My Defnitely Dubai Experience- Part 1

This post came a bit late since work has been so busy when we came back from Dubai.

This is my own version of "72 hours in Dubai" , it is basically like the 36 hours series of the New York Times. When you are faced with very little time to tour a place, the best way to go around the city is the hop on hop off tour which will bring you to all the tourist destinations. I have discovered the Hop on Hop off in Kuala Lumpur and again with the Les Car Rouges in Paris, good thing there is the Big Bus Tour in Dubai. It is quite expensive compared to the Metro but it saves you the hassle to decipher the map and it saves time so you can enjoy the place more rather that get lost finding your way.

We chose a hotel that is strategically located near the airport and Big Bus Tour Terminal, and there is only one hotel that satisfies both- The Raffles Dubai. I made a separate post why I chose Raffles for my stress free holiday and you can read it here. 

Of the 21 stations of the Big Bus Tour, only the Wafi Station (where Raffles is located) has both stop for the City Tour and the Beach Tour. The 48-hr ticket for the Big Bus Tour costs 295 dirhams/adult and 130 dirhams/child (under 15 yrs old). You can check their routes, download maps and see other packages on their website.

there is my husband rushing to get a good seat

Our first day was devoted to the blue route or the beach tour. I was so excited to know that Mercato Mall can be accessed in one of the stops. We always see Mercato on TV and it looks very enticing. I was surprised that no one hopped off at the Mercato stop- only "us". The stop was a bit far from the mall and one still needs to cross the road since the mall is located on the opposite side.

The Mercato- An Italian Inspired Shopping Mall

We never regret doing a little walk because Mercato is really worth visiting for. You can check their website to see what the mall has to offer. Mercato is such a lovely place to take pictures.. here are some pics we took inside the mall.

my husband and my lovely daughter having fun

can you see us?

 After our Mercato visit we went back to the Big Bus station across the street. It was very hot since it is almost 12nn and still summer in Dubai. Thank God the bus stations are airconditioned. I was amazed how advanced Dubai is.

Me and my daughter comfortably seated while waiting for the next Big Bus.

Contrary to their advertisements, big bus does not come very 30 minutes, I felt we waited longer. The inside of the waiting area does not inform passengers the time of the next arriving bus unlike in Paris where the time is flashed in every station.  

Our next stop- the famous Burj Al Arab. Here are some of our encounter with the iconic Dubai Structure. The Big Bus stops near Jumeirah beach for a minute to give tourists like us a chance to take pictures

Up close on the other side of the road near Souq Madinat Jumeira.

After the stop at Burj Al Arab it is already lunch time and our stomach is rumbling. We hopped off at another stop called Souq Madinat Jumeira to find a place to eat. The place looks like any other Arab structure from the outside but it was breathtaking on the inside. From here one can ride a boat to tour the Madinat Jumeira River and nearby hotels. One ride costs75 dirhams and will last for an hour.

one of the wooden boats that will bring you through the Madinat Jumeira River

surreal and breath taking

me and my husband on board a wooden boat

We stopped for a while to fill our gastronomic desire and settled at Trader's Vic for lunch we were attracted to the exotic ambiance the place emits hence we dropped down our first choice -Toscana which is an Italian Restaurant located just opposite Trader's Vic. Of course I need to do a lot of bargaining for my daughter since she really loves Italian food so much. You can check Trader Vic's opening hours or book a table here.

finally a treat for my taste buds.

Okay please let me eat first and continue my definitely Dubai experience Part 2.