We are going Dubai in March and wondering if anyone has used Arabian Adventures for a desert safari. Also, we want to tour the Jumeirah Mosque and know they give tours on Sunday and Thursday mornings. Do I need to book that tour before we get to Dubai?
Thank-you!

Check out the Dubai forum on tripadvisor.com because I think I remember a lot of comments there on Arabian Adv. and lots more info on Dubai than here.

Arabian Adventures is good, Oasis Palm Tours is also good. They all pretty much offer the same thing - dune bashing, camel rides, sand boarding, arabic dinner with belly dancer etc, so you can't go wrong.

Jumeirah mosque, no need to book, just go there before 10am, wait in line. Females need a headscarf.

Thanks for the info!

I used Arabian Adventures when I went on my desert safari, and I was able to book same day. I went in November, and there must have been a convoy of a dozen or more Arabian Adventures 4x4s on the dunes -- they follow one another in a long convoy, and sometimes peel off to fly up and down the dunes. Its a lot of fun, and ends in a very touristy faux bedouin camp with decent food, camel rides, sandboarding, craft sales, henna booths, etc.

You don't have to cover your shoulders and knees in mosques in Dubai?

When we visited Mosques in Istanbul, I always made sure my head, shoulders and knees were covered out of respect. I will do the same in Dubai.

Agree with Thit_cho's analysis of the desert dunes safari. Avoid the touristy end if you can .... the dune ride was very good, though and a lot of fun. It does take a couple of hours to get to from downtown Dubai.

Hari, how would someone avoid the touristy bedouin camp? Since I was picked up by Arabian Adventures at my hotel (as were the others in my jeep) and then driven out to the desert, the only way I could have avoided the bedouin camp was if I had rented my own camel to take me back to Dubai. I don't think any of the 100+ guests arrived with their own transport.

when we did this in 2005, there was a couple from the UK in our SUV - all of us going from the same hotel. After the start of the belly dancing etc etc., we all decieded it was enough and left back for Dubai. It was end August and hot as hell. I think we booked this through Emirates airlines.

Yes, I guess if the entire group decides to leave early it would be possible, especially if the group was made up of family and friends. Our group consisted of single travelers (including some businessmen), so it would have been more difficult to agree on an early return. I also went in November and the weather was absolutely perfect -- even to spend an hour on the dunes looking at the stars was a well spent hour. If it had been August, I could see it being a much different experience.

Hello! We are going to Dubai next week with our 7-year old daughter. While I have heard everywhere that we absolutely need to do a desert safari, I just wanted to ask for opinions as to whether or not this would be recommended with a child? I haven't really been able to find out how long we'll actually be in the car, either getting there or then going up and down the dunes...also what if she gets car sick? What activities could she do on the dunes once the driving part is over? Thanks for all your advice!

On the dunes itself - you get out to get a picture taken around sunset. Then they take you to a touristy location where every single person gets to eat a standard touristy meal and watch a song and dance performance!

The Dune ride is very good - the rest of it, not too great!