Dubai has found its place on the world map as a shopping and leisure destination and commercial hub. With its mind blowing developments and superior infrastructure, Dubai has more to offer than what meets the immediate eye. For those looking to do something different, have a great time, try something new, Dubai is the place. Here are some of the things that you can explore when you are planning a holiday. Sun, sand, shopping, relaxation and a whole lot more - no one does fun like Dubai.

Desert Safaris
No visit to Dubai would be complete without a trip into the desert. Such excursions, which are best organised as part of a group tour, offer a taste of the true heartland of Arabia.

The majesty and tranquility of the desert can be experienced in a choice of exciting half-day, full-day and overnight safaris. These action-packed trips cover varied terrains ranging from desert to mountain and take in remote camel and goat farms and isolated villages. Highlights of a safari in Dubai may include the following:

Dune Driving
Driving in sand is an adventure in itself, combining the excitement of a roller coaster ride with the challenge of remaining mobile on the shifting surface of the sand dunes. Courses in sand driving vehicles are provided along with expert instruction.

Camel riding
The Camel, a symbol of Arabia, is also a major tourist attraction. Camel rides form part of some tours and desert safaris. Tour operators and hotels can also arrange camel rides separately.

Exploring the wadis
A popular pastime with both residents and visitors is known as wadi-bashing where wadis or dry beds of streams that flow after the winter rains from the Hajr mountains are explored. Many wadis offer scenes of unexpected beauty: attractive rock pools, some with water year-round, surrounded by greenery. Four-wheel-drive vehicles are required and are available for hire with or without drivers. As with desert driving, it is recommended that novices do not try their hands at wadi-bashing without expert supervision.

Sand-skiing
Those with a taste for speed and enthusiasm for an unusual sport will enjoy sand-skiing down the dunes of Dubai deserts. Special skis are used and high dunes in the interior of the desert are chosen as slopes. Sand-skiing can be arranged on request or as a part of a full-day or half-day safari.

Desert feasts
Particularly popular are safaris that culminate in spectacular desert sunset views followed by a traditional Arabian barbecue under the stars. These can be tailored to meet every taste from a romantic and peaceful experience to elaborate fun-packed evenings complete with music, belly-dancing, the smoking of hubble-bubble pipes and often a display of falconry.

Dubai by Air
Visitors with a head for heights and a weakness for the dramatic can enjoy the excitement of a helicopter tour over the city. Alternatively, visitors can enjoy city or desert tours in a fixed-wing aircraft.

Dubai by Sea
A fascinating way to see Dubai is by sea. You sail along the Arabian Gulf and admire the coastline and palaces, hotels and beaches.

Dubai Zoo
Located in Jumeirah, the Dubai Zoo is a popular attraction, especially for families. The zoo's modern facilities though small, house many indigenous Arabian species, including the Arabian Wolf, which is no longer found in the wild, Gordon's Wildcat and the world's only captive breeding colony of Socotra Cormorants.

Fishing
The Gulf is rich in marine life, and fishing was once a mainstay of the local economy. Kingfish, jackfish, red snapper, rock cod (the popular hammour on most Dubai menus), barracuda and other species are caught commercially and not for sport. Sailfish and bottom-feeding sharks are regularly landed by visiting fishermen who can hire fully-equipped boats, with crew, for deep-sea fishing trips.

Galleria Ice Rink
Located at the Galleria shopping complex at the Hyatt Regency, the ice rink is great fun for starters and experts alike. Timings are 10am - 1.30pm, 2pm - 5.30pm and 6pm - 9,30pm. Tel: 2096551

Golf Courses
Dubai is a golfer’s paradise. The Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club and the famous Emirates Golf Club are the venues of the European PGA tour. The Nad al Sheeba Golf and Racing Club even offers night golf for enthusiasts who want to beat the summer heat of Dubai! For bookings or courses, Tel: Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club - 2956000, Nad Al Sheba - 3363666, Emirates Golf Club - 3473222, The Montgomerie - 3905600, The Desert Course - 8846777

Go-Karting
Dubai has the Middle East's first fully-equipped 40,000 sq. ft air-conditioned indoor go-kart facility at Formula One. Open 7 days a week, try your hand at this super fun activity. Outdoors, an active go-karting fraternity races regularly at the track beside the Jebel Ali Hotel. Visitors can enjoy this sport during the months of Oct-May. Open 7 days a week, from 10am - 10pm for 8 years upwards. Tel: 3388828

Horse Riding
The sport of kings has rapidly become Dubai's most popular spectator event, attracting crowds of more than 15,000. Race meetings are held weekly during the cooler months at one of the UAE's four racecourses. Dubai Racing Club, at Naad Al Sheba, the country's largest and most spectacular track and home to the Dubai World Cup the sport's richest race also holds meetings at night under floodlights. These evening meetings also prove popular with corporate clients, who may choose to take a hospitality box to entertain clients and other guests. The winter months (Nov - Apr) are more favoured for Horse Racing.

Horse riding is part of the local tradition and is upheld today by several active centres including the Dubai Equestrian Centre and Jebel Ali Hotel Riding Stables. Rides through the desert are organised regularly. Dubai has a riding association for the disabled.

The Souks
TThe souks on both sides of the Creek are attractive not just for their shopping bargains but also as places for the sightseer and photographer. A huddle of narrow alleyways has survived on the Deira side despite intensive building in recent years. In the tiny lanes of the spice souk, the atmosphere and the scents of the past can be savoured. Bags of spices, incense, rose petals and traditional medicinal products are stacked outside each stall.

Along the slightly larger lanes of the gold souk, each shop window is crammed with gold necklaces, rings, bangles, earrings and brooches. In the evening the area is a hive of activity. Gold prices are among the lowest in the world. In other small streets, the visitor can find shops selling nargilehs (hookah or hubble-bubble pipes) and coffee pots, and nearby tea stalls where both of these items are in daily use.

There are traditional bakeries where large flat loaves of delicious unleavened bread are baked to order inside a domed oven called tandoor. Small textile shops sell veils with decorated edges, pantaloons with embroidered anklets, and dress lengths with similarly embroidered necklines reminiscent of The Arabian Nights. Meena Baazaar, on the Bur Dubai side of the Creek has lanes full of textile shops, where a blaze of colourful raw silks and cottons hang in profusion in shop windows. Also, in this area, you will find the Al Fahidi Street souq - which is famous for Electronics.

The fish souk in Deira is an attraction in itself. Early in the morning and late at night, local fishermen unload mountains of fresh fish which they sell in a frenzied bargaining session. Kingfish, red snapper, rock cod (the popular hammour), barracuda, tuna, lobster, crab, king prawn, sea bream, squid, pomfret, shark, mackerel, sardine and other species are available in abundance for most of the year.

Wild Wadi
An exciting state-of-the-art water park located adjacent to the Jumeirah Beach Hotel offers exciting water rides for the whole family. It really does not matter whether you swim or not – there’s plenty to do as long as you like splashing around in the water. It is open from 11am to 7pm. Entry fees vary - Dhs 95 (Adults) for all day and Dhs 75 (children) for all day. Kids under 9 must be with adults.Tel: 3484444

WonderLand
The 18 hectare Wonderland family fun park features a wide range of water attractions including speed slides, surf hills, wave runners and a Caribbean cruise. Thursdays are for Families Only. It is open from 10am-11pm. Entrance fees varies. Tel: 3241222.