Nobody taught most of us how to read a payslip, understand a mortgage, or manage a budget when we were at school. We learned quadratic equations and the causes of the First World War and how to dissect a frog, and then we were released into an adult world of tax returns, insurance premiums, and […]

If you have been paying attention to Dubai news in the past few weeks, you might have noticed that the city seems to be running several major announcements simultaneously, the way a conductor leads an orchestra – everything happening at once, everything contributing to a single overwhelming impression. Flying taxis are launching. The country’s first […]

Let’s be honest – when someone tells you they went for a run inside a shopping mall at seven in the morning, your first instinct is probably to laugh. It sounds absurd. A little mad, even. But then you hear that over 40,000 people did exactly that last summer, that they collectively logged 120 million […]

You know that moment when you are trying to pay for something online, and you sit there waiting for a text message with a six-digit code, and the website’s thirty-second timer is counting down, and the code has not arrived yet, and then it arrives but you mistype one digit, and the whole thing times […]

Then: When Single-Use Plastic Was Simply Part of Life There was a time in Dubai’s recent history when the question of how something was packaged, disposed of, or recycled was barely a question at all. Plastic bags were handed out at supermarket checkouts without a second thought, in quantities that bore no rational relationship to […]

Then: A Working Culture Shaped by Necessity and Endurance In the decades before Dubai became the global city it is today, work was not something that came with boundaries, policies, or flexible arrangements. It was a matter of survival, and the culture that surrounded it reflected that reality with complete honesty. Fishermen rose before dawn […]

Then: When Dubai’s Roads Were Barely Roads at All It is difficult to overstate how primitive the road network of old Dubai truly was. In the 1950s and well into the 1960s, most of what passed for roads in the emirate were nothing more than compacted sand tracks worn into the desert floor by the […]

Then: Safety Built on Community and Presence In the early decades of Dubai’s existence as a modern settlement, the safety and security of the city rested not on technology, not on surveillance systems, and not on sophisticated law enforcement infrastructure, but on something far older and in many ways far more powerful – the tight-knit […]

Then: Summer in Dubai Was a Season to Escape For most of Dubai’s history, summer was not a season to be celebrated – it was a season to be endured, and if at all possible, escaped. The months of June, July, August, and September brought temperatures that regularly exceeded forty-five degrees Celsius, humidity levels that […]

Then: A City That Ran Entirely on Cash Not long ago, cash was the undisputed language of commerce in Dubai. Whether you were buying spices in the old souk, paying your landlord three months of rent in a single envelope stuffed with notes, settling a restaurant bill, or purchasing gold jewellery worth tens of thousands […]

Then: Property in Dubai When a Home Was Just a Home There was a time in Dubai’s history when the concept of property as an investment, as a financial instrument, as something to be bought and sold and leveraged and traded on international markets, would have been entirely alien to the people who lived there. […]

Then: The Long Road Between Emirates For most of the UAE’s history since its founding in 1971, travelling between the emirates meant one thing and one thing only – getting in a car and driving. There was no other option. No train, no inter-city bus of any reliability, no rapid transit connecting Abu Dhabi to […]

Then: Moving Around Dubai the Old Way For the greater part of Dubai’s history, the question of how to get from one place to another was answered by the same simple means that had served the people of the Arabian Peninsula for centuries. The camel carried goods and people across the desert. The donkey cart […]

Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) celebrated the remarkable achievement of the National Youth Orchestra Dubai’s Strings Camerata Orchestra following the successful conclusion of their string of debut performances across some of Vienna’s most prestigious concert halls, including the Wiener Konzerthaus, the Musikverein (Golden Hall), and the ORF RadioKulturhaus, becoming the first UAE-based orchestra […]

Dubai maintained its strong economic performance in the first quarter of 2026, with the emirate’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) reaching AED232 billion, representing a 2.4% increase from the same period last year. The performance reflects the strength, resilience, and adaptability of Dubai’s economy, driven by the diversity and integration of its economic activities, as well […]

