When you move to Dubai one of the most pleasant surprises to greet most new expats is how lovely the beaches are. Miles and miles of golden white sand and apart from the weekend they are practically empty. Thanks to the Dubai Municipality they are regularly cleaned and the water is crystal clear.
The main downside to the beach is come May it is just too hot to enjoy them and even the ocean is like stepping into a luke warm bath. However, from mid-October through to May they are well worth a regular visit. The best bit is they are FREE so what are you waiting for throw a beach chair, and cooler into the back of the car and off you go! Expat Echo Dubai explains where all these beaches are.
The beaches stretch right along the coastline starting from Jumeirah Open Beach (sometimes known as ‘Russian Beach’). You enter this beach just in front of the famous Jumeirah Mosque (& The One shop) on Jumeirah Beach Road. This beach offers showers and changing facilities and there are refreshments for sale. There is a small children’s play area plus a jogging and cycling track that stretches for approximately 2.5km
The beach runs for several kilometers after this and as you move away from the showers etc the beach becomes more and more deserted. There are entrances all along Jumeirah Beach Road onto this beach eg opposite Mercato Shopping Mall.
The free beach is interrupted at Jumeirah Beach Park. You enter this part of the beach opposite Emirates Hospital on Jumeirah Beach Road and there is an entrance fee of just AED5. The beach park offers round-the-clock lifeguard service, desert garden, children’s playground, barbecue areas, Sports Facilities area, and a helipad.
Shortly after this you can enter the beach again once more at the intersection of Jumeirah Beach Road and Al Athar Street. You can drive onto a section of the beach at this point. This part of the beach stretches up to the Dubai Offshore Sailing Club where it is interrupted briefly by the small marina.
After this the beach continues for a very long stretch. This is one of the most popular stretches of beach. In front of the Saga World Shopping Center on Jumeirah Beach Road this part of the beach is sometimes know as ‘Kite Surf Beach’ or to many of the children it is know as ‘Slippy Football Beach”!
You can be forgiven for thinking you are down at one of the famous Californian beaches when you are here as there is beach volleyball, a beach gym and football pitch which is covered in soapy water (which the kids and adults love!). This part of the beach has permanent shade, showers, changing rooms and refreshments. There are also water sports facilities available such as banana boats, water skiing and wake-boarding.
The beach continues to wind along the coast breaking once more for a small marina till you get to Umm Suqeim Public Beach or what the locals call “Sunset Beach“. This is the beach right next to Jumeirah Beach Hotel and in front of Umm Suqeim Park. This part of the beach is popular for surfing.
After this the beach is not open to the public for several kilometers as 5 Star Hotels have reserved the beaches. However between the Madinat and The Palm Jumeirah entrance there is a small strip of beach the public can enter which is known a ‘Black Palace Beach‘. You can drive onto this beach and it has great views of The Palm Jumeirah and back to the Burj Al Arab. This is a super spot for watching the fireworks on New Years Eve.
The next part of public beach starts in front of Jumeirah Beach Residence. This was and still is popular but there is a lot of building going on in the background and parking can be an issue.
Other fabulous beaches in the Dubai area include long stretches of open beach beyond the Jebel Ali Hotel (Abu Dhabi direction) and there is Al Mamzar Beach Park between Deira and Sharjah. Like Jumeirah Beach Park this is a beach you have to pay (small fee) for use however there are full beach facilities in addition chalets and large green area, swimming pool, in-park transport system, cafeteria.
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