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Dubai in December
Good month: December is in the middle of the recommended season (November – March). Against it: Rare Storms Can Flood the Roads. Plan around: Peak Prices: Shopping Festival, Christmas and New Year. UAE National Day (Eid Al Etihad) and New Year's Eve fireworks and Dubai Shopping Festival and Global Village season can fall this month.
The season runs to the end of March, 3 months away. Summer Heat: 40-45 °C by Day usually starts in June, 6 months away.
3 days in Dubai in December · from ₹40,382 for two
Stay, food & local travel; getting there extra
The weather in December
What the season does to Dubai this month.
Heads up
Rare Storms Can Flood the Roads
Rain is rare, but the cities have little drainage for it: in April 2024 the heaviest rain since records began flooded Dubai's roads and Metro stations and halted the airport for days. If a storm warning is issued (the National Centre of Meteorology posts them), stay in, and expect flight delays.
Before you book December
Closures, crowds and rules at Dubai this month.
Worth knowing
Flight Disruptions Since the 2026 Regional War
Since the war in the region began in February 2026, Gulf airspace has closed at times and UAE flights have been cancelled at short notice; in October 2026 Dubai and Abu Dhabi airports are open with occasional cancellations. Book changeable fares, buy travel insurance that covers disruption, and check your government's advice (the US rates the UAE "Reconsider travel") and your airline before you fly.
Worth knowing
Peak Prices: Shopping Festival, Christmas and New Year
From mid-December to mid-January the Dubai Shopping Festival, Christmas, New Year's Eve and Indian winter holidays together make these the dearest weeks of the year: hotels often double, flights from India are at their highest, and New Year's Eve closes Downtown from the afternoon. Book by October, or come in February or March instead.
What’s on in December
Timing a trip around these changes what you pay and what you can book.
UAE National Day (Eid Al Etihad)2026: 2 Dec
A long public-holiday weekend around 2 December: fireworks, parades and flag-draped cars. Hatta, Jebel Jais, Fujairah and the desert camps fill with residents; book early and expect slow traffic on the roads out of Dubai.
New Year's Eve fireworks2026: 31 Dec
Fireworks at the Burj Khalifa, the Palm and Atlantis, Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah's record-setting show. Downtown Dubai closes roads and Metro stations from the afternoon; Burj Khalifa-view restaurants and hotel rooms sell out months ahead at the year's highest prices.
Dubai Shopping Festival
About five weeks from mid-December into January: mall sales, gold-buying raffles, drone and firework shows and concerts. Shopping is cheaper, but it overlaps Christmas, New Year and Indian winter holidays, so Dubai hotels and flights from India are at their dearest. The exact dates are announced each autumn.
Global Village season
Dubai's open-air festival park of country pavilions, food stalls and shows runs each cool season, roughly late October to early May, evenings only. The India pavilion is one of the biggest. Weekends are packed; go on a weekday.
What it costs
For two sharing a room; 3 days on the ground, getting there not included.
Budget
₹40,382 for two
- Room a night₹7,770
- Food a day, each₹2,015
- Main sight entry, each₹4,380
Mid-range
₹80,126 for two
- Room a night₹16,840
- Food a day, each₹4,650
- Main sight entry, each₹4,380
Luxury
₹1,78,298 for two
- Room a night₹41,440
- Food a day, each₹10,850
- Main sight entry, each₹4,380
What December does to prices
- From mid-December to mid-January the Dubai Shopping Festival, Christmas, New Year's Eve and Indian winter holidays together make these the dearest weeks of the year: hotels often double, flights from India are at their highest, and New Year's Eve closes Downtown from the afternoon.
- Downtown Dubai closes roads and Metro stations from the afternoon; Burj Khalifa-view restaurants and hotel rooms sell out months ahead at the year's highest prices.
- Shopping is cheaper, but it overlaps Christmas, New Year and Indian winter holidays, so Dubai hotels and flights from India are at their dearest.
Totals cover the room (taxes included), food, local transport, entry and a 10% buffer: the figures the planner opens on. These are typical rates; Tourisma has no month-by-month rates for the UAE yet, so they don't move with the month.
Getting there
Fly into Dubai (DXB)
Flights from India: from 15 cities, one way from ₹11,000
Fly into Sharjah (SHJ), 22 km away
Then: Transfer · 54m (Taxi / Careem, per vehicle (Sharjah surcharge included))
Flights from India: from 11 cities, one way from ₹10,500
Routes compared
Entry rules
E-visa before you fly for up to 30 days, about ₹6,860
- Apply for a 30-day UAE tourist visa before you fly: through your airline (Emirates and flydubai process visas for their passengers; IndiGo, Air India Express and Air Arabia sell them too), a travel agent, your UAE hotel, or the ICP and GDRFA portals. The government fee is AED 252 + 5% VAT, about ₹6,860; agents add their charges. Allow 1-3 working days.
- Hold a valid US visa or Green Card, an EU visa or residence permit, or residence in Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada, Singapore or New Zealand? You can instead take a 14-day visa on arrival (AED 100, extendable once). A UK visa or UK residence permit alone is reported (July 2026) to be dropped from this list, with no start date announced yet: if that is all you hold, get the e-visa to be safe.
- At immigration in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah or Ras Al Khaimah, show your passport and the visa approval, and your return ticket and hotel booking if asked.
- For a longer trip, apply for a 60-day tourist visa instead of the 30-day one, or extend through the same airline, agent or portal before the visa expires.
Carry: Passport valid for at least 6 months from the day you arrive; UAE visa approval (PDF or printout), or the US / EU / listed residence document if you take the visa on arrival; Confirmed return or onward ticket; Hotel bookings, or a host's address and Emirates ID copy; Recent passport photo on a white background and a PAN card copy, which some airlines and agents ask for.
The visa-on-arrival rules for Indians are changing in 2026 (UK documents reported to be dropped, start date not announced) and fees differ between sources, so check on the ICP site or with your airline before booking. Flights to the UAE have been cancelled at short notice since the regional war began in February 2026; buy a fare you can change.
Checked 2026-10; confirm with the embassy before you fly.
Elsewhere in the UAE in December
Also in season this month.
- Dubai Desert (Al Marmoom) · great month
- Al Ain · great month
- Liwa Oasis (Empty Quarter) · great month
- Fujairah & Dibba (East Coast) · good month
- Hatta · good month
- Ras Al Khaimah · good month
- Abu Dhabi · good month
- Dubai Marina & Palm Jumeirah · good month
Nearby in Dubai:
Want this as a real plan?
Dubai in December, day by day, priced for your group.