.
Of course, tourists come to this mall not just for beauty, but also for shopping – it is one of the few places that offers quality items at affordable prices. Apart from the brand-name boutiques with the best clothes and shoes, tourists often visit the stockists and outlets located on the ground floor of the mall, where they can buy last season’s goods at a great discount. In addition, Ibn Battuta Mall has a Carrefour supermarket, Dubai’s only Imax cinema, several spas, bowling and karaoke, an amusement park, children’s playrooms, many restaurants and cafes and a delicious ice-cream shop. Parking is free inside the mall.
Wafi City Mall
A shopaholic’s dream and home to the best jewellers in the East, Wafi City Mall and its 230 boutiques and outlets attract more than 30 million visitors a year. It features high-end brands such as Chanel, Givenchy and Versaci as well as mass market items such as Zara, H&M and Bershka. There are also 4 entertainment centres for the whole family, offering attractions, bowling, billiards and golf, as well as a trip to outer space, solving the riddles of the X-Space quest. Carrefour is located on the ground floor.
The Wafi City Mall is decorated in the style of Ancient Egypt, and every day at 9.30pm there is a light show, The Return of the Pharaoh, which is very popular with younger children.
Marina Mall
Dubai Marina Mall is a large shopping and entertainment centre located on the city’s waterfront at Sheikh Zayed Road. Among its competitors, it stands out for its calm and quiet atmosphere, lack of queues and noisy crowds. Dubai Marina Mall has 160 outlets, including several budget outlet stores, Patrizia Pepe and Miss Sixty, discount sports and casual clothing stores such as Nike, Adidas and Lacoste, home appliances and electronics shops and a large Waitrose supermarket. Here you can find a lot of goods produced locally. Dubai Marina Mall offers an ice rink, a cinema, a theme park and a variety of restaurants.
Dubai Marina Mall is open every day from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. and until 24 p.m. on Thursday and Friday. The mall can be reached by underground, exit at the station of the same name, by bus or taxi. For a list of brands and café names featured in the mall, please click here – www.dubaimarinamall.com.
Outlet Village
One of Dubai’s youngest outlets has become a favourite shopping destination among budget-conscious tourists. It is here that you can find designer and branded items with discounts of up to 90%, buy cheap textiles and home decorations, have fun in an indoor park or relax in one of the cafes. The most popular brands for tourists in The Outlet Village are Michael Kros, New Balance, Carolina Herrera, Hugo Boss and Armani.
The Outlet Village Dubai is a corner of Italy in the East – its architecture echoes that of the UNESCO World Heritage town of San Gimignano.
Outlet Mall Dubai
If you want to find branded goods at the lowest prices in the UAE, head to Dubai Outlet Mall. There are no luxury eateries or individual boutiques with Gucci items, but there is a huge selection of quality clothing and shoes left over from unsold collections. Unlike The Outlet Village, when you go shopping at Dubai Outlet Mall, you won’t be able to buy clothes from luxury brands. Instead, the mall offers an array of mass-market items at affordable prices, which are complemented by great deals on every second or third item on the check for free.
