About 30 years ago, the only things you could buy in the United Arab Emirates were carpets, daggers, statuettes, national clothes and sweets. Hardly anyone could ever imagine that there would be huge shopping malls with the largest selection of goods in the world, where you can find literally everything you want. Shopping in the UAE is an integral part of any visit to this country, many people specifically come to the emirates just for the sake of it. In order to make your shopping experience a complete success, we have prepared a guide with tips that will be useful to everyone who enjoys shopping in the UAE.
Despite the fact that the infrastructure in the UAE is well-developed, there can often occur problems with transportation, as shopping centers occupy a fairly large area, and it can be a bit difficult to get to them. For this reason we advise you to take care of transport in advance and use the car rental services. Thus, having rented a car you can not only be mobile but also can comfortably carry out shopping, because you don’t have to think where to put all the purchases, as well as it significantly saves your time. Moreover, you can combine business with pleasure and rent a luxury car, for example by choosing a Rolls Royce rental in Dubai, your shopping experience is sure to be unforgettable.
Store opening hours
Now, we would like to give you some more general information that you need to know before you go shopping in the UAE. The first thing to remember is that most stores in the UAE are open daily from 10:00 am and close pretty early at 9:00 pm to 10:00 pm. However, on Fridays, stores generally open only in the afternoon and are closed by 10:00 p.m. to 0:00 a.m.
Discounts period
There is no doubt that the best time for shopping in the UAE is the sale season, which lasts from January to February. During the whole month discounts on goods and services in shopping malls reach about 60-70%. Also during the summer, from the end of June to the end of July in Dubai a shopping festival “Summer Surprises” takes place, when more than 40 shopping centers of the city reduce the prices of their products by about half, also in the evenings there are different performances and concerts, as well as lotteries, where you can win a luxury car.
The Best shopping districts in the UAE
Let’s start with the Baniyas square, which is located in the historical center of Dubai. This is the place where the shopping streets diverge in all directions. Going a little further, you can find the largest shopping center in the world, Dubai Shopping Mall. When it comes to Abu Dhabi, the best stores are located in the Downtown district. That is also the center of the city, where the major shopping malls, restaurants and souvenir stores are situated. One of the most popular tourist destinations in Sharjah is Al Wahda Road, there you can find not only stores but street markets as well.
We also advise paying attention to the local markets and don’t bypass them, that is the best place to buy local spices and seasonings in the UAE. There are also so-called flea markets, where you can find rare antiques, and vintage items.
National currency
The national currency of the UAE is the Dirham. However, it’s better to take dollars instead of euros to the country, because there is a big exchange rate for them. Another plus is that dollars are exchanged for dirhams at almost every corner, but we advise changing money only in official banks.
We encourage you to plan in advance your shopping in the UAE, as the number of stores in the country is huge and in order not to waste time it is better to make a list of things that you want to buy beforehand and find out in which stores they can be found. We wish you a great holiday, enjoy your shopping and have a great time!
