In partnership with Visit Dubai
There’s nowhere on earth like Dubai. It’s an oasis of gravity-defying skyscrapers, designer shopping malls, the world’s most hospitable hotels and adventure sports to pump your adrenaline to the max (dune bashing, anyone?). This culturally rich city is a year-round destination that’s worth much more time than a transit stopover allows.
Spend 48 hours in Dubai for an introduction to the city’s highlights, from admiring its golden dunes from a vintage 4×4 to swimming in the highest infinity pool on the planet.
Day one
Morning
Be up before the crack of dawn so you don’t miss the most enchanting time of day: sunrise. Opt for Platinum Heritage’s hot air balloon package, and you’ll be picked up from your hotel and whisked 45 minutes into the desert for an unforgettable, break-of-dawn hot air balloon ride over the golden-hued sand dunes.
The experience continues with a desert drive on vintage Land Rovers, rolling up and down the dunes until you reach a Bedouin desert camp. Here, you’ll sit down for a gourmet breakfast, before having a short camel ride and then heading back to the city.

Back in Dubai, it’s time to dabble in world-class shopping. Here, shopping is a leisure activity rather than a necessity. Malls are as decadent as palaces, and you’ll find haute couture sits alongside ancient jewelry and spice souqs. The Dubai Mall is the world’s largest shopping center, covering the same surface area as 200 soccer pitches.
You could spend days here – but a few hours is just enough to browse the designer shops, take a photo of the towering indoor waterfall and have a bite to eat at one of the hundreds of eateries. Book ahead for steamed dumplings and bao buns at the ultra-popular Din Tai Fung, or try traditional Emirati cuisine (chebab pancakes or khameer flatbreads with date syrup and cheese) at Logma.

Afternoon
Don a wetsuit and spend your afternoon having an experience to tell the grandkids about. Dubai is home to the world’s deepest swimming pool, which opened in 2021 and is 200 feet deep. Called Deep Dive Dubai, it’s designed for thrillseekers to either practice or learn scuba diving from scratch, exploring its 3.7 million gallons of balmy, 86-degree Fahrenheit freshwater, which is filled with surprising items at every turn: a ruined city here, a sunken car there.
Experienced divers can experiment with freediving, more nervous swimmers can snorkel, and anybody who is not eager to get in the water can watch their pals through the large viewing windows.

After an active day, it’s time to revel in luxury at one of Dubai’s most iconic landmarks: the Burj Al Arab. This ultra-luxe hotel was built to resemble the sails of a traditional dhow ship, and is revered for its exquisite private beach and for being the world’s fifth-tallest hotel.
You can take a 90-minute tour of the Burj Al Arab to learn about the building’s architecture, complex construction on an artificial island and to hear about a day in the life of a hotel butler. Round it all off with dinner at one of the hotel’s trendy restaurants – such as SAL, an incredible beachfront venue, UMA Lounge for wagyu cheeseburgers, or you can splash out on a four-course dinner at high-end mezze joint Al Iwan.

Day two
Morning
Kick-off day two with more high-octane thrills, starting with Inflight Dubai. This is the “most advanced vertical wind tunnel on the planet,” and it has one function: to simulate a skydive. Arrive early so they can perform safety checks, debrief you and set you up with a flight suit, safety goggles and a helmet. Then, after a training session, it’s time to get into the wind tunnel and try it for yourself.
After about an hour of learning the ropes, there’s nothing stopping you from doing an actual skydive* – and there’s no better place for a bird’s eye view than Dubai, with its soaring skyscrapers, clear blue skies and ochre-hued desertscapes.
Premium skydive packages take place at the Palm Dropzone, over the palm-shaped manmade island, the Palm Jumeirah. Tandem skydives from 13,000 feet are the most popular, and there’s a secondary Desert Dropzone for an alternative view. Whichever you choose, you’ll be in expert hands – the instructors are among the most qualified in the world.

Why come down to earth so soon? Once your feet hit the ground again, head straight to the Burj Khalifa – the world’s tallest building, soaring over the city at 2,716 feet. Up close, you can barely see the spire, which stretches dramatically towards the heavens while dwarfing every other nearby building.
Get another vertigo-inducing view of Dubai from the At the Top SKY observation deck – the world’s highest, which has an outdoor terrace on the 148th floor. Then, climb even higher to the Lounge, which serves champagne and hors d’oeuvre for a light lunch at 1,919 feet above the ground.
*If you choose to experience the amazing Deep Dive Dubai the day before, the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) recommends waiting at least 24 hours before going to altitudes above 8,000 feet (2438m).
Afternoon
Take your pick of leisure activities and high-energy sports that are available in Dubai. Get out on the Persian Gulf’s turquoise waters for some thrilling watersports, including blow-up banana boat riding, jet skiing, kayaking or kite surfing. More futuristic (and hair-raising) is hooking yourself up to a jetpack and shooting into the air on a jet of water. Flyboarding is similar, except you’re standing on a board that floats 50 feet above the water thanks to jet nozzles underneath.
If you prefer dry land, how about a round of golf? Home to the DP World Tour Championship and the Dubai Desert Classic, Dubai is emerging as a world-leading golf destination. Dubai Creek is an iconic golf destination, with a beginner and a championship course.

Come sundown, there’s only one place to catch the final rays of the setting sun: Aura Skypool. Suspended 656 feet above street level, this is the highest, 360-degree infinity pool in the world, offering a unique view of all you’ve experienced over the past couple of days: the glittering Persian Gulf, the iconic Burj Khalifa and Burj Al Arab skyscrapers, and the neatly groomed Palm Jumeirah.
Once you’ve had a cooling dip in the pool, settle in on rattan chairs surrounded by palms and make the most important decision of the day: what to have for dinner. The Pan-Asian menu here features truffle and mozzarella flatbreads, Thai watermelon salad with feta cheese, Szechuan pepper squid and wagyu beef sliders. Pair it with a Mai Tai cocktail to toast the final evening of your Dubai experience.
How to find flights to Dubai on Skyscanner
1. Search
Ready to discover Dubai? Start by typing “Dubai” into the Skyscanner flight search box to see all your travel options in one place.
We search from 1,200 partners, so rest assured you’ll find the right deal.
To search for a stopover, go to the Skyscanner homepage or app, and select “Multi-city” at the top of the search panel.
Ready to go? Search for Dubai flights.


2. Book
With the multi-city search, you can enter up to six legs of your journey, selecting your departure airport, destination and dates from the drop-down menus. You don’t have to just focus on one region either. You can criss-cross the world with multi-city flights – especially from a hub offering as many destinations as Dubai.
After hitting “Done,” you’ll be taken to a page that displays all of the results for the flights you’ve chosen.
Then you can use our handy filters to narrow down which flight and price is the right one for you.

Pro tip
Not ready to book just yet? Look out for the Price Alert icon so we can let you know if the price on Dubai flights goes up or down.
3. Explore
Once you’ve found your flights, why stop there? Search for a perfect Dubai hotel for your stay. You can even find a car rental deal if you want to explore the Emirate’s city streets and dusty desert roads even further.

Pro tip
Need flexibility? No problem. Filter by “free cancellations” so you don’t lose out if your plans change.
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