One of the most popular destinations for shopping tourism, where prices for goods can be significantly lower than in the country of origin of goods, is the United Arab Emirates. True, you can hear quite conflicting reviews about goods and prices from tourists who went shopping. Someone is surprised by the cheapness of things, and someone frowns at the fact that everything is very expensive. Let's take a virtual shopping tour of the malls in Dubai, the capital of the UAE, where there are more than 40 shopping centers, to see who is right.
Dubai Malls
The resort capital of the United Arab Emirates has six of the best malls. In addition to shops and boutiques, they have cafes and restaurants, salons and children's entertainment centers, and a lot of things to see, try and buy…
- One of the most visited places in the capital - "Dubai Mall". It is located in the prestigious Downtown area next to the Khalifa Tower.
- Emirates Mall in Dubai ishuge shopping areas and the amazing Sky Dubai indoor complex.
- "Wafi City Mall" - a magnificent building in the form of an Egyptian pyramid. Famous for luxury boutiques.
- Bur Juman is a huge shopping mall with a wonderful interior. It's spacious and not crowded.
- "Deira City Center" - a shopping center from which you will not leave without buying. This is evidenced by the reviews of tourists who visited it.
- "Ibn Batuta Shopping Mall" is recognized as the most beautiful mall in Dubai.
In each of the shopping centers, tourists can find goods of world famous brands. Buyers in Dubai are attracted by the service on the verge of fantasy and the opportunity to purchase goods at a price lower than in the country of origin.
Holiday sales
Buying goods in Dubai is profitable at any time of the year. Since it is an open port, import duties are low. But to make your shopping tour less expensive, go on a trip for the holidays, during which mass sales are held. It is about them that tourists who have visited the Emirates write in reviews.
In the United Arab Emirates, shopping festivals are held annually, during which tourists can purchase any product with big discounts. At the Dubai Shopping Festival, which lasts all of January, and the Dubai Summer Surprise, which runs from July 1 to mid-August, discounts can reach up to 70%. All malls in Dubai during the festival attract buyers with a win-win lottery and attractive promotions ona wide range of products.
Promotions cover a wide range of product categories and brands. A large number of promotions and sales take place during the Eid al-Fitr holiday (Eid al-Fitr). The date of the celebration changes every year, so before going on a shopping tour, you need to get information about holidays in the UAE at the tourist center.
Mall of the Emirates
One of the most visited malls is the Mall of the Emirates - the flagship shopping center and the largest resort in the region. Since its opening in 2005, the Mall of the Emirates has seen continued growth and impressive demand from retailers.
Over the past seven years, the annual number of visitors to the Mall of Emirates has increased by an average of 8-10% per year. The massive Mall of the Emirates houses 535 international retail brands, including more than 80 luxury stores. The area of the shopping center is 233,467 sq. m.
The mall's main stores are Apple Store, Boutique 1, Carrefour, Harvey Nichols, Home Center and others. Among them, Carrefour is a large hypermarket. It has everything from food, to furniture, clothing, photo and video equipment to camping equipment, garden equipment and children's products.
Reviews from vacationers
A large number of tourist reviews are devoted to shopping in the Mall of Emirates. It is convenient and compact, travelers say. Here you can find goods of international andlocal brands. Mountains of things and chain European stores amaze with their abundance. In the Mall of Emirates you can buy goods for children with good discounts. In August, there are discounts on the purchase of goods necessary for school: from clothes and shoes to school supplies. It is unlikely that anyone will leave the Mall of Emirates without a purchase.
People go to the United Arab Emirates not only for shopping. Basically, this is a combination of a good family vacation and shopping. The travel agency's extraordinary offer includes the Magic Planet family entertainment area, the 14-screen VOX cinema, and the world-famous Ski Dubai. It strikes, especially children, the entertainment area and the indoor ski slope Ski Dubai in the Emirates, which do not know the cold winter. The roomy theatre, Dubai Community arts center and over 95 international restaurants and cafes are in demand.
Dubai Mall
Located in the heart of the prestigious district of the capital of the United Arab Emirates, a huge shopping center in size, is part of the Burj Khalifa complex. The cost of the building is 20 billion dollars. There are 1200 shops in the mall. More than 80 million visitors shop here every year.
The popularity of the Dubai Mall shopping center (a photo of the open-air site located in it is placed below in the article), like any of the malls in the UAE, is associated not only with shopping, but also with the entertainment component. In the shopping center, you can just walk, admire the beauty and richness of the design. But if tourists have a goal -to make a large purchase of goods, it is advisable to go to small shopping centers that are far from tourist areas, since the prices for goods in mall stores are higher than on the outskirts.
One of the mall's unique features is The Village, an open-air streetscape. Here you can choose denim from a rich collection of denim brands. If you believe the reviews, the Dubai Mall has excellent conditions for relaxing in restaurants and cafes and walking along the alleys with street landscapes without leaving the mall.
Children will enjoy the Candylicious sweet shop, which is considered the largest in the world. On its shelves you can see confectionery from all over the world. The mall is expanding to accommodate even more shoppers.
List of stores in Russian
Shops and boutiques of such designer brands have settled in Dubai Mall: Roberto Cavalli, Versace, Hermes, Galiano. They are very similar to museums with luxurious decor. Shopaholics will be happy to visit this mall - the largest center of shopping, entertainment and recreation. More than 70 branded stores are represented for lovers of high fashion. This is a real paradise for connoisseurs of fashionable clothes, shoes, accessories.
The choice of goods is large. Topping the list of Dubai Mall stores are Bloomingdale and Galeries Lafayette. They feature the best Western fashion brands in the Middle East. It is impossible to stop and leave without a purchase,tourists share their impressions in reviews. Depending on the purpose of shopping, there are a number of stores worth visiting:
- "And other stories" - shoes for women and accessories;
- "New items and gifts" - souvenirs and accessories;
- "For all people" - denim store;
- "2100% capri" - clothing;
- "Abdullah Hussein Khunji Man" - Arabic clothing for men;
- "Abdul Samad Al Kurashi" - perfumes, perfumes, incense;
- "Adidas" - sportswear.
Retail
Many world-class shopping centers allow the country to dominate several international rankings and attract more and more visitors. A growing population and an appetite for unique experiences among both locals and international visitors ensured that the country's retail sector had a very favorable 2018, with growth momentum carried over to 2019.
Shopping The Dubai Mall offers an unparalleled retail experience combined with world-class dining and entertainment. In particular, The Fashion Avenue, an area dedicated to high fashion, is currently expanding, positioning Dubai as the fashion capital of the Middle East. On Fashion Avenue, as in many stores in the mall, you can check out the latest collections of clothing from world famous designers and brands and purchase the latest designer shoes.
Souk Market
Notless colorful is the Suk market. In the shops located on its territory, tourists can buy handicrafts, jewelry made by local craftswomen, traditional Arab clothes. Those who are interested in gold jewelry can find them in this market. In Dubai alone, the gold market has more than two hundred stores. Gold items in the United Arab Emirates are the cheapest in the world.
How to get to the mall?
There are three ways to get to the shopping center: by metro, by bus and by car.
The station you need to get to by metro is Burj Khalifa. After leaving the subway, you should go along the pedestrian bridge leading from the subway to the shopping center. A special bus also runs from the metro station, taking passengers to the mall.
Two buses: No. 27 and No. 29 follow the "Dubai Mall".
Drive along the Sheikh Zayed Road to the road junction. The landmark that is visible from this place is the tall Burj Khalifa skyscraper. There is a shopping center next to it.
