Dubai or Abu Dhabi?
It sounds like a simple question. Two cities in the same country, just a relatively short drive apart, so surely they can’t be that different?
But after visiting the UAE with our children, we realised that choosing between Dubai and Abu Dhabi is a little like choosing between two very different family holidays. They may share the same desert, the same sunshine and the same spectacular skyline, but the feeling is completely different.
Dubai grabs your attention immediately. Abu Dhabi takes a little longer.
And if you’re travelling with kids, that difference actually matters.
We spent time in both, and somewhere between looking up at the Burj Khalifa, racing around Yas Island and trying to convince the girls that we couldn’t possibly go shopping again, we started to understand why choosing between these two cities is so difficult.
The truth?
If you have enough time, don’t choose. Visit both.
But if you really have to pick just one, here’s how we would look at it.
Dubai: the city that wants to show you everything
Our first impression of Dubai was pretty much what you’d expect.
Wow.
Everything is bigger, taller, shinier and somehow just a little more over the top.
The skyline seems to go on forever. Roads are enormous. Shopping malls feel like cities in themselves and everywhere you look there seems to be another attraction competing for your attention.
With children, Dubai is almost dangerously easy.
There is always something else you can do.
One minute you’re standing beneath the Burj Khalifa, looking up until your neck hurts. The next you’re wandering through Dubai Mall, watching the aquarium, looking for food or trying to persuade the kids that they don’t actually need another souvenir.
And then there is the desert.
A desert safari was one of those experiences we knew we wanted to do before travelling to the UAE, but it turned out to be even more memorable with the children. Driving through the dunes, watching the landscape change as the sun went down and ending the evening surrounded by desert made a lovely contrast to the futuristic city we’d been exploring.
If you’re planning your own trip, our Dubai with Kids guide goes much deeper into what we did, where we stayed and which experiences we would actually recommend.
Because Dubai is not really a city where you sit around wondering what to do.
The problem is almost the opposite.
There is too much to do.
And then there is Abu Dhabi…
Driving from Dubai towards Abu Dhabi, the feeling gradually changes.
The skyscrapers don’t disappear, but somehow everything feels a little more spacious. A little calmer.
And then you see the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque.
Even with children who aren’t particularly interested in architecture, this is one of those places where you naturally slow down.
The white marble, the enormous courtyards and the incredible details make it feel completely different from the Dubai experience.
This is what we loved about Abu Dhabi.
It doesn’t constantly shout:
“Look what I can do!”
Instead, it quietly shows you another side of the UAE.
We also found Abu Dhabi easier to combine with slower family moments. There are beaches, museums, beautiful waterfront areas and plenty of space to simply take a break from sightseeing.
That doesn’t mean Abu Dhabi is boring.
Far from it.
You only have to arrive on Yas Island to discover that Abu Dhabi knows how to have fun too.
Yas Island: Abu Dhabi’s answer to Dubai
If your children hear the words Ferrari World, Warner Bros. World or Yas Waterworld, there is a good chance your carefully planned cultural itinerary is about to disappear.
Yas Island is almost a destination within a destination.
There are theme parks, water parks, restaurants, hotels, shopping and the Yas Marina Circuit, all packed into one area. It makes life surprisingly easy with kids because you don’t have to spend half your day driving from one attraction to another.
Our girls, of course, were particularly interested in the theme parks.
Ferrari World brings the thrills. Warner Bros. World is packed with familiar characters and rides, while Yas Waterworld is the obvious choice when everyone needs cooling down.
And that is perhaps one of the biggest differences between the two cities.
Dubai has endless choices. Abu Dhabi has some fantastic family attractions that are easier to combine into a trip.
If your children are theme-park fans, I would absolutely put Yas Island on the itinerary rather than treating Abu Dhabi as simply a day trip.
We actually wrote a separate story about Yas Island, because there is enough there to deserve its own place in your UAE planning.
So… which city is better with kids?
This is where things get interesting.
If your children are anything like ours, they probably won’t care about the subtle differences between the two cities.
They’ll remember the things that made them go:
“Can we do that again?”
In Dubai, that might be a desert safari, the Burj Khalifa, the huge malls, the beaches or one of the many indoor attractions.
In Abu Dhabi, it might be a roller coaster on Yas Island, splashing around in Yas Waterworld, seeing the Grand Mosque or simply spending time at the beach.
Both cities are incredibly family-friendly, but they offer different types of fun.
Dubai feels like a giant playground.
Abu Dhabi feels more like a holiday with a playground built into it.
And honestly, we liked having both.
Dubai wins when you want… everything
If this is your first trip to the UAE and you want to see as much as possible, Dubai is probably the easier choice.
There are more iconic sights packed into a relatively small area, more shopping, more restaurants and an almost endless supply of things to entertain children.
It’s also the place to go if you love that feeling of being somewhere completely different from home.
Dubai is unapologetically modern.
It’s futuristic architecture, enormous malls, artificial islands and attractions that sometimes make you wonder who came up with the idea in the first place.
And then you realise that in Dubai, someone probably just said:
“Why not?”
That’s part of the fun.
