Lonely Planet Dubai & Abu Dhabi: Detailed Itineraries | Travel Like a Local | Insider Tips | Covers Deira, Downtown Dubai, Jumeirah, Abu Dhabi Downtown, Yas Island, and more (Travel Guide)

Excellent book for travels

This appears to be a new style of Lonely Planet guide book. It looks great and is probably best used for flicking through to get some ideas. However, it is quite frustrating as there are next to no practical details about any of the places mentioned. No details of opening hours, prices (or whether something even has an entry fee), or travel details, so it's quite difficult to work out what fits into your itinerary or not. I appreciate that everyone uses the internet these days, but it kind of feels as if Lonely Planet has just given up. Even approximate details would be helpful. For example, it talks about some mosques being open to non-muslims in providing daily guided tours, but sheds no light as to whether you can visit without a tour, and if so, which days. A lot of the suggestions are very brief (e.g. four lines in a column the third of the width of the page). It's also clear that it needed another few proof-reads before publishing, as it's littered with errors - varying from numerous typos ("Dubai" becomes "Duba") to formatting errors meaning some bits of text get cut off. The index is also incomplete and not very helpful. For example, "Dubai Miracle Garden" is considered important enough to warrant a half page photo right at the start of the book, with a link to page 87 - but the only mention of it on p87 is that the Butterfly Garden is "next to the Dubai Miracle Garden". It also doesn't appear in the index. Another example: in the section on the Burj Kalifa, it says that the "At the Top" observation tower is the only way to see the view, and is set up like a VIP experience with complimentary refreshments and a guided tour. Then it says that a slightly less expensive way to get a similar experience (wait - I thought there was only one way?) is to opt for an "At the Top" ticket (which is what you were talking about...). It doesn't make any sense, unless some text got lost behind the picture after the page break. I could go on - it's a bit of a poor show from Lonely Planet unfortunately.

Great guide book. Useful maps and information of places to visit

Excellent information. First went to Dubai in 1977......er.......that have been a few changes in the last 40+ years ! Invaluable book

Found this really useful to read before heading to Abu Dhabi. Great at the cultural context about what is appropriate and expected and it helped me decide what to pack. I liked the neighbourhood breakdown and provided me with plenty of inspiration to get started to explore on my own.