The Everyday Problem Nobody Talks About Enough Everyone in Dubai has a metro story. The clean stations, the air conditioning, the punctuality that makes you feel like the city actually respects your time. But not everyone uses the metro, because not everyone lives or works near a metro station. For a huge number of people […]

flowork, the community-driven flexible workspace provider operating across Dubai Hills Business Park and Vision Tower, Business Bay, is contributing AED 325,000 worth of business support to Dubai’s small business community through a limited-time campaign for small businesses, startups, freelancers, entrepreneurs, consultants and growing teams across the city. In line with the Emirate’s “Dubai-it” philosophy of […]

Dubai’s residential market hit a new record for quarterly luxury home sales in Q1 2026, with 165 sales valued at over US$ 10 million, with another 131 homes sold during Q2 2026, including a record 26 homes changing hands for more than US$ 25 million, according to the latest analysis from global property consultancy Knight […]

From Jeff Bezos and Lewis Hamilton to Shah Rukh Khan, Naomi Campbell and members of royal families, Greek chef and entrepreneur Chef Sperxos has built a hospitality empire spanning 14 venues across the UAE, a private dining business serving the world’s elite, and a team of 10 private chefs operating across Greece. When some of the world’s […]

Then: What the Old Map of Dubai Showed If you were to find an old map of Dubai from the 1950s or early 1960s and lay it flat on a table, you would be looking at something that bears almost no resemblance to any modern representation of the city. The map would be almost entirely […]

According to the Julius Baer Global Wealth and Lifestyle Report 2026, Dubai stands out as a highly attractive and resilient regional hub for global wealth. Driven by shifting currency valuations that influence global living costs, the emirate delivers compelling competitive value for premium lifestyles, mirroring the broader Middle East’s strong wealth accumulation and upbeat investment […]

Then: Entertainment in the Desert Nights of the 1970s In the 1970s, entertainment in Dubai was a quiet, community-driven affair shaped by cultural tradition, religious observance, and the natural rhythms of desert life. There were no concert arenas, no theme parks, no cinemas showing international releases, and no global sporting events drawing tens of thousands […]

Then: Paper-Based Government and Manual Services in the 1990s As recently as the 1990s, interacting with the Dubai government meant navigating a world of paper forms, physical queues, rubber stamps, and manual processing systems that would be almost unrecognisable to a resident of the emirate today. Applying for a trade licence, renewing a visa, registering […]

Then: The Souk Era of Trade and Bargaining For centuries before the first shopping mall appeared on the Dubai skyline, the souk was the commercial heart of the city. These open-air and covered markets, clustered along the banks of Dubai Creek in the Deira and Bur Dubai districts, were where every transaction took place – […]

Under the directives  of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of the UAE, and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, Dubai Municipality has launched the world’s first AI-powered park design challenge, a pioneering initiative that will invite participants to […]

The Dubai Municipality has launched the world’s first AI-powered park design challenge, a pioneering pilot initiative to harness AI across urban planning, architecture, and park design. The project explores how an integrated ecosystem of AI tools can augment the entire design journey — from site analysis and user insights to concept generation, scenario testing, and […]

Dubai Health has launched “Dream-It, Dubai-It”, an interactive educational programme designed for children to explore the world of healthcare through hands-on experiences, creative workshops, and field visits that help them develop new skills and turn their ideas into impactful projects. The programme highlights Dubai Health’s commitment to providing immersive learning opportunities that enable children to […]

Then: The Blueprint and Vision Behind Burj Al Arab (1994) In 1994, the stretch of Jumeirah coastline where the Burj Al Arab now stands was nothing more than open sea and sandy beach. The idea that a hotel – not just any hotel but one that would redefine global luxury hospitality and become one of […]

Then: Mud-Brick Homes and Wind Towers of Old Dubai Before concrete, glass, and steel came to define Dubai’s skyline, the city was built from the earth beneath it. The traditional architecture of old Dubai was constructed primarily from coral stone, gypsum plaster, and sun-dried mud brick – materials sourced locally and shaped by centuries of […]

