Beneficial TravelDestination Management Since ’87 · UAE & GCC inbound travel & hospitality
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Palm Jumeirah from the air at sunset

Tour 15

United Arab Emirates Grand Tour

9 nights, 10 days

Length
9 nights, 10 days
Shape
Dubai first, then the desert, then Abu Dhabi, then Ras Al Khaimah, then back through Sharjah to one last night in Dubai.
Overnights
Dubai 3, desert 1, Abu Dhabi 3, Ras Al Khaimah 1, Dubai 1

Every itinerary runs at two paces. Full: three or four stops a day, most meals booked, early starts. Relaxed keeps the same length, the same hotels and the same arrival and departure, and books less into each day: one anchor per half day, later starts, lunch mostly at leisure, and a free afternoon or evening every second day. Either pace can run from the same booking, because the rooms do not change. What changes is tickets, meals and guide hours.

The program at a glance

  1. Day 1Arrival, DubaiDubai city hotel
  2. Day 2Old DubaiDubai city hotel
  3. Day 3Tall DubaiDubai city hotel
  4. Day 4The Palm, then the desertdesert resort
  5. Day 5Desert morning, then Abu DhabiAbu Dhabi
  6. Day 6Abu DhabiAbu Dhabi
  7. Day 7Yas IslandAbu Dhabi
  8. Day 8North to Ras Al KhaimahRas Al Khaimah
  9. Day 9Back to Dubai through SharjahDubai
  10. Day 10Departure
Where the nights are spent

United Arab Emirates Grand Tour

  1. Nights of days 1–3

    Dubai city hotel

    Dubai
    1. Day 1Dubai

      Arrival, Dubai

      Arrival, Dubai

      Airport meet and transfer. The evening is kept light, with the fountain at Downtown if the arrival time allows.

      • The Dubai Fountain

        An abra on Burj Lake as the fountain jets rise in front of the Downtown towersClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/Dubai Fountain/Fountain-2.png

        Sight · Dubai

        In Downtown Dubai you see the tallest performing fountain in the world. The Dubai Fountain gives you a rare chance to lose yourself in a captivating show of water, music and light. Then we have arranged for you to go up

      • Dubai city hotel

    2. Day 2Dubai

      Old Dubai

      The Dubai Frame

      The creek in the morning: an abra crossing, the Gold Souk, the Spice Souk and Al Seef, then the Al Shindagha museum quarter. The Dubai Frame in the afternoon, standing between the old city on one side and the new on the other.

      • An abra across Dubai Creek

        Wooden abras moored along Dubai Creek at sunset, flags flying from their canopiesClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/Abra water taxi (Dubai Creek)/Abra water Taxi 1.jpeg

        Experience · Dubai

        The abra water taxi, the oldest and simplest form of transport local people use on Dubai Creek.

        More on the Experiences page

      • The Gold Souk

        Shop windows hung with gold bangles and necklaces along a covered lane of the Gold SoukClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/Gold Souk and Spice Souk/6996107459_b3832ffbdb_b.jpg

        Sight · Dubai

        The Gold Souk, where shop windows hang full of dazzling gold work: necklaces, rings, bangles, earrings and brooches, all of it astonishing to look at. And nearby,

      • The Spice Souk

        Trays of saffron, cardamom, turmeric and dried herbs piled up in the Spice SoukClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/Gold Souk and Spice Souk/deira-spice-souk-guide.webp

        Sight · Dubai

        the Spice Souk, where you find imported spices of every kind. It is the best place to feel the character of the place.

      • Al Seef

        Sight · Dubai

      • The Al Shindagha museum quarter

        A coral-stone wind tower against a deep blue sky in the Al Shindagha quarterClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/Al Shindagha Museum/about3.jpeg

        Sight · Dubai

      • The Dubai Frame

        The Dubai Frame

        Sight · Dubai

        The Dubai Frame. After the Burj Khalifa, this is another work built at great expense, a surrealist piece of architecture whose outer surface is covered in gold patterning. The frame stands about 50 stories high inside Zabeel Park and became Dubai's most eye-catching new landmark in 2018. It took four years to complete.