If you’re looking for inspiration, have a look at our Dubai with Kids guide before planning your days. We share the experiences we loved and, just as importantly, the things we think you don’t need to squeeze into an already busy itinerary.
Abu Dhabi wins when you want… a little more breathing space
Abu Dhabi felt different.
There is still plenty of luxury, impressive architecture and big attractions, but the city doesn’t feel quite as relentless.
You can visit the Grand Mosque in the morning, spend an afternoon at the beach and have dinner without feeling as though you’ve only managed to tick off three things from an enormous bucket list.
And then there is the cultural side.
The Louvre Abu Dhabi, Qasr Al Watan and the Grand Mosque give the city a sense of place that goes beyond the spectacular.
That was something we appreciated as a family.
The children still got their thrills, but we also had moments where we simply stopped and looked around.
And sometimes those are the moments you remember longest.
What about the beaches?
Both cities have beautiful beaches, but again, the atmosphere is different.
Dubai’s beaches tend to feel more connected to the buzz of the city. Think promenades, restaurants, skyscrapers and plenty of people.
Abu Dhabi has some wonderfully peaceful stretches of coastline, particularly around Saadiyat Island.
If your ideal family holiday involves a mix of sightseeing and “please can we just have a quiet afternoon at the pool?”, Abu Dhabi might have the edge.
And let’s be honest: with children, those quiet afternoons aren’t optional.
They’re survival.
Don’t underestimate the shopping
We thought we’d get away without mentioning shopping.
We didn’t.
Because Dubai makes it almost impossible.
Dubai Mall is not simply somewhere you pop into for a pair of trainers. You can easily spend half a day there without even noticing.
The girls, naturally, were perfectly happy with this arrangement.
Abu Dhabi has excellent shopping too, particularly around Yas Island, but Dubai has that unmistakable shopping-on-a-massive-scale feeling.
If shopping is an important part of your holiday, Dubai wins this one.
If shopping is something you do because you happen to walk past a mall, you probably won’t notice much difference.
How many days do you need?
This is probably the question we would ask before anything else.
If you’re flying all the way to the UAE, we wouldn’t spend the entire holiday in one city unless you have a specific reason to.
A good family trip could look something like:
4–5 days Dubai
Enough time for the major sights, a desert safari, beach time and some breathing space.
2–3 days Abu Dhabi
Give yourself enough time for the Grand Mosque, some culture and at least one full Yas Island day.
And if your children are theme-park obsessed, you could easily add another day to Abu Dhabi.
The great thing is that the two cities are close enough to combine. The drive between them is roughly an hour and a half, depending on traffic and where you’re staying.
That means you don’t really have to make a dramatic choice.
You can simply make two choices.
What would we do?
If you forced us to choose just one city, I think the answer would depend on why we were going.
For a first-ever UAE trip with children, we’d probably choose Dubai.
There is simply so much to see and do, and the kids are almost guaranteed to find something that excites them.
But if we’d already visited Dubai and wanted a slightly slower return to the UAE?
Abu Dhabi.
And if we had a week?
Both. Without hesitation.
Because that is really what we discovered.
Dubai and Abu Dhabi aren’t competing versions of the same destination.
They’re two sides of the UAE.
Dubai gives you the spectacular, futuristic, slightly crazy side of the country.
Abu Dhabi gives you the culture, space, beaches and a slightly calmer rhythm – while still having Yas Island ready to provide plenty of adrenaline.
And perhaps that’s why we wouldn’t want to choose between them.
Planning your UAE family adventure
If you’re starting to plan your own UAE trip, don’t miss our UAE: The Ultimate Family Travel Guide. That’s where we’ve brought everything together, from practical information and getting around to where to stay and what to consider when travelling with children.
Then take a deeper dive into our individual guides:
Dubai with Kids– for the skyscrapers, desert adventures, beaches and everything that makes Dubai such an easy family destination.
Abu Dhabi with Kids– for the Grand Mosque, culture, beaches and those unforgettable Yas Island days.
Yas Island– particularly useful if your children are already asking how many roller coasters they can ride in one day.
And before you start filling those suitcases, don’t forget our UAE Packing List for Families. Because packing for the UAE is slightly different from packing for a European city break, especially when you’re travelling with kids and trying to balance swimwear, sun protection and appropriate clothing.
For experiences, we like to book ahead where possible. GetYourGuide, is useful for comparing family-friendly tours and attractions before you arrive, particularly for things like desert safaris and city experiences.
And if you’re planning to explore beyond the cities, having a car can make life much easier. We often compare rental options through Rentalcars.com, before travelling, especially when we’re travelling as a family and want the freedom to set our own schedule.
So, Dubai or Abu Dhabi?
Maybe the better question isn’t “Which one is better?”
It’s:
“Which one sounds more like our kind of holiday?”
Want skyscrapers, shopping, desert adventures and a never-ending list of things to do?
Dubai.
Want culture, beautiful beaches, a slightly slower pace and Yas Island thrills?
Abu Dhabi.
Want the full UAE experience?
Do both.
Because after travelling there with our children, that’s the choice we’d make every time.
And if you ask the girls which one they preferred, I’m fairly sure the answer would be:
“Can we go back to Yas Waterworld?”
Which, really, says everything.