-MiddleEast.UAE.Dubai-
Day 2 – The ship is still docked in Dubai and will only depart at 11:30 in the night. This meant that we have the entire day to do some sightseeing in Dubai.
Note: This post contains affiliate links where I may earn a commission from at no extra cost to you. I promise that I am only endorsing products I use myself and trust in. This support in turn helps me sustain this website to bring you more travel tips.
For some ideas about what to do in Dubai check out some options below.
Day 2 - Dubai morning on Costa Toscana
I woke up to the Austrian time – meaning very early in Dubai . I thought I would use the opportunity to scout around the ship before everyone else wakes up. I went up on deck again for some great views of the city skyline again from the Sky Walk.
We were one of the first to be at breakfast at the La Sagra dei Sapori – the buffet offering at Deck 8. There were many staff on hand to remove the finished dishes – so much so that one had to guard the unfinished food while the other goes to the buffet. The buffet offered drinks which is dispensed by the staff. The coffee is not that great there – so we went in search of a cappuccino and found a cafe that is open during early hours. Kartell Cafe at Deck 8 offered just that and remained our favourite throughout the cruise. After that we were ready to explore Dubai.
Shore visit to Dubai
Our passports were handed over to Costa on embarkation day as per normal on cruises. So we only had to bring along our cruise cards as identification. The cruise staff checked us out on their system and we made our way out of the cruise terminal. This was when we hit our first hiccup. We made our way to the taxi rank at the terminal – our plan was to go to the metro station Dubai Internet city and take the public transport around. Although the taxi drivers were waiting there, not one wanted to take us when we mentioned the destination and that we wanted to pay with the card. Finally one of them told us that we can hail a taxi outside the port which would be cheaper since the starting rate for pick up from the terminal is AED 25 and outside is AED 5. It was not a far walk as we headed towards the next Cruise Terminal B where there was a gate. We hailed down a taxi outside and told him that we would like to use the meter to the metro and that we would pay with the card. He brought us but it was a harrowing ride as he was looking at his phone all the time! We were happy to have made it there safely. We topped up our day pass to our Red NOL ticket.
Museum of the Future
Our metro stop is the Emirates Towers , making our way for a closeup photo stop of the very special building. We made our way to the Jumeirah Emirates Towers and got a great view from there.
Bur Dubai
We hopped back on the metro and headed to Bur Dubai – our metro stop is Burjuman and from there a bus no F70 – to our next destination Al Seef Heritage Village. The bus ride at the time of the day near noon was in the midst of traffic, barely moving. Inside the air-conditioned bus – afforded us interesting views of the area filled with eating places and small shops near residential areas. Below is from our walkthrough of Al Seef.
We then made our way through a street full of textile shops and found an interesting mosque I was looking for. Unfortunately it was undergoing some renovation. Still very beautiful though..
We continued walking and found the Grand Souq of Bur Dubai , inside has a lot of textile shops which I would have stopped to check out if I had more time. Instead we walked through the souq in search of the Abra station that would bring us across to Deira where there are more souqs to explore. The abra ride costs AED1 which is equivalent to USD0.27. Dirt cheap for the experience of sitting in an abra and watching other boats and abras go pass.
Deira Souq
We walked into the Grand Souq Deira and were immediately descended upon by the vendors trying to sell their wares. It was not a very comfortable feeling to be hassled and I felt like walking through very quickly. The spices did smell heavenly and looked very colourful.
We made our way to the metro station (Al Ras – green line) nearby to do a return to the other side of the creek. We wanted to see the Dubai Frame up close and personal so we stopped at Burjuman Metro station to change back to the red line. By that time it was after 1pm and we were getting hungry and a little tired. So we decided to skip the Frame and was discussing if we should go back to the ship instead.
We were overheard by a nice young lady and her husband and co-incidentally discovered they were going to board on the Costa Toscana as well! Both of them were residing and working in the UAE and celebrating their wedding anniversary on board. Angela if you are reading this , please get in touch! They are familiar with Dubai and was so nice to offer to share a cab with us. They gave us a great hint to stop at the DMCC Metro stop – which would have a higher possibility to have a taxi already waiting at the taxi rank. Soon we were back at the ship – having lunch at the La Sagra dei Sapori with very good offerings at the buffet.