      • Dubai city hotel

      The full day

      Full-day coach and guide.

    3. Day 3Dubai

      Tall Dubai

      The Museum of the Future

      The Museum of the Future in the morning, then the Burj Khalifa, on the higher deck at level 148 for this program. The Dubai Mall in the afternoon and the fountain after dark.

      • The Museum of the Future

        The Museum of the Future

        Sight · Dubai

        The Museum of the Future shows people the direction technology will take over the next twenty years. Most importantly, technology can help us rebuild our imagination and see what climate change will bring by 2050. Be ready to witness the world's greatest inventions and prototype ideas, presented in a way no traditional museum uses. The design of this museum breaks new ground, and visitors experience technological change first hand through interactive displays. Watch for the advanced courses, workshops and seminars here, which apply existing advanced technology and scientific solutions to explore what innovation might look like in the future. Here you can examine the three great problems of climate change: fresh water supply, food security, and building or rebuilding cities. This landmark development aims to steer human society in a better direction and bring about a stronger global economy.

      • Burj Khalifa

        Burj Khalifa

        Sight · Dubai

        the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa. At 828 meters it is the first structure in human history to pass 800 meters, and from the top the magnificent view over Dubai is all yours.

      • The Dubai Mall

        The Dubai Mall's facade and Souk Al Bahar across Burj LakeClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/The Dubai Mall/Dubai-Mall_GettyImages-167896655.webp

        Sight · Dubai

        The Dubai Mall is the largest shopping and entertainment complex in the world by floor area. It holds more than 1,200 retail stores, more than 150 places to eat and leisure facilities beyond counting. Inside is the world's largest indoor aquarium, so you can shop and look at the undersea world at the same time. There is also an indoor theme park, an ice rink, a cinema and the world's largest indoor gold market. It is the biggest and the most distinctive modern mall in the Middle East.

      • The Dubai Fountain

        An abra on Burj Lake as the fountain jets rise in front of the Downtown towersClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/Dubai Fountain/Fountain-2.png

        Sight · Dubai

        In Downtown Dubai you see the tallest performing fountain in the world. The Dubai Fountain gives you a rare chance to lose yourself in a captivating show of water, music and light. Then we have arranged for you to go up

      • Dubai city hotel

      The full day

      Full-day coach and guide. Burj Khalifa level 148 included.

  2. Night of day 4

    desert resort

    Kerzner · Rare Finds · Dubai Desert · Dubai

    Desert traditional

    Bab Al Shams, the gate of the sun, is Dubai's original desert resort, refurbished once more and reopening on 1 October 2026 as the first hotel in Kerzner's Rare Finds collection. It is forty-five minutes from the airport and a world away: low Arabian buildings around courtyards and pools, a desert ballroom for evenings under the sky, and the Al Hadheerah dinner show, the desert night our groups have loved for twenty years, back in its own amphitheater.

    Rooms & suites
    185
    Pools
    3
    Distance from city
    45 min
    F&B venues
    7

    See the whole hotel roster

    Al Maha desert
    1. Day 4Palm Jumeirah – Jumeirah – Dubai Marina & JBR – Al Maha desert

      The Palm, then the desert

      The View at The Palm

      The View at The Palm, Palm Jumeirah Mall and Souk Madinat Jumeirah, with the Burj Al Arab standing behind it for the photograph everyone wants. A photo stop at Ain Dubai. Late afternoon the coach turns inland for the desert resort.

      • The View at The Palm

        The View at The Palm

        Sight · Dubai

        The View at The Palm, new in 2020. Take the elevator to the observation deck on the 52nd floor and look down over the whole of Palm Jumeirah. You can photograph the full frond pattern of the island, with the skyline laid out in front of you.

