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Our cruise stopped in Dubai a couple of weeks ago and we didn't take the HOHO bus but I did hear that compared to the one in Cape Town which is around $17, the Dubai one was a rip off (Cape Town was a later port, hence the comparison). That's only hearsay though, but I also thought it sounded expensive when the reps at the port were handing out the brochures.

We caught a taxi back to the ship from the Dubai Mall and it was inexpensive so if you know what you want to see, a taxi may be a good option. Be prepared to spend a bit of time in traffic jams ;) as Dubai is very busy.

We went on a tour in a minibus which was organised by a fellow cruiser which is another option available.

Enjoy your time in Dubai whatever you decide to do. It's an amazing place.

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Weve used HOHOs in many different countries and Dubai is the most expensive by far. We went on it a few years ago and the price was nowhere near as high as it is now, IMHO it's not worth the inflated price to sit in city traffic . Taxis are the way to go

 

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Our cruise stopped in Dubai a couple of weeks ago and we didn't take the HOHO bus but I did hear that compared to the one in Cape Town which is around $17, the Dubai one was a rip off (Cape Town was a later port, hence the comparison). That's only hearsay though, but I also thought it sounded expensive when the reps at the port were handing out the brochures.

We caught a taxi back to the ship from the Dubai Mall and it was inexpensive so if you know what you want to see, a taxi may be a good option. Be prepared to spend a bit of time in traffic jams ;) as Dubai is very busy.

We went on a tour in a minibus which was organised by a fellow cruiser which is another option available.

Enjoy your time in Dubai whatever you decide to do. It's an amazing place.

 

Do you by chance have the name of the tour company for the minibus tour? We have a day in Dubai before getting on our ship and are looking for a tour to take us around to see the sites. Thanks for any help you can give me.

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Weve used HOHOs in many different countries and Dubai is the most expensive by far. We went on it a few years ago and the price was nowhere near as high as it is now, IMHO it's not worth the inflated price to sit in city traffic . Taxis are the way to go

 

Sent from my GT-P5210 using Tapatalk

 

I second this. No reason to use the overpriced HOHO in Dubai when taxis are so cheap.

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Hoho bus in Dubai are a waste of time. Taxis are the way to go. Cheap, clean, comfortable. And they go when you want to go. No need to wait for the bus.

One word of caution: at the Mega shopping malls, such as Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates taxi will only pick up from dedicated stops (well sign posted). There can be loooooong lines, especially on Friday and Saturday afternoons! A good solution would be to go to one of the hotels which are usually attached to the malls and take one of the hotel taxis. They are a little bit more expensive, but usually available.

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Do you by chance have the name of the tour company for the minibus tour? We have a day in Dubai before getting on our ship and are looking for a tour to take us around to see the sites. Thanks for any help you can give me.

 

A fellow passenger arranged the tour and he is still travelling in Africa but checking through my emails it appears the company was Forever Tourism. The driver/guide was friendly but he didn't have a microphone, so the person who sat next to him had to relay his commentary to the others and there was only 6 of us in total so this was a bit disappointing.

We were in Dubai on a Saturday (very, very busy) and after our trip up to the Burj Kalifa we managed to get a taxi from the Dubai Mall. As mentioned by another poster, there is a dedicated taxi stand downstairs. There was quite a long line, but it moved quite quickly however you wouldn't want to be 'sweating' to get back to the ship, so allow plenty of time.

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A fellow passenger arranged the tour and he is still travelling in Africa but checking through my emails it appears the company was Forever Tourism. The driver/guide was friendly but he didn't have a microphone, so the person who sat next to him had to relay his commentary to the others and there was only 6 of us in total so this was a bit disappointing.

We were in Dubai on a Saturday (very, very busy) and after our trip up to the Burj Kalifa we managed to get a taxi from the Dubai Mall. As mentioned by another poster, there is a dedicated taxi stand downstairs. There was quite a long line, but it moved quite quickly however you wouldn't want to be 'sweating' to get back to the ship, so allow plenty of time.

 

Thanks for the information. Any suggestions on what you consider must sees.

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Thanks for the information. Any suggestions on what you consider must sees.

 

That depends if Dubai is your only stop in the region or not.

