Private Tour: Dubai City Half-Day Sightseeing Tour

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

See Dubai with the luxury of a private car and guide, allowing you to set your own itinerary. You'll see the most popular sites of the golden city on this leisurely half-day tour.

Your private half-day tour begins with a photo stop at Dubai's most famous landmark, the Burj Al Arab hotel. The unique billowing sail design of this world-renowned luxury hotel is a must-see for all visitors to Dubai.

You'll then proceed to Jumeirah, Dubai's picturesque palace and residential area that's also home to the famous Jumeirah Mosque. The tour then continues to Al Bastakiya, Dubai's atmospheric old quarter by the Creek. Here, you'll visit Dubai's famous museum housed in the former Al Fahidi Fort.

Then it's all aboard the Abra (water taxi) to cross the Creek to the spice souk. You'll then have time to shop in another famous Dubai landmark, the glistening gold souk.

USD $41.32

Traveler Reviews

Review by: H	April 2012
we loved this trip, the private tour was ideal with us having an 8 year old, we saw everything and learned alot about the history of dubai and we had plenty of time to look round and take photos, we felt we weren't rushed and our guide was excellent.

Review by: Dmitri P	April 2012
Great tour. Our guide was very friendly and knowledgeable. Showed us around Dubai, told us about its history and was able to answer all questions on topics ranging from history of the royal family to traditions of Islam. Highly recommend this tour.

Review by: Stephen M	March 2012
AMAZING!! Our tour guide was filled with so much knowledge and experience - he taught us so much, and we really enjoyed our time with him. If you have a short time in Dubai- this is the only way to go!!!!!

Review by: Ramona D	February 2012
We had a wonderful time! Our guide was very nice and he really showed us all the wonders of Dubai. He was very helpful and made us feel great! We would love to go back to Dubai!

Review by: charles	November 2011
Very satisfied with itinerary and with driver/ guide.

Review by: Jill	November 2011
This was the perfect tour for us as we only had 10 hours in Dubai. We were picked up from the airport at 7:30am. Our tour guide, Sarah, was great. She gave us plenty of time at each stop to have a good look around and was fun and informative. I would recommend this tour to anyone with limited time in Dubai. Our favourite parts of the tour where the souk, Jameirah beach, the Jumeirah Mosqque and the Marina (where we even saw a baby whale shark!) and the Aquarius Hotel. Next time I'm in Dubai I will stay a bit longer!

Review by: matthew e	October 2011
our guide was the best guide I have ever had he was friendly and knew everything. He made our trip

Review by: Adrian V	October 2011
A great way to start your holiday in Dubai to get your bearings about where things are. We had a fantastic guide Dejan who was very knowledgeable on all things local. Very hot time of year to walk around but as we were on a private trip we could move on as we pleased rather than wait for a big group to finish. Highly recommend this tour!

Review by: Jeanette M	October 2011
Excellent way to see the city without being in a big crowd, you call the shots on what you see and how long you stay. Great way to get your bearings around the city and the guide was very informative. Very comfortable air conditioned vehicle.

Review by: Dawn B	May 2011
guide was very informative and we got to see a lot more of Dubai City than we would have on our own - very worthwhile trip and as this was a private tour we were able to tailor the timings at the sites to suit us.

Review by: Lillian M	March 2011
requested local arabic guide, was not tod one was not available until I called to check pick-up time 1 hr before. local provider orient tours said they told you this and you in turn advised me, I received no such notification, guide provided was unsatisfactory. did not get to see bastakiya area as i wanted despite eliminating other items from itinerary guide said he had to be back to meet another tour, very disappointing service

Review by: Danielle M	February 2011
OK I guess. Hoped to see a lot more and actually be able to go in and see the places visited, not just the outside of them.

Review by: Rene L	December 2010
No problem for pick up. Our guide was very helpful. He adpted our tour to my hancicap and our centers of interest._br/_ We were able to see the maximum in the minimum time with expert comments.

Review by: Miguel A M	November 2010
Very satisfied with your tour guide, he provided great service. Miguel Montoya

Review by: Richard D	October 2010
This was a great way to familiarise ourselves with the city. Our guide was lovely, very knowledgeable and patient with all our questions. A must do at the beginning of your stay in Dubai.

Review by: Catherine M	August 2010
Our tour guide was highly knowledgeable and even adjusted the tour a bit to satisfy what we wanted to see. highly recommend it. We fit this and the private 4 x 4 w sandboarding trip into one busy day.

Review by: Kimberly B, United States of America	June 2010
My tour guide, Eric from Sri Lanka, was excellent! He is very knowledgeable about Dubai and planned a fun and informative tour. He has great relationships with some specific vendors at the Gold Souk I got some amazing prices on 18K gold jewelry! Eric speaks wonderful English and is very friendly and customer-service oriented. Highly recommended!

Review by: Michael H, United States of America	May 2010
This is a great tour. The car is new and clean, the guide well spoken and knowledgeable. It hits all the sites you want to see.

Review by: Anonymous	May 2010
Disappointed. The first stop was for a fellow to try to sell me carpet or whatever I would buy. From there on it lost my interest.

Review by: Enrique D, Spain	April 2010
Thank you very much for a lovely day. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and courteous. The vehicle was impeccable and Dubai lovely as always.

Review by: Anonymous, South Korea	March 2010
Excellent - great guide! Driver does drive fast. It was very expensive for what it offers.