      • Palm Jumeirah Mall

        The mall's glass entrance and fountain on the Palm's trunkClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/Nakheel Mall (Rebranded as Palm Jumeirah Mall)/Exterior 1746534004.webp

        Sight · Dubai

        Palm Jumeirah Mall is an upscale lifestyle, retail, dining and entertainment destination at the heart of Palm Jumeirah. It opened at the end of 2019 with more than 300 stores, restaurants and entertainment venues. Shopping highlights include the MODO department store, H&M and a Waitrose supermarket, alongside leisure venues such as Trampo Extreme trampoline park, the Fabyland indoor playground and a Vox Cinemas complex with 14 screens.

      • Souk Madinat Jumeirah

        Souk Madinat Jumeirah

        Sight · Dubai

        Souk Madinat Jumeirah is designed in imitation of a traditional open-air market and sits inside a large resort. Among all the high-end retail in the city it has the most atmosphere, and it became a popular destination the moment it opened. Wind towers stand out above the lower buildings of the souk, and when they light up at night the whole area is bathed in a romantic glow. Winding waterways and excellent outdoor dining sit nearby. It is no surprise at all that the souk draws visitors like a magnet.

      • The Burj Al Arab

        The Burj Al Arab

        Sight · Dubai

        A photo stop at the Burj Al Arab, the sail-shaped hotel on its own island off Jumeirah Beach, for the photograph everyone wants.

      • Ain Dubai on Bluewaters

        Ain Dubai and the Bluewaters waterfront lit up under a pink evening skyClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/Bluewaters Island Dubai/zsm1xogkyx717e8bq7a6ypkee5xk_1624886978_shutterstock_1233218785.webp

        Sight · Dubai

        Bluewaters is Dubai's famous man-made island, the one everyone photographs, and it sits next to Dubai Marina. It is divided into residential, retail and leisure districts with hotels and beach clubs, and it brings dining, accommodation and entertainment together in one place, a paradise for shoppers. The most famous thing on the island is Dubai's landmark giant observation wheel, Ain Dubai. At 250 meters it is the tallest observation wheel in the world. Bluewaters is surrounded by charming views of the Arabian Gulf, Dubai Marina, Ain Dubai and the Dubai coastline, and it gives you a taste of a completely new kind of waterfront city living.

      • desert resort

        Kerzner · Rare Finds · Dubai Desert · Dubai

        Desert traditional

        Bab Al Shams, the gate of the sun, is Dubai's original desert resort, refurbished once more and reopening on 1 October 2026 as the first hotel in Kerzner's Rare Finds collection. It is forty-five minutes from the airport and a world away: low Arabian buildings around courtyards and pools, a desert ballroom for evenings under the sky, and the Al Hadheerah dinner show, the desert night our groups have loved for twenty years, back in its own amphitheater.

        Rooms & suites
        185
        Pools
        3
        Distance from city
        45 min
        F&B venues
        7

        See the whole hotel roster

  3. Nights of days 5–7

    Abu Dhabi

    Hilton · Corniche · Abu Dhabi

    Conrad Abu Dhabi occupies the tallest of the Etihad Towers, the five glass towers that define the western Corniche, and the view from the rooms takes in the whole coast to Emirates Palace next door. Its pillarless ballroom is one of the largest in the capital, which is why it is our anchor hotel for conferences in Abu Dhabi, and the Observation Deck at 300 in the tower next door gives every group its photograph. Beach, pools and a spa complete the stay.

    See the whole hotel roster

    Abu Dhabi
    1. Day 5Abu Dhabi

      Desert morning, then Abu Dhabi

      Desert morning, then Abu Dhabi

      One complimentary desert activity in the morning, falconry or a nature walk or archery. Then the road to Abu Dhabi and the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in the late afternoon light, which is when it photographs best.

      • The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

        The mosque's minarets and domes glowing violet, mirrored in the reflecting poolsClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque/gallery-img-new-12_20240723125845282.jpg

        Sight · Abu Dhabi

        The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi is the largest mosque in the Arab world and one of the most beautiful anywhere. Its clean white exterior is built from marble imported from Italy. In the main prayer hall you can see the world's largest carpet, designed by Iranian artists, and chandeliers imported from Germany. It is a remarkable sight.

      • Abu Dhabi

        Hilton · Corniche · Abu Dhabi

        Conrad Abu Dhabi occupies the tallest of the Etihad Towers, the five glass towers that define the western Corniche, and the view from the rooms takes in the whole coast to Emirates Palace next door. Its pillarless ballroom is one of the largest in the capital, which is why it is our anchor hotel for conferences in Abu Dhabi, and the Observation Deck at 300 in the tower next door gives every group its photograph. Beach, pools and a spa complete the stay.

        See the whole hotel roster

    2. Day 6Abu Dhabi

      Abu Dhabi

      Qasr Al Watan

      Qasr Al Watan, the working presidential palace, in the morning. The Louvre Abu Dhabi after lunch. The Corniche at the end of the day.

      • Qasr Al Watan

        Qasr Al Watan

        Sight · Abu Dhabi

        Qasr Al Watan, the Presidential Palace, has become one of the must-see stops in Abu Dhabi. It is where the UAE officially receives foreign dignitaries today and where state visits by heads of state take place. It uses the pointed arches and great domes of sixteenth to eighteenth century Mughal Islamic architecture, blended cleverly with the ornate building traditions of India, for a visual impact and a grandeur you will not have seen before. That includes the main halls and the rooms holding the treasures presented to the UAE president by countries around the world, where the interiors use white, yellow and blue to stand for the landscape of the region. The west wing explains how the country was formed and how it is governed, while the east wing displays a large collection of artifacts and precious manuscripts and explains what the Arab world has contributed to science, art, the humanities and literature. There is also a library holding more than fifty thousand books and resources.

      • The Louvre Abu Dhabi

        The Louvre Abu Dhabi

        Sight · Abu Dhabi

        Louvre Abu Dhabi. This landmark building is the first museum in the Arab world to open itself to the whole world, and it fully expresses a spirit of cultural openness. As a leading cultural building at the heart of the Saadiyat Cultural District, it exhibits works of major historical, cultural and social importance from ancient times to the present. It is a dream destination for anyone who loves art.

      • The corniche

        Sight · Abu Dhabi

      • Abu Dhabi

        Hilton · Corniche · Abu Dhabi

        Conrad Abu Dhabi occupies the tallest of the Etihad Towers, the five glass towers that define the western Corniche, and the view from the rooms takes in the whole coast to Emirates Palace next door. Its pillarless ballroom is one of the largest in the capital, which is why it is our anchor hotel for conferences in Abu Dhabi, and the Observation Deck at 300 in the tower next door gives every group its photograph. Beach, pools and a spa complete the stay.

        See the whole hotel roster

      The full day

      Full-day coach and guide. Closed Mondays at the Louvre, so the two days swap when needed.

    3. Day 7Abu Dhabi

      Yas Island

      Yas Island

      Ferrari World and the Yas Marina Circuit. A full day inside one destination, which suits families and gives the group a slower day in the middle of the tour.

      • Ferrari World

        Aerial view of Ferrari World's sweeping red roof on Yas IslandClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/Ferrari World™ Yas Island, Abu Dhabi/Roof.jpg

        Experience · Abu Dhabi

        More on the Experiences page

      • The Yas Marina Circuit

        The grandstand and start straight of Yas Marina Circuit at sunsetClient-supplied. SharePoint: BeneficialTravelFiles/02 BTI Sales/Brand Assets/Website/Excursion Images/Yas Marina Circuit/unnamed (2).webp

        Sight · Abu Dhabi

      • Abu Dhabi

        Hilton · Corniche · Abu Dhabi

        Conrad Abu Dhabi occupies the tallest of the Etihad Towers, the five glass towers that define the western Corniche, and the view from the rooms takes in the whole coast to Emirates Palace next door. Its pillarless ballroom is one of the largest in the capital, which is why it is our anchor hotel for conferences in Abu Dhabi, and the Observation Deck at 300 in the tower next door gives every group its photograph. Beach, pools and a spa complete the stay.

        See the whole hotel roster

      The full day

      Full-day coach and guide.