Then: The Simple Food Culture of Old Dubai Before Dubai became a city of celebrity chefs and Michelin-starred restaurants, its food culture was rooted in simplicity, tradition, and the natural bounty of the Arabian Gulf and the desert. For generations of Emiratis and the early trading communities that settled along the creek, food was sustenance […]

Dubai Police recorded a 99.9% score in the daytime safety perception index for 2025, according to the Security Quality of Life Survey conducted by the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre in cooperation with the Ministry of Interior. The result is part of the Security Quality of Life Index, in which Dubai Police achieved an overall […]

Then: Dubai’s First Hotels and Visitors in the 1970s In the 1970s, the concept of Dubai as a tourist destination would have seemed faintly absurd to most people outside the Gulf. The emirate was not on any international traveller’s radar, and the idea of visiting Dubai for leisure rather than business or trade had simply […]

Then: Jumeirah Beach as a Fishing Village in the 1950s In the 1950s, the stretch of coastline known today as Jumeirah was a quiet, sparsely inhabited strip of land running south of the Dubai Creek settlement along the Arabian Gulf. Small Emirati fishing villages dotted the shoreline at intervals, their simple palm-frond homes and fishing […]

Then: Dubai Police in the Early Days When the Dubai Police Force was formally established in 1956, it consisted of just a handful of officers tasked with maintaining order in a small trading town of a few thousand residents. The founding force was modest in every respect – limited in numbers, basic in equipment, and […]

Dubai Future Foundation and Amazon UAE today launched a strategic collaboration to provide a co-sponsored scholarship for Emirati students to join The Knowledge Society (TKS) Dubai Programme, a 10-month innovation programme designed to empower high-potential students aged 13-17 with the knowledge, skills, and mindset needed to thrive in a rapidly evolving digital landscape. It represents […]

Dubai has reinforced its position as the world’s leading destination for greenfield foreign direct investment (FDI) projects for the fifth consecutive year, according to data published by the Financial Times Ltd’s fDi Markets database. In 2025, Dubai delivered one of its strongest inward FDI performances since 2015 with total announced greenfield FDI projects rising to […]

Emirates customers have made more than one million connections to Starlink Wi-Fi since the service was introduced across the airline’s fleet 7 months ago, marking a major milestone in the evolution of inflight connectivity. More than a Petabyte of data has already been used by customers and feedback on the service has been exemplary – with many […]

Dubai’s real estate market in 2026 remains one of the most dynamic and closely watched property markets in the world. After a strong five-year rally that saw prices, rents, and transaction volumes surge, the market is now entering a more mature and selective phase. While growth continues, the pace is becoming more balanced, signaling a […]

His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of the UAE, and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, has approved new transformative strategies and projects with a budget of AED18 billion designed to enhance quality of life and shape a better future for […]

Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) announced that it has received six international recognition certificates from the European Organization for Excellence and Agility (EEA) in the fields of organizational agility and excellence, becoming the first cultural entity worldwide to receive this recognition, and the first entity regionally to achieve five-star ratings in the Organizational […]

Then: Dubai Creek as the Beating Heart of Trade If there is one geographical feature that made Dubai what it is today, it is Dubai Creek. This natural saltwater inlet, stretching approximately 14 kilometres inland from the Arabian Gulf, was not merely a body of water – it was the economic and social lifeblood of […]

Then: The Deira Gold Souk in the 1940s Long before Dubai became synonymous with glass towers and luxury malls, it was already building a reputation for one thing above all else – gold. The Deira Gold Souk, which traces its roots back to the 1940s, is one of the oldest continuously operating gold markets in […]

Emirates is preparing for busy departures from Terminal 3, Dubai International (DXB), as the summer holiday season gets underway. Starting this weekend, 3rd to 5th July, Emirates anticipates high volumes of departures and recommends customers plan ahead to ensure a smooth journey. Weekend travel is expected to remain consistently busy throughout the summer holiday period. […]

dnata, a global air and travel services provider, has been re-awarded a ground handling licence at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS) in the Netherlands, reinforcing its position at one of Europe’s most important aviation hubs. The award follows a competitive public tender by the airport operator and enables dnata to continue providing high-quality ground handling services […]