DXB is good for glitz and glamour. The gigantic malls, gleaming and bizarrely designed skyscrapers, things like that.

There is not too much in the way of "Arabic" experience (apart from the locals mostly dressed in National dress).

I can be a good place to experience a 4WD desert safari with "dune bashing" and a short camel ride, and perhaps a dinner in a "Bedouin camp".

You will get more "Arabic" feel in Oman, if you go there.

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That depends if Dubai is your only stop in the region or not.

DXB is good for glitz and glamour. The gigantic malls, gleaming and bizarrely designed skyscrapers, things like that.

There is not too much in the way of "Arabic" experience (apart from the locals mostly dressed in National dress).

I can be a good place to experience a 4WD desert safari with "dune bashing" and a short camel ride, and perhaps a dinner in a "Bedouin camp".

You will get more "Arabic" feel in Oman, if you go there.

 

Thanks. We are going to Abu Dhabi, Fujairah and Oman and have booked a desert safari in one of them so any other thoughts on Dubai or any of these ports.

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Thanks. We are going to Abu Dhabi, Fujairah and Oman and have booked a desert safari in one of them so any other thoughts on Dubai or any of these ports.

 

http://Www.visitabudhabi.ae. :-)

Fujairah, I'd do a beach day.

Oman (Muscat): the ships organize fairly priced tours. Don't try to go sightseeing by taxi in Oman. You are likely to get severely ripped off. There are several very good private tour companies, but their prices are not a lot different from what the ships are asking. Not worth the hassle, I'd say.

Any tours that offer Nizwah fort or Narkhal fort would be nice, but there is a lot of driving involved. A visit to the Sultan Quaboos Grand Mosque (the various kings and dictators in these parts like to name the biggest places of worship after themselves) is interesting, if that sort of thing rocks your boat. A one hour visit is plenty. The Royal opera house is spectacular. The season is finished at the end of may until September, so you may only be able to see the outside. http://Www.rohmuscat.org.*****

The market in Mutrah (where the ships dock) is worth an hour or so. Be prepared to haggle, if you want to buy. Hey take Oman I Risls, of course or also UAE Dirhams. Crappy exchange rates for any other currency, but I guess some sops will take USD or EUR for larger purchases.

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http://Www.visitabudhabi.ae. :-)

Fujairah, I'd do a beach day.

Oman (Muscat): the ships organize fairly priced tours. Don't try to go sightseeing by taxi in Oman. You are likely to get severely ripped off. There are several very good private tour companies, but their prices are not a lot different from what the ships are asking. Not worth the hassle, I'd say.

Any tours that offer Nizwah fort or Narkhal fort would be nice, but there is a lot of driving involved. A visit to the Sultan Quaboos Grand Mosque (the various kings and dictators in these parts like to name the biggest places of worship after themselves) is interesting, if that sort of thing rocks your boat. A one hour visit is plenty. The Royal opera house is spectacular. The season is finished at the end of may until September, so you may only be able to see the outside. http://Www.rohmuscat.org.*****

The market in Mutrah (where the ships dock) is worth an hour or so. Be prepared to haggle, if you want to buy. Hey take Oman I Risls, of course or also UAE Dirhams. Crappy exchange rates for any other currency, but I guess some sops will take USD or EUR for larger purchases.

 

Thank you. This is good information. We are sailing with Regent so excursions are included so it really is about what to see and not about price. Appreciate your advice.

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We were in both Muscat and Dubai on our recent cruise.

We enjoyed our time in Dubai, but there is no comparison with Muscat.

Don't miss the sail in to Muscat, the view of the craggy hills and the Incense burner perched on a rocky outcrop is just beautiful. The old forts were also lit up and the whole scene was just magical.

We enjoyed a ship's tour but unfortunately as it was Friday, we could only view the Mosque from the outside. Nevertheless it was a beautiful building as is the Opera House. We had fun in the Mutrah Souq and found that the vendors we haggled with did accept US$.

We loved Muscat and would have liked to have seen more of Oman - perhaps next time.

In Dubai it's hard to recommend a 'must see' IMHO but if you like views then a trip up to the 124th floor of the Burj Khalifa is spectacular. It's best booked on line. The Gold Souq is also interesting for the sheer glitz. The Dubai Creek is also worth a look as is some of the buildings such as the Burj al Arab and Atlantis. To enter Burj al Arab you must have a booking such as for lunch or afternoon tea. I heard afternoon tea was wonderful as was lunch but lunch with wines came with a hefty price tag so beware!

