10 Facts About Dubai

Dubai is a pretty unique place with world record breaking skyscrapers and shopping malls in amongst the emirate’s other futuristic creations. If you’ve ever wondered why sending a parcel in Dubai is unlike any other city or exactly what makes the Burj Al Arab a 7* hotel, read on..

1. There is no standard address system in Dubai. Surprisingly for a city so focused on business, Dubai lacks a basic address system. It’s often necessary to simply draw a map or describe the location of an office or house to facilitate a delivery.

2. Dubai is home to the world’s tallest building: the Burj Khalifa. It stands at 828m tall and holds numerous other world records including: tallest freestanding structure in the world, highest occupied floor in the world, highest number of stories in the world, highest outdoor observation deck in the world, lift with longest travel distance in the world, and tallest service lift in the world!
3. Laid end to end, the Burj Khalifa stretches over a quarter of the way round the world and the total weight of the aluminium used to build it is equivalent to that of five A380 aircraft.
4. Foreigners make up 85% of the total population! Native Emiratis are in the minority amongst the population of just over two million. The majority of the inhabitants from overseas are from Asia, with around 3% classed as ‘western’.

5. Dubai has air conditioned bus stops. Air conditioned public transport isn’t just confined to the buses themselves. With temperatures topping 40 degrees in some parts of summer, this isn’t as crazy an idea as it sounds. Some of the bus stops now even have their own Wi-Fi.
6. The Dubai Mall is the biggest shopping centre in the world and houses more than 1,200 shops. The Mall is home to its own aquarium, has its own ice rink and its own SEGA theme park.
7. Dubai holds the record for the longest gold chain ever made. The chain, unveiled back in 1999 at the Dubai Shopping Festival, measured an incredible 4.1km in length and weighed 200kg. Over 6,000 residents bought pieces of the chain when it was divided up.
8. Whilst we’re on the subject, you can also buy gold from a vending machine in Dubai. The Gold to Go machine in the Dubai Mall is guarded by armoured guards and provides 320 different forms of 24 karat gold including gold bars, coins and wearable jewellery. The live prices are updated every minute.

9. Dubai is home to the world’s only 7* hotel. Located on its own island (you need to have reserved a room to be allowed access) the Burj Al Arab offers a helicopter arrival service, Aston Martins and Ferraris for hire, as well as a staff to suite ratio of 8:1.
10.  Dubai is home to the world’s largest indoor aquarium, which holds over 10 million litres of water. The aquarium is home to more than 33,000 aquatic animals and over 200 different species.