Dubai International (DXB) is heading into its summer peak, with around 3 million guests expected through its terminals in the first half of July. The peak begins with a surge in departures from 2 July as residents head off for the holidays. The busiest day is expected to be 12 July with over 225,000 guests, […]

Dubai’s real estate market continues to register exceptional demand for luxury properties, supported by growing confidence among local and international investors. This sustained momentum further reinforces the emirate’s position as one of the world’s most stable and attractive real estate investment destinations. Against this backdrop, Binghatti has announced penthouse sales totalling AED 270 million at […]

Emirates has unveiled a next-generation signature lounge concept that is being introduced and rolled out across its key cities globally this year, marking another milestone in the airline’s continued investment into elevating customer experience on-ground. The new design aesthetic has been revealed in the Emirates Lounge in Munich, as well as Frankfurt, with signature Emirates […]

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) continued to record one of the highest scores in the Sustainability Culture Index in 2025, based on a corporate survey involving about 4,000 of its employees. DEWA achieved a score of 92.33%, significantly outperforming the average of 63.9% recorded by the other participating entities. This reflects DEWA’s industry leadership […]

Then: Dubai’s Earliest Schools in the 1960s Formal education in Dubai before the 1960s was extremely limited, rooted primarily in small Quranic schools known as Kuttab, where children learned to read and recite the Quran alongside basic literacy and arithmetic. These informal settings, often held in mosques or the homes of religious teachers, represented the […]

Emirates is marking a significant milestone in the expansion of its cargo fleet by becoming the first airline cargo carrier to deploy the Boeing 777-300ERSF passenger to freighter converted aircraft. The aircraft (A6-EBK) will enter commercial service with a flight from Hong Kong to Dubai carrying over 100 tonnes of cargo. The converted Emirates Boeing […]

Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS) 2026 is set to become even more rewarding as Shopping Malls Group launches its highly anticipated summer promotion, “Shop, Win & Zoom Away”, offering shoppers the chance to win 10 brand-new Exeed LX SUVs throughout the DSS season. This year DSS promotion is running from 2 July to 30 August 2026, […]

flydubai, the Dubai-based carrier, announced today the publication of its inaugural Sustainability Report for 2025. Titled “fly forward 2025,” the report outlines the formal execution of a five-year sustainability strategy. The report is developed in reference to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards and aligns with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Structured across six […]

Then: Dubai Internet City at Launch (2000) When Dubai Internet City officially launched in October 2000, it was a statement of intent that few in the technology world fully understood at the time. The world was still reeling from the dot-com bubble that had inflated and was about to burst, and the idea of a […]

Then: Open Sea Before Reclamation (2001) In the year 2000, if you had stood on the Jumeirah coastline and looked out across the Arabian Gulf, you would have seen nothing but open water stretching to the horizon. There was no island, no palm-shaped outline visible from space, no Atlantis hotel rising from the sea. The […]

Dubai Holding Real Estate has introduced a dedicated Golden Visa and investor residency facilitation service at the Meraas and Nakheel sales centre, creating a more seamless journey for eligible property investors purchasing across its portfolio. The service brings residency guidance directly into the property sales journey, enabling customers to receive in-person support on eligibility, documentation […]

Dubai has reinforced its position as one of the world’s leading capitals of the sports economy, driven by an integrated strategic vision that has transformed sport into a vital economic sector with a growing contribution to gross domestic product, while supporting sustainable development goals and enhancing the emirate’s appeal for investment, tourism and business. The […]

Then: The Empty Desert of the 1990s It is almost impossible to stand on the Dubai Marina waterfront today and imagine what the same stretch of land looked like in the early 1990s. Where gleaming towers now pierce the sky, where yachts bob gently in a man-made canal, and where cafés and restaurants spill out […]

Then: Dubai’s Humble Airstrip in the 1960s In 1959, Dubai opened its very first airport – a simple sand and gravel airstrip located in the Deira district, with little more than a small terminal building, a windsock, and a handful of staff to manage operations. The entire facility was modest to the point of being […]