People who went 'dune bashing' loved it so that's another option.

Dubai is also very, very busy with gazillions of hotels and tourists so to me, it's not a relaxing place but I'm sure lots of others would love it especially for the shopping malls.

Enjoy your time in both places however you choose to spend it.

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We did Dubai by Ho Ho and also on a second visit by taxi. Depends what you want to see. This time around we are using a guide with tours by locals dot com.

 

As for Muscat, we had a wonderful and affordable tour there with a local taxi. No problem and we really enjoyed it. We are planning to do the same next Oct. when we go back.

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We took a local taxi and did our own tour in Muscat. Don't get one from the port, you'll get a better price if you walk down to the taxi rank near the souk

 

 

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Depends on when you are visiting -- temperature can be oppressive...

Right now near 100 degrees.

 

My favorites --

 

1. Gold souk

2. Shopping you have lots of choices -- I prefer the Dubai Mail to Emirates as you can go to the top of the Burj and have dinner by the dancing fountains.

3. If you want a ice Middle East dinner by the creek -- Heritage Village (aka Diving Village) is nice on a cool evening.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The Dubai RTA not only has taxis to get you around, there are also water taxis and water ferries. Leaving at 11 am either from Al Gubaiba Station in the creek area or the Marina Mall station you can cruise along the sea seeing all of the great architecture that makes up the Dubai skyline. In the afternoon at 3pm, you can take the water ferry from the Marina Mall Station for a 60 minute ride that passes Atlantis for some great pictures. Both stations are accessible by metro. The creek area stop is Al Gubaiba on the Green line and for the Marina Mall Station it is a bit closer to get off at the JLT (Jumeirah Lake Towers)station on the Red Line. It is well signed directing you to Pier 7 for the water ferry and about a 10 minute walk. Tickets can be purchased at the booth in front of where the ferry is docked for either silver or gold class (50 AED or 75 AED respectively) The boat is air conditioned and snacks available for purchase. You will also be able to go out on the stern to take pictures. Remember that on Friday the metro doesn't start running until 2pm so you will need to take a taxi to the station for the 11am water ferry.

 

http://www.rta.ae/wpsv5/wps/portal/rta/services/public-transport/marine/!ut/p/c5/04_SB8K8xLLM9MSSzPy8xBz9CP0os3gfd9cAfwM3M0N_PydnA0_TEFNjR0NPAyAAykeaxRvgAI4GBHSHg-wD6TcN9gmz8LZwMXA2CvMzNDIxhpoAk8dpvp9Hfm6qfkFuhEGWiaMiAEwM8Qg!/dl3/d3/L2dJQSEvUUt3QS9ZQnZ3LzZfTEdFUE8wRjYxMFVSMzBJNUQyTUhOSDMwUzU!/

 

Another interesting place to visit between Dubai and Abu Dhabi is the falcon hospital. Sometimes that is an option on ship tours.

 

http://www.falconhospital.com/

 

And of course the not to be missed attraction in Abu Dhabi is the Sheik Zayed Grand Mosque.....it is magnificent! Appropriate dress is required and there are free tours at 11 am except on Friday.

 

http://www.szgmc.ae/en/plan-your-visit

Edited by lilybob
correction
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  • 2 months later...
Our cruise stopped in Dubai a couple of weeks ago and we didn't take the HOHO bus but I did hear that compared to the one in Cape Town which is around $17, the Dubai one was a rip off (Cape Town was a later port, hence the comparison). That's only hearsay though, but I also thought it sounded expensive when the reps at the port were handing out the brochures.

We caught a taxi back to the ship from the Dubai Mall and it was inexpensive so if you know what you want to see, a taxi may be a good option. Be prepared to spend a bit of time in traffic jams ;) as Dubai is very busy.

We went on a tour in a minibus which was organised by a fellow cruiser which is another option available.

Enjoy your time in Dubai whatever you decide to do. It's an amazing place.

 

The last time we were in Dubai we got the double decker On-Off bus. It was great. Look it up on line for boarding spots.

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