Walking Tours
Dubai is a sprawling city that can be difficult to walk around and there are no official signposted tours. However, a self-guided stroll around the older central parts of Deira and Bur Dubai is a great way of discovering the delights of the city, exploring its traditional souks or stumbling across hidden mosques or wind towers.

Arabian Adventures (tel: (04) 303 4888; website: www.arabian-adventures.com) offers various walking tours, such as ‘A Walk through the City of Contrasts', covering Bastakiya and including an abra ride (local water taxi) from Shindagha across the creek and a walk through the gold and spice souks.

Bus Tours
A number of companies offer half-day city tours, including Arabian Adventures (tel: (04) 303 4888; website: www.arabian-adventures.com) and Net Tours Dubai (tel: (04) 226 6655; website: www.nettoursdubai.com). Tours vary depending on the operator but most go to the old and new Dubai souks, Jumeirah Mosque, the thriving commercial area and include a creek crossing by abra. Another option is to see Dubai by night. Post-tour dinner in one of Dubai's many restaurants is usually a feature of the night-time tours, which also incorporate the mosques, palaces and souks. The tours operate a very organised system, with pick-up at all main hotels.

Boat Tours
Arabian Adventures (tel: (04) 303 4888; website: www.arabian-adventures.com) offers a variety of cruises on Dubai Creek. Alpha Tours (tel: (04) 294 9888; website: www.alphatoursdubai.com) operates evening dhow dinner cruises, which take two hours. Alternatively, tourists should go down to Dubai Creek and charter a traditional abra (water taxi) for a short river tour lasting 60 to 90 minutes. The length of the tour and the price should be agreed in advance. Otherwise, visitors can just ride one across the creek to the other side (journey time - 5 minutes).