Mandarin Oriental Jumeira, Dubai
A beach resort in old Jumeira, minutes from Downtown, with a line-up of restaurants good enough to keep you in for the week.
Two nights in Dubai, then a week in Baa Atoll
About this journey
Break the flight with two nights on the beach in old Jumeira, then seven nights on a barefoot island in Baa Atoll with a large kids club and a UNESCO biosphere reserve on the doorstep. Good for families.
- 9 nights
- November to April
- Jumeira, Dubai and Baa Atoll, Maldives
What is included
- Return economy flights from London Heathrow to Malé, with a two-night stopover in Dubai on the way out
- Bed and breakfast at Mandarin Oriental Jumeira
- Half board at Soneva Fushi
- Return seaplane transfers from Malé
- A private half-day tour of old Dubai, the creek and the souks
- Private transfers throughout
Not included
- Travel insurance
- Drinks, excursions and spa treatments
- Lunches and dinners in Dubai
- Tourism taxes paid locally in Dubai
Day by day
Open any day for the detail. Everything here can move: add a night, swap a hotel, change the order.
Arrive in Dubai
A daytime flight from Heathrow lands in Dubai in the evening. A driver takes you to the hotel on Jumeira beach, and dinner is in one of the restaurants downstairs.
Old Dubai and the beach
A guide takes you by abra across the creek to the spice and gold souks and the old Al Fahidi quarter, before the midday heat. The afternoon is for the pool and the beach.
Fly to the Maldives
A morning flight to Malé and a seaplane north-west to Baa Atoll. Shoes come off on the jetty and, on this island, mostly stay off for the week.
A week on Kunfunadhoo
Children aged four to 17 have the run of the kids club, while parents snorkel the house reef or book a dive. Between June and November, a boat trip to Hanifaru Bay can bring you close to feeding manta rays.
Fly home
Seaplane back to Malé for the flight home to London Heathrow, connecting in Dubai.
Where you stay
The properties this route is planned around. We can suggest alternatives at a different price point.
Soneva Fushi
The original no-shoes Maldives island: big jungle villas, a long list of places to eat and a UNESCO biosphere reserve on the doorstep.
Ways to make it yours
A night in the desert
Add a night at Al Maha in the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve for dunes, oryx and a quiet evening away from the city.
A larger villa
Families of five or more can move to a multi-bedroom villa with its own pool, so everyone has space.
Business class flights
Upgrade the long-haul flights to business class in both directions. We quote the fare at the time of booking.
Dates and seasons
Planned for November to April, when Dubai is at its best. Outside those months it still works, with different trade-offs; ask us.
When to go to DubaiAsk about this journey
Tell us your dates and who is travelling, and your specialist will send a tailored version of this route.
Similar journeys
Athens and the Peloponnese coast: ten nights with the family
Three nights in Athens for the Acropolis and the museums, then a drive west via the Corinth Canal to seven nights on the Messinia coast, where a kids club, an aqua park and ancient Olympia keep every age busy.
Athens, Santorini and Mykonos in nine nights
Two nights in central Athens below the Acropolis, four on the caldera cliff at Oia, and three at Megali Ammos, close enough to walk into Mykonos town for dinner. Island hops by ferry, with a Delos day included.
Barbados with children: ten nights on the calm west coast
One base, no transfers: ten nights at a family hotel on the calm west coast near Holetown, with turtles off the beach, a catamaran day, Harrison's Cave and the wild Atlantic side at Bathsheba. A direct flight from London.