It's More Than Just a Cruise
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It’s more than just a cruise It’s the perfect sightseeing experience Welcome aboard! You are about to embark on one of Dubai’s must-do sightseeing and dining experiences. Bateaux Dubai has been cruising through the heartland of Dubai since 2004. For more than a decade, our elegant vessel has hosted celebrities, visitors, Dubai residents, multinational companies and stunning wedding receptions. Our cruise route takes us past the captivating sights on both sides of Dubai Creek or Khor Dubai, a 14-kilometre natural seawater inlet. It has played a major part in the region’s economic development and was particularly important for pearl diving. The Creek divides the old city into two parts, namely Bur Dubai and Deira. During the cruise, you’ll get a sense of what the area was like with historic old neighbourhoods, elegant wind towers, bustling open-air markets and wooden boats downloading goods in a century-old tradition. Dubai Creek is on UNESCO’s tentative list for World Heritage Site status, owing to its ‘outstanding universal value’. HIGHLIGHTS 1. EMIRATES NBD HEADQUARTERS 6. DUBAI COURTS Built in 1998, this 125-metre high building was inspired by the curved hulls The Emirate’s judicial courts comprise the Court of First Instance, the of the traditional dhows on Dubai Creek. It houses the headquarters of Court of Appeal and the Court of Cassation. The Court of First Instance Emirates NBD, the largest banking group in the Middle East in terms of consists of the civil court which hears all civil claims, the criminal court assets. The group was formed in 2007, when Emirates Bank International which deals with claims originating from police complaints and Sharia merged with National Bank of Dubai. court, which is responsible for matters between Muslims. The Court of Cassation is the Emirate’s Supreme Court. 2. DUBAI CHAMBER OF COMMERCE The headquarters of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry is 7. MAKTOUM BRIDGE located inside this 91-metre high building, which was the seventh-tallest Dubai’s first bridge opened in 1963 and to finance the construction, a building in Dubai at the time of its construction in 1995. toll was charged until 1973. Drivers could buy blue toll tickets in shops, which were handed to the collector outside a small wooden toll booth on 3. DHOW WHARFAGE the Deira side. The bridge underwent a significant widening in 2007 that Numerous wooden dhows and boats, which have traditionally been the added additional lanes to increase capacity to 9,500 vehicles per hour. vessels of livelihood for members of the region’s local population, make this an area that has remained wonderfully intact since its birth during 8. THE BASTAKIYA Dubai’s early trading days. The Bastakiya, dating back to the 1690s, is one of the oldest residential areas in Dubai and is renowned for its beautiful wind towers and narrow 4. DEIRA CLOCK TOWER lanes. Today, the area is home to art galleries, craft centres and cafés, One of the oldest witnesses to change in Dubai, the Clock Tower was which can be visited while exploring the architecture. built around 1963 to mark the country’s first oil exports. It is on a roundabout on top of an underpass and remains a significant landmark 9. GRAND MOSQUE when residents give directions to the area. The structure was refurbished With its 70-metre high minaret, the Grand Mosque is an imposing in 1972 and the four clock faces were replaced in 2008, removing the structure that is situated between the Textile Souk and Dubai Museum. It was originally built in 1900 and contained a school where students need to manually change the hands on the clock. studied the Quran. In 1960, it was replaced with a new mosque and in 1998, changes were made to bring it in line with the style of the original 5. FLOATING BRIDGE mosque. The Grand Mosque can now hold up to 1,200 worshippers. Opened on 16th July 2007, this six-lane pontoon bridge on the water was built in less than 10 months to help ease traffic flow. The bridge is 10. DUBAI MUSEUM 365 metres long and 22 metres wide, with a capacity of 6,000 vehicles This museum is situated in Dubai’s oldest existing building - Al Fahidi an hour. It is open daily from 6am to 10pm and allows boats to pass Fort - which was built in 1787. Opened in 1971, it features an extensive through at off-hours. It will eventually be replaced by the new, 12-lane presentation of traditional life in pre-oil Dubai with dioramas and local Al Ittihad Bridge, which is due for completion in 2017. antiquities on display. 11. THE DIWAN 17. DEIRA TWIN TOWERS Located opposite the Dubai Museum is The Diwan, which houses the Sometimes called the Rolex Towers, these two 102-metre high buildings private office of Dubai’s Ruler and is the seat of the government’s main were constructed in 1998. They contain a shopping centre, restaurants, administrative body. The low-rise building with its white exterior and a residential section and offices. black railings was constructed in 1990. 18. ETISALAT TOWER 1 12. SHEIKH SAEED HOUSE This very distinctive building features a large sphere at the top, This classic and beautifully restored historic building in Shindagha was sometimes likened to a giant golf ball. Completed in 1992, it is originally established around 1894 as the seat of the Al Maktoum family. 100 metres tall and inside it is the head office of Etisalat, one of the Sheikh Saeed Bin Maktoum Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai from 1912 until UAE’s telecommunications providers. In 2012, Forbes Middle East named 1958, lived here. Today, the house is a museum that contains artefacts, Etisalat the most powerful company in the UAE. old coins, stamps and images of old Dubai. 13. DUBAI HERITAGE AND DIVING VILLAGE Created in 1997, this village in the Shindagha historical district showcases a glimpse of what traditional life in the UAE was like during the pearl diving era. Craftsmen sell handicrafts in characteristic barasti houses and there are some displays depicting scenes from the time. 14. OLD SOUK / SPICE SOUK The narrow lanes of this traditional souk (or market) are lined with open-air and closed-roof stalls that sell fragrances, spices, frankincense, incense and herbs. It’s a sensory journey to walk through the fragrant souk, where textiles, rugs and artefacts are also sold. 15. GOLD SOUK It has been suggested that more than 10 tons of gold is present at any time in this souk, or traditional market. Hundreds of shops sell and make jewellery here. Dubai’s free trade policies have encouraged Indian and Iranian entrepreneurs to set up shops in the souk, spurring a growth in gold trade during the 1940s and continuing today. 16. DEIRA TOWER Constructed in 1980, this is an architectural example of early modernism. Several offices and shops can be found inside Deira Tower. BOOK YOUR NEXT DINNER CRUISE ONLINE AT bateauxdubai.com OR CALL +971 4 814 5553 Bateaux Dubai Scan here for more information. AG15200BD-1.