The Best Places in Dubai to Visit with Family

There’s no shortage of fun and memorable activities to enjoy with your family in Dubai. 

In fact, it’s one of the most family-friendly destinations in the world that you’ll surely find something to make your trip memorable, whether you’re traveling with kids, teenagers or young adults.

Dubai’s Best Places to Visit with Family

Here are some of the top places that you should  visit with your family during your trip to Dubai:

• Dubai Miracle Garden
• IMG Worlds of Adventure
• Museum of Illusions
• Dubai Mall
• Aquafun Water Park

Are you ready to plan an unforgettable family holiday in Dubai? Read on.

Dubai Miracle Garden

Location: Al Barsha South 3 – Dubailand – Dubai – United Arab Emirates

Contact Information: 

• [email protected]
• +971 4 422 8902

Opening Months: November to May

Opening Schedules: 9:00AM to 9:00 PM (Weekdays)/ 9:00AM to 10:00PM (Weekends)

How to Get There:

• Take the RTA Bus No.105 for a 20-minute ride to the Dubai Miracle Garden
• Ride  the Dubai Metro Red Line to the Mall of Emirates Metro Station
• Ride a taxi or hire private transport from your hotel

It may sound impossible to find the largest natural flower garden in the world in a desert city, but Dubai will surprise you.

The Dubai Miracle Garden is one of the most visited attractions in Dubai and every corner will wow you.

Launched on Valentine’s Day in 2013, the garden covers more than 72,000 square meters and has more than 250 million plants and 50 million flowers. 

The Dubai Miracle Garden is open from November to May every year during the colder winter months in Dubai. 

It’s closed during the hot summer months when the plants can’t withstand Dubai’s sweltering heat.

If you’re visiting Dubai during these months, you should set aside at least 3 to 4 hours to explore everything that the Dubai Miracle Garden has to offer.

When you book a ticket at the Dubai Miracle Garden, you also get access to the Dubai Butterfly Garden, Dubai Butterfly Garden Kids Cinema and Butterfly Museum.

Don’t miss these top attractions while you’re exploring this vast garden:

• The Heart Passage

One of the most popular attractions in the Dubai Miracle Garden, this beautiful heart-shaped installation features thousands of beautiful flowers in different colors.

• Emirates Airbus A380

You can’t miss this huge life-sized masterpiece resembling the UAE’s flag carrier and most popular aircraft, the Emirates Airbus A380.

More than 40 tons of flowers and plants were used to create this installation, so don’t forget to take your family photo here.

• Trampoline Park and Amphitheater

If you’re visiting with your kids, make sure to give them some time at the trampoline park where they can jump to their heart’s content.

You can also check out the different activities at the amphitheater depending on the time of your visit.

• Disney Avenue

Do your kids love Disneyland? Don’t forget to drop by Disney Avenue where your kids can see the floral interpretations of Disney’s most famous characters including Mickey Mouse.

IMG Worlds of Adventure

Location: E311 – Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road – Dubai – United Arab Emirates

Contact Information: 

• +971 600 500 962
• +971 4 403 8888

Opening Schedules: 12:00PM to 10:00PM (Monday to Thursday)/ 12:00PM to 11:00PM (Friday to Sunday)

How to Get There:

• Ride a taxi or hire private transport from your hotel.
• Ride the bus to the Al Ghubaiba Metro Bus Stop and walk to the park for about 5 minutes.
• Take the Metro and stop at the Al Ghubaiba Metro Station. You can walk to the park for 7 minutes.
• Ride the Metro and stop at the Mall of Emirates Station. From there, you can take a 30-minute taxi ride to the park.

You can’t have a family vacation without visiting an amusement park, and IMG Worlds of Adventure is one of the best in Dubai and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Opened in 2016, the 1.5 million square feet park is the city’s first mega-themed indoor park and the second largest temperature controlled indoor theme park in the world.

The largest indoor theme park in Dubai is divided into five zones:

• Marvel

If you’re a die hard fan of the Marvel Universe, this zone offers rides including the Hulk Epsilon Base 3D, Avengers Battle of Ultron, Thor Thunder Spin, Spider-Man Doc Ock’s Revenge and Avengers Flight of the Quinjets.

After enjoying these exhilarating rides, you can dine at Chang’s Golden Dragon, Tony’s Skydeck or Downtown Shawarma.

• Lost Valley Dinosaur Adventure

One of the most popular zones in the park, Lost Valley Dinosaur Adventure will take you back in time when giants roamed the earth.

Here, you can ride the Forbidden Territory as a family, get some adrenaline at The Velociraptor, enjoy with the younger ones at Dino Carousel, explore the Adventure Fortress and shout to your hearts’ content at Predator.

After a fun time, feed your hungry family at Carnivore Hut by Wingstop, Spice Valley or 360 Express.

• Cartoon Network

What kids don’t love Cartoon Network anyway? The whole family will surely enjoy Ben 10 5D Hero Time, The Powerpuff Girls: Mojo Jojo’s Robot Rampage, the Amazing Ride of Gumball, Adventure Time: The Ride of 000 with Finn and Jake and LazyTown.

Of course, you can’t miss eating at CN Feast, Richard’s Around the World Cafe, Mr. Smoothy or Finn and Jake’s Everything Burrito.

• IMG Boulevard

The first zone in the park, this is a great way to start your adventure with some interactive areas and a wide range of dining options.

Here, you can choose to dine at Boulevard Gourmet, Popcorn Factory, Flavors of Arabia, Samosa House and The Coffeehouse.

This zone also has a wide array of retail outlets where you can shop for merchandise and souvenirs before you leave.

They include World of Candy, Haunted Hotel Store, Courage and Kind, IMG Emporium and Adventure Photography.

• The Haunted Hotel

Is your family a fan of spooky adventures? Dare to visit the Haunted Hotel and explore its corridors and chambers to encounter some very scary guests.

Just remember that this area is only open for guests aged 15 and older, and teenagers from 15 to 18 years old should present an ID card at the entrance.

Museum of Illusions

Location: Bld. 17 – Heritage Area – Al Seef by Meraas – Bur Dubai – Dubai – United Arab Emirates

Contact Information: 

• +971 4 357 3999

Opening Schedules: 10:00AM to 10:00PM (Sunday-Thursday)/ 10:00AM to 11:00PM (Friday-Saturday)

How to Get There:

• Ride a taxi or hire private transport from your hotel.
• Ride the RTA water taxi or abra to the Al Fahidi boat station.
• Take the Metro Red line to the Burjuman station or the Green line to the Sharaf DG station.

Prepare to be deceived by your own eyes and then left in awe by all the wonderful installations at the Museum of Illusions.

But more than getting your senses tricked, this unique museum also offers different immersive installations that you can enjoy as a family.

Here, you can enjoy installations such as the popular Chair Illusion, Turntables, Anti-Gravity Room, Ames Room, Infinity Room, Rotated Room and the Vortex Tunnel.

As a family, you can also enjoy some games, brain teasers and puzzles at Dilemma World. You can even take some of these games home by buying them at the Smart Shop.

Dubai Mall

Location: Financial Center Street Along Sheikh Zayed Road – Downtown Dubai – Dubai – United Arab Emirates

Contact Information: 

• 800 38224 6255
• +971 4 362 7500

Opening Schedules: 10:00AM to 12:00AM (Sunday-Wednesday)/ 10:00AM to 1:00AM (Thursday-Saturday)

How to Get There:

• Ride a taxi or hire private transport from your hotel.
• Ride the Metro to the Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall Station where you can walk after using the Metro Link Bridge.
• Take the Route 27 Bus from the Deira Gold Souk Station or Route 29 Bus from the Ghubaiba Bus Station that drops you off at the Grand Drive Entrance of the Dubai Mall every 16 minutes.

Dubai is known for its beautiful and lavish malls, and the best one is definitely the Dubai Mall, one of the world’s largest malls. 

But this isn’t just your ordinary retail center. In true Dubai style, the Dubai Mall is a tourist spot with attractions, activities and shops converging in one place.

Being located in Downtown Dubai, the Dubai Mall is also accessible to some of the city’s top attractions including the Dubai Fountain and of course, the Burj Khalifa.

Aside from shopping, here are some attractions that your family will surely enjoy while at the Dubai Mall:

And while you’re at the Dubai Mall, don’t miss seeing one of the best fountain shows in the world at the nearby Dubai Fountain.

Spanning an area as big as two football pitches, the Dubai Fountain is a record-breaking show where you can see fountain jets propelling more than 22,000 gallons of water.

The show runs daily every 30 minutes from 6:00PM and you can watch it for free at the Dubai Mall. 

But if you want to treat your family to an up close experience,  you can book tickets to the Dubai Fountain Boardwalk that lets you get as close as 9 meters away from the fountain.

Ticket prices cost $5.45 per person, but children under 4 years old are not allowed to enter this area.

You can even get the ultimate fountain experience with the Dubai Fountain Lake Ride, which will cost you $17.70 per person.

Here, you will board an “abra” or traditional Arabian wooden boat as you experience the Dubai Fountain show on the lake itself.

Of course, you can always indulge in some retail therapy while in the Dubai Mall. There are more than 1,200 retail shops here, after all.

AquaFun Water Park

Location: Jumeirah Beach – Jumeirah Beach Residence – Dubai – United Arab Emirates

Contact Information: 

• +971 54 522 6663

Opening Schedules: 9:00AM until sunset

How to Get There:

• Ride a taxi or hire private transport from your hotel.
• Ride the Dubai Metro Red Line to the Jumeirah Lake Towers Metro Station or Dubai Marina Metro Station
• Take the connecting tram service from the station to the Jumeirah Beach Residence 2 stop and walk for about 10 minutes to the water park.
• Take the Route 84 or F55A bus

Of course, you can’t cap off your family holiday in Dubai without a day at the beach. And there’s no better place to do it than at AquaFun Water Park.

The largest inflatable water park in the world is the best way to keep the entire family entertained as you enjoy Dubai’s sandy beach.

Prepare everyone for a day at the floating park where you can enjoy features like wiggle bridges, slides, blockades, monkey bars, ramps and an inflatable obstacle course. 

Stretching over 25 meters on the water, you’ll surely have a grand time going through more than 75 fun areas in this amazing water park. 

And since it’s located on Jumeirah Beach, you also have access to other attractions, dining and entertainment options after your day at the beach.

If you’re worried about the safety of your kids while enjoying the water park, you can guarantee that the water park has some precautionary measures for the safety of its guests.

For instance, all guests entering the water park are required to wear life jackets, whether they know how to swim or not.

You can also see lifeguards watching the guests at different parts of the water park at all times.

The Best Holiday With Your Family in Dubai

There’s no shortage of activities, attractions and fun things you can do as a family in Dubai.

Whether you prefer a more laid back trip that involves going around the city and shopping or a more adventurous holiday with visits to theme parks and water parks, there’s something in Dubai for you.

The city puts a lot of value on the experience of its guests, so you’d be glad to know that everything is accessible and safe in Dubai.

Plan your itinerary using these places as your guide, so you can guarantee an unforgettable family vacation in one of the best holiday destinations in the world.