Trip to Abu Dhabi and Dubai

We have an 8-day trip to Abu Dhabi and Dubai coming up in March. I've never been to the Middle East and am really excited about it. I have a few questions I hope people can help me with.


Thanks in advance.


1) Clothing - as a western woman do I need to be more conservative in my dressing there? If so, can you give me some examples of what I should pack. Does the temperature drop low enough at night to need cardigans or warm clothing?


2) Things to do in Abu Dhabi and Dubai with 2 boys under 5. Any ideas please?


3) Shopping (yes, I am saving my shopping for there!!). Any great places to go shopping? Are there Arabic influenced boutiques where I could pick up some beautiful items (e.g. middle east meets west clothing?) Oh, I would welcome ideas for the boys too


4) Are there any shops in either of the cities that I can not find here e.g. NEXT or other British/ Aussie or US shops?


5) Any other recommendations on great experiences and places anyone would care to share.

I was recently in Dubai - it's is pretty much a massive shopping centre - not need for any special clothing there ... not sure about Abu Dhabi...


http://www.asiaxpat.com/yemen/

Hi there I was in Dubai and Abu Dhabi over CNY


1. No real need to be OTT on what you wear but try and be respectful to their culture, i.e don;t be over the top on what you wear and be a little bit more conservative. If you decide to visit any Mosques then you'll need to cover you hear, shoulders and ankles. I'd just suggest taking a pashmina or shawl just in case


2. not too many suggestions on what to do with 5 year old as no children myself but Dubai does have a couple of water parks which are fun and also Abu Dhabi has Ferrari World which has a lot of younger children as well as adults.


3. In Dubai try Mall of the Emirates and also Dubai Mall they have every conceivable shops you would want from West to East it will take you a whole day to walk around Dubai Mall and you can take the opportunity to go up the Burg al Khalifa (book on their website in advance just in case) the mall also has an aquarium. Abu Dhabi I went to the Marina Mall (think this is it) and didn't think it was that good


4. In Dubai Mall as above you have everything from Hermes to River Island, Next, Banana Republic, Gap, American Eagle.


5. We went out into the desert on a 4x4 day out, not sure how under 5's may find it as you do get thrown about a bit. In Abu Dhabi we went to the museums and also a heritage village which is OK if you want to learn a bit more about the culture.


Hope that helps, PM me if you need more