Spending New Years in style

[dropcap]D[/dropcap]espite the real problems behind the fire at the Address Hotel opposite the Burj Khalifa, the whole occasion was not marred by any sense of fear.

The controversial decision to go ahead with the New Year’s celebrations was the right one and no one was disappointed. Dubai is notorious for boasting the best fireworks display in the opening minutes of each year. The celebrations for 2016 were no exception, with the King spending a reported $6 million dollars for a 23-minute show across four locations. It made London look like a low-budget park display.

Starting at the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, the fireworks were displayed at the Atlantic Hotel in the exclusive Palm Jumeirah Islands, the 7-star luxury Burj al-Arab hotel and finally at the Jumeirah Beach Residences, the most expensive street in the world. We were lucky enough to find our way to the beach. I was expecting it to be a sea of bodies, all drunk before 8pm and a mad dash to the Metro station as soon as the last firework had exploded. I was pleasantly surprised.

Dubai is notorious for boasting the best fireworks displays in the opening minutes of each year. The celebrations…were no exception

It was the first New Year’s that I had spent outside of London and so my expectations were not fantastically high. However, it was incredibly easy to get around and the strict rules that the UAE have on alcohol meant it was a real family occasion. The beach was awash with people but we were right by a mall, so there was plenty of room and it was great to be able to go barefoot. We even found space to sit down – it was unheard of.

The fact that all of these little annoyances were removed made the fireworks display so much better. From our vantage point, we could see all of the locations, with two displays going off at the same time. In front of us, the barges on the Dubai creek delivered the most spectacular finale of golden light, and we realised how special it was to be here. There was a reason that 2 million people had specifically come to Dubai for this week.

It’s an expensive trip, but if you have the money, then I would definitely recommend going to Dubai for the holidays. It will exceed your expectations.