Burj Al Arab and Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai
Part of the full Dubai From DXB: Burj Khalifa and the Old Creek
Dubai’s Jumeirah coast puts the sail-shaped Burj Al Arab, a 90-minute tour inside it, the canal-laced souk at Madinat Jumeirah and a free public beach with a direct view of the hotel within walking distance of each other.
Burj Al Arab, on its own island off Jumeirah
Burj Al Arab stands 321 metres tall on an artificial island about 280 metres off the Jumeirah shore, joined to it by a private bridge. The architect Tom Wright, then at Atkins, designed it to look like the sail of a dhow under way, and it opened in 1999. Without a room or a restaurant booking, the only way through the gatehouse on the bridge is a tour.
The Inside Burj Al Arab tour lasts about 90 minutes, led by the hotel’s own guides through the atrium, a royal suite and a small museum on how the building was made, at AED 249 for adults, and booking a tour slot ahead secures the time you want. For a view without the ticket, Jumeirah Public Beach, often called Sunset Beach, runs along the shore just north of the Jumeirah Beach Hotel and faces the tower across open water; it is free, with showers and a floodlit stretch for swimming after dark, but the sand is soft, and a wheeled bag will not roll across it.
Souk Madinat Jumeirah’s canals and wind towers
Souk Madinat Jumeirah opened in 2004 as part of the Madinat Jumeirah resort, built new in the style of an old Gulf trading town: wind towers, covered lanes, carved wooden doors and a network of canals running between the hotels, the shops and the restaurants. The souk is free to walk into, and its waterside paths look straight across at Burj Al Arab.
Electric abras carry visitors round the canals on 20-minute tours that leave every 20 minutes, for AED 100 for adults and AED 50 for children, running into the late evening. The terraces facing the water are at their best after sunset, when the hotel across the way is lit.
A taxi hop from Madinat Jumeirah to the metro
No metro station reaches the water here. A taxi covers the roughly 3 kilometres to Mall of the Emirates station in 5 to 10 minutes for about AED 25 to 35, and from there the Red Line takes around 41 minutes to Airport Terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport (DXB), a little less to Terminal 1, so allow about an hour and a quarter door to door. A taxi the whole way avoids the change and is the only direct option for Terminal 2, which has no metro station. Budget 90 minutes at the airport on top.
The full Dubai itinerary stays much nearer the airport, from the Downtown towers to the creek; if you would rather stay on the coast, Dubai Marina and the beach at JBR are further along the same shore. Without a suitcase, the beach is somewhere to take your shoes off rather than a stretch of sand to haul something across.
Frequently asked questions
What should I do during a layover near Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai?
Book the 90-minute tour inside Burj Al Arab, which is the only way into the hotel without a room or a restaurant booking, then spend the evening at Souk Madinat Jumeirah, whose shops, canals and terraces face the hotel across the water. The free public beach next door has the same view for nothing. Five to six hours covers it with the hour or so back to the airport; the tour is the part to drop if time is short.
Is there a free way to see Burj Al Arab?
Yes, two. Jumeirah Public Beach, often called Sunset Beach, runs along the shore just north of the Jumeirah Beach Hotel with an open view of the tower, and it is free, with toilets, showers and a floodlit stretch for swimming after dark. Souk Madinat Jumeirah is free to walk into as well, and its waterside paths face the hotel from the other side.
How does the Inside Burj Al Arab tour work?
Tours run daily between 9am and 7pm and last about 90 minutes, guided by the hotel's own staff, taking in the atrium, a royal suite and a small museum on the building's history. Adult tickets are AED 249 and children aged 4 to 12 pay AED 99. Tickets are collected at the tour's lounge in the conference centre of the Jumeirah Beach Hotel next door, and booking a time slot ahead is the way to be sure of one.
Can you take an abra ride around Madinat Jumeirah?
Yes, on the resort's electric abras, which take 20-minute tours round the canals and leave every 20 minutes. Tickets are AED 100 for adults and AED 50 for children. Tours run from 10am to 11pm in winter and from 11am to 11pm in summer, and the evening ones pass the most lit-up stretch of water, with Burj Al Arab across it.