  4. Night of day 8

    Ras Al Khaimah

    The Ritz-Carlton · Al Wadi Desert · Ras Al Khaimah

    Al Wadi Desert is a Ritz-Carlton in the dunes of Ras Al Khaimah, fifty minutes from Dubai and inside its own nature reserve. Every villa is a tented pool villa with the desert on three sides, oryx and gazelle graze past the terraces at dusk, and the falconry, the archery and the nature drives are run by the resort itself. It is where we send the parties who want the desert night with the Ritz-Carlton standard, and the drive back to the coast the next morning is part of the experience.

    See the whole hotel roster

    Ras Al Khaimah
    1. Day 8Ras Al Khaimah

      North to Ras Al Khaimah

      North to Ras Al Khaimah

      The road north past the coast to Ras Al Khaimah and up Jebel Jais, the highest peak in the country, where the temperature drops and the landscape stops looking like the Gulf at all.

      • Jebel Jais

        Sight · Ras Al Khaimah

      • Ras Al Khaimah

        The Ritz-Carlton · Al Wadi Desert · Ras Al Khaimah

        Al Wadi Desert is a Ritz-Carlton in the dunes of Ras Al Khaimah, fifty minutes from Dubai and inside its own nature reserve. Every villa is a tented pool villa with the desert on three sides, oryx and gazelle graze past the terraces at dusk, and the falconry, the archery and the nature drives are run by the resort itself. It is where we send the parties who want the desert night with the Ritz-Carlton standard, and the drive back to the coast the next morning is part of the experience.

        See the whole hotel roster

  5. Night of day 9

    Dubai

    Bulgari Hotels · LVMH · Jumeirah Bay · Dubai

    Italian ultra-luxury

    Bulgari Resort Dubai sits on Jumeira Bay, a seahorse-shaped island off the coast, and it is the most private luxury address in the city. Antonio Citterio and Patricia Viel designed it as an Italian resort that happens to be in Arabia: 101 rooms and suites, twenty villas with their own pools, five restaurants, a spa the size of a small hotel and the first Bulgari Yacht Club in the world on its own marina. We book it for the parties who want to be near everything and seen by no one.

    Rooms
    101
    Villas
    20
    Marina villas
    6
    Restaurants
    5

    See the whole hotel roster

    Dubai
    1. Day 9Sharjah – Dubai

      Back to Dubai through Sharjah

      Back to Dubai through Sharjah

      South again, with Sharjah on the way: the Blue Souk and the Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization, then the last stretch into Dubai. The late afternoon is free, and a farewell dinner on the last night.

      • The Blue Souk

        Sight · Sharjah

      • The Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization

        Sight · Sharjah

      • Dubai

        Bulgari Hotels · LVMH · Jumeirah Bay · Dubai

        Italian ultra-luxury

        Bulgari Resort Dubai sits on Jumeira Bay, a seahorse-shaped island off the coast, and it is the most private luxury address in the city. Antonio Citterio and Patricia Viel designed it as an Italian resort that happens to be in Arabia: 101 rooms and suites, twenty villas with their own pools, five restaurants, a spa the size of a small hotel and the first Bulgari Yacht Club in the world on its own marina. We book it for the parties who want to be near everything and seen by no one.

        Rooms
        101
        Villas
        20
        Marina villas
        6
        Restaurants
        5

        See the whole hotel roster

    1. Day 10Dubai

      Departure

      Departure

      Transfer to the airport with your guide.

      • Airport transfer with guide

        Transfer

        Every group program runs on a full-day or half-day coach with a licensed guide. Airport transfers begin with a meet-and-greet at the gate, with a lounge available on request, and a duty officer is on call for the entire program window.

What this itinerary does well

Best for

Agencies already running 10 day and longer series, where the length carries a Taipei tour leader comfortably.

Why it sells

It is the only shape that reaches four emirates, and it splits Dubai into three unhurried days instead of one exhausting one.

Send us the brief

Group size, target dates, preferred hotel tier and any non-negotiables are enough for us to start. A costed proposal follows within two working days.