Review by: Gaby C, Germany	February 2010
Well organized, very interesting tour, we can really recommend this tour.

Review by: Joseph S, United States of America	January 2010
Amazing tour! We loved it. Our guide spoke great English, told us the history of Dubai and the U.A.E. and was able to answer all of our questions. He was very helpful at the souks and we thoroughly enjoyed the tour!

Review by: David C, United States of America	December 2009
Our tour and guide were above our expectations. It was a fun and informative introduction to Dubai.

Review by: Daniel N, Germany	November 2009
The guide was full informed and give us a lot of insider information which was very helpful.

Review by: Reading D, Australia	October 2009
Driver was knowledgeable, excellent communicator and friendly. Made maximum use of our very limited time in Dubai

Review by: Anonymous, United States of America	April 2009
Our driver and guide were wonderful and we highly recommend Viator. On time, efficient, knowledgeable, and nice.

Review by: Anonymous, United States of America	January 2009
It was amazing! It was convenient due to the hotel pick up and drop off. It was very organized. The guide knew quite a bit about Dubai, its history, etc and that really added to the experience. Would definitely recommend.

Review by: Ellen H	January 2009
Tour was ok but we thought it was too expensive for what it was.

Review by: Susmita N	October 2008
Great to have a private air-conditioned vehicle and guide - Dubai is very very hot. However the itinerary of the tour was completely different to that described. For example we did not get to see old Dubai, the gold souk , the spice souk, the museum or the abra ride. Our guide said that because of Ramadan the souks are not open in the mornings. However we saw the Burj Al Arab, Jumeirah Mosque, Palm Island, the Marina area and Ski Dubai which we had requested. We did enjoy the tour and our guide, we learned a lot about Dubai, and they were prompt with picking us up.

Review by: Chandra M, United States of America	August 2008
Five hours of royal service - worth every penny and more. Quite professional - thank you.

Review by: Greg T	July 2008
The guide lacked information. It felt more like a shopping tour rather than a city tour of Dubai.

Review by: Donald F, United States of America	April 2008
Guide was excellent and the private van for 6 of us was efficient way to see Dubai.

Review by: Lisa H, United States of America	March 2008
The half day Dubai City Tour was a perfect way to get a sense of Dubai. The car and guide picked me up at my hotel, making it very convenient too. We visited the famous hotel Burj Al Arab, Jumeirah Grand Mosque and Bastakia, the renovated area with traditional wind tunnel architecture where migrants from Bastak Province, Iran first lived when they came to Dubai. We also went to the Old Fort, Museum, and took a ride on a small boat across Dubai Creek. My favorite part was walking through the textile, gold, and spice markets. All of this in just over 4 hours was great. The driver and especially the very informative guide made it a special trip. I highly recommend this tour.

Review by: Alan R, United Kingdom	March 2008
What an excellent day. Our driver guide could not have been any more helpful. Nothing was a problem for him, and he was very informative and friendly. He looked after us very well.

Review by: Anonymous	March 2008
The half day Dubai City Tour was a perfect way to get a sense of Dubai. The car and guide picked me up at my hotel, making it very convenient too. We visited the famous hotel Burj Al Arab, Jumeirah Grand Mosque and Bastakia, the renovated area with traditional wind tunnel architecture where migrants from Bastak Province, Iran first lived when they came to Dubai. We also went to the Old Fort, Museum, and took a ride on a small boat across Dubai Creek. My favorite part was walking through the textile, gold, and spice markets. All of this in just over 4 hours was great. The driver and especially the very informative guide made it a special trip. I highly recommend this tour.

Review by: Eric F	March 2008
Definitely worth it. We saw a lot and our guide was knowledgeable. This was a good value for the money.

Review by: Robin C, United Kingdom	February 2008
Great service and trip. Good value for money.

Review by: Anonymous	February 2008
It was our first day in Dubai and my family of 6 had booked a private city tour. On the day, the company was 1.5hr late. The driver couldn't give us a straight answer to why we had to wait so long, so he took us to the mall trying to buy some time. After 2 hours we finally were able to start our trip with the driver and tour guide in the mini-van. The guide was a little hard to understand but was very nice. The mini-van was clean and the tour was an ok experience, despite the 2 hr delay.

Review by: John M, Australia	December 2007
What a great way to see and learn about the history of Dubai from the old to the new. Our tour guide was really knowledgeable about Dubai and gave us plenty of time to look around and explore. We were about one hour over our expected finish time and he did not seem to mind. We would recommend this tour to all visitors to Dubai. We only wish that we had more time there.

Review by: JOHN M	December 2007
What a great way to see and learn about the history of Dubai from the old to the new. Our tour guide was really knowledgeable about Dubai and gave us plenty of time to look around and explore. We were about one hour over our expected finish time and he did not seem to mind. We would recommend this tour to all visitors to Dubai. We only wish that we had more time there.

Review by: Mohammad E	December 2007
We have a little kid, and that's why we did the private tour. It is your family alone in a large mini van. The guide was amazing and very knowledgeable. Spoke perfect English she was from Germany. She knew Dubai inside out, and she changed her itinerary to accommodate what we wanted to see and do. Absolutely fantastic!

Review by: Patricia E	November 2007
I think this is the only way to get a feel for Dubai since the city is quite large and spread out. Our guide hit all the old and new sites and was personable and intelligent.

Review by: BROCK T	February 2007
Great.