Palm Islands Jumeirah
We had a rest after lunch drinking coffee and chilling and then prepared to go out to the Palm Jumeirah. I planned to watch the fountain show that starts after 6 pm. Little did we expect the adventure we were in for. We went out and there was no taxi in sight! When we saw one far and in between and tried to hail one , they did not stop. We then realized that it is a weekend and dinner time which most likely meant that we were in for a hard time getting one. Some minutes later, a cab came by and had already someone inside. It still stopped and with the passenger’s agreement we were picked up! As we drove on, I realized that the meter was not on and when the lady reached her stop – I told the cab driver that I wanted the meter switched on as we did not have cash to pay. He then was very angry and told us that the meter is not working. We got out of the cab then and tried to hail another one. We then saw that we were near a metro station and took the metro to Palm Jumeirah Monorail station. We took the monorail to the Pointe Dubai and to my disappointment the fountains were not running that day due to it being windy. We stayed for awhile and then took the monorail back. Our view was pretty cool.
*Money $aving Tip: Groupon offers a special unlimited day ride on the monorail.
When we arrived back at the Palm Gateway Station, what I feared came true. There was not a single taxi anywhere. We had the option to take the metro but I was unsure if any taxis would be available at this time of the day. We checked the map again and the cruise ship was about 3.7km away so we decided to walk. I thought it might be possible to flag down a taxi along the way but this was not to be. After walking more than half the distance, we came across an electric cart which offered service to bring us back to the cruise terminal and we took it. Finally safely back to the ship , was a big stress relief as the ship set sail on this night.
-End of Day 2-
Just Pin It!
Related posts you might like...
Reading your post made me so nervous. I was afraid you were going to report that you could not make it back to your ship and that you missed your sailing! I’m glad that’s not the case, but it does appear that using taxis is never something you can rely on. I did enjoy reading about the fun things you found to do!
It sounds like you had a nice day exploring Dubai. I would have liked to see Deira when I was there, but my time was very limited and didn’t get to see it. I know how the vendors in the souks can be, as I visited Egypt and Morocco before, but I was never harassed, it was always a nice exchange of smiles and greetings, before moving on. I do remember having issues as well with taxis, they either refuse to put the meter on, or to take payments by card. You wouldn’t expect that from Dubai!
What a lovely day you had in Dubai. I have never visited but the architecture does look incredible. I understand that feeling of being harassed in the market. The same happened in Morocco and my husband and I got so tired. It looks very pretty here!
Dubai is one of my favorite nations, and this Costa Toscana cruise looks amazing. Every destination stop has something interesting to offer. The Abra ride looked fun, so I was eager to attempt it. Al Seef also seems like a great place to explore and sample its eateries and cafes. And although you run into some issues, what matters is that you had a great time.
How great to have a full and long day in Dubai to explore this fascinating city. We were sure glad we used the public transportation system when we visited as we found traffic to be crazy. And your cab experiences sure confirmed that choice. The souks sure were a great array of colours, textures and smells. Glad you finally made it back to the ship safely.
You had such an exciting trip Middle East Cruise on Costa Toscana. You had a great time during your stay in Dubai. This city is still on my bucket list. I would love to visit the Museum of the Future and Bur Dubai. I can imagine how you felt in Grand Souq Deira when vendors were too pushy to buy something. It’s great that you provide tips on metro stops to each attraction.
It’s nice that you were able to explore the area. I can totally relate with you when vendors are all over you trying to sell their wares. Sorry to hear about your taxi woes. Happy to know that you were able to get back to the ship safely. Was the electric cart more expensive than the regular taxi?
Yes the electric cart costed 20 Aed for two persons while a taxi covering 3x the distance costed 17Aed
Wow. I’m considering a short stay in Dubai while transiting and this seems to be a good idea. Haha, I can understand the jet lag and waking up at weird hours. Good to know that you can go around with just cruise cards and don’t have to carry passports. I wonder how stunning the mosque is even, just its exteriors. It would have been great if the renovation was over and you could see its interiors.
Your experience at the Costa Toscana Cruise sounds very interesting and you enjoyed the views of the amazing skyline from the deck and also enjoyed a delicious buffet. And Dubai is a great city with its souqs selling spices and knick knacks. And the Palm Jumeirah looks absolutely exotic and stunning.