Dubai, often hailed as the city of superlatives, is not just a destination for adults seeking opulent experiences and futuristic skylines. It’s also a fantastic place for families with young kids. With its world-class attractions and family-friendly activities, Dubai offers a memorable adventure for both parents and children alike. Here’s a guide on what to do and see in Dubai when traveling with young kids for 3 days.
Day 1 Morning: Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo
Start your Dubai journey with a visit to the Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo at Dubai Mall. Your little explorers can marvel at the marine life through the massive acrylic viewing panel, and then head upstairs to the zoo for a closer look at the Penguins, Otters and King Crocs!! Follow this link for travel options to the Dubai Mall: Dubai Mall – Getting Here
There are a range of ticketing options and it’s open 365 days a year. You can buy online, which I highly recommend, and there are often great offers on the website – Dubai Aquarium
You can also just watch the impressive sight of Sand Tiger Sharks, Trevally fish and Eagle Rays for free from the public area of the mall too. Find out about Sand Tiger Sharks here: https://oceana.org/marine-life/sand-tiger-shark/
Day 1 Morning: KidZania
Let your kids explore the world of grown-ups in a fun and educational way at KidZania. It is also located in Dubai Mall so only a 5 minute walk from the Aquarium. Check out the KidZania website here: KidZania Dubai Mall
KidZania is packed with over 40 role-playing activities for children aged 2-16, where they’ll learn all about jobs, money and the real world while developing life skills that simply cannot be taught in the classroom. My favourite is when my son plays the role of an Emirates A380 Pilot – future career maybe!
I would recommend going early when it opens. So, maybe head here first before popping over to the Aquarium and Underwater Zoo. After these two activities, head for lunch at the Dubai Mall food court.
Day 1 Afternoon: Kite Beach
Go grab a taxi from Dubai Mall to SALT restaurant on Kite Beach. This is a great starting point for exploring all that Kite Beach has to offer. Here’s a link to get you there: https://www.visitdubai.com/en/places-to-visit/kite-beach
Grab a coffee, an ice-cream or just jump straight into the Arabian Gulf for a refreshing dip after the busy day you’ve just had at the mall.
There’s an inflatable water assault course as well as a number of volleyball courts to burn up your afternoon energy. In fact, there’s a whole host of activities on Kite Beach so just go wander and soak up the sights. My son highly recommends the inflatable water assault course: Aqua Parks Leisure
Day 2 Morning & Afternoon: Aquaventure Water Park
Get yourself to the Atlantis Hotel on the Palm Jumeirah for a full day of thrills and aquatic adventures at the best water park in the UAE. It claims to be the biggest water park on the planet too! You might as well set aside a full day for this as you’ll massively increase your step count meandering around this gargantuan water park. I dare you to try the ‘Leap of Faith’ water slide!!! The Atlantis Hotel – Aquaventure
Top tip is to get there early before it opens at 10am. Be the first through the door and go straight to riding all the big slides as the queues get exceedingly long in the afternoons. I have queued 90 minutes for the Leap of Faith previously….never again!!
Day 2 Evening: Dubai Fountains
If you have any energy left after a full day at the water park then head back to the Dubai Mall and watch the evening shows of the dazzling Dubai Fountains. They’re way better than the famous fountains of the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas. A YouTube Short of the Fountains
There’s a multitude of food options right by the fountains which can suit all budgets. If you just need to stuff some food into the kids then I usually head to Tim Hortons as it’s cheap and cheerful.
Day 3 Morning: Dubai Parks and Resorts
Take a taxi out to Dubai Parks and Resorts for a fun-filled day of Lego and Dreamworks characters such as Shrek Kung Fu Panda.
You have 3 options and I challenge you to take on all 3 – Legoland Water Park, Legoland and Motion Gate. See the website for full details: https://www.dubaiparksandresorts.com/en
Legoland Water park is separate to Legoland and it’s a great water park for the younger kids. I would start at the water park for the first few hours before drying up and heading to the actual Legoland. Grab lunch here and let the kids enjoy building Lego race cars and ride the various rollercoasters that suit all ages. You also have to explore the perfectly scaled Lego models of the Burj Al Arab, Pyramids of Giza and the ancient Hanging Gardens of Babylon in the central dome in Legoland.
After hitting up the 2 separate Legoland parks, I dare you to make the 10 minute walk over to Motion Gate for an evening of scary rollercoasters and Dreamworks-themed activities. Meet Shrek, fight with Kung-Fu Panda and try tame some fun-loving Dragons.
Grab dinner at one of the parks numerous restaurants before heading back to your hotel for a well-earned rest!
If you have any of your own suggestions for fun activities for kids in Dubai then please comment in the section below: