Old Dubai and the Creek

Old Dubai is the half of the city that most first-timers underestimate, and it is the half many remember longest. It sits on both banks of Dubai Creek, the saltwater inlet where the town began as a fishing and pearling settlement, and you can explore it on foot in a morning for almost nothing. Start in Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood on the Bur Dubai side, a restored quarter of sand-coloured courtyard houses topped with barjeel, the wind towers that once caught the breeze before air-conditioning, linked by narrow shaded lanes. Many of the houses now hold small museums, galleries, craft shops and cafes, including a coffee museum, art spaces such as XVA, and the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding, which runs Emirati meals with a host who answers questions about local life. Wander toward the water through the textile souk, a covered arcade of fabrics, pashminas and souvenirs where bargaining is expected, and you reach the Bur Dubai abra station. The abra is the highlight: a small wooden water taxi with an open deck, crossing the Creek in a few minutes for a fare of about one dirham, paid to the driver. From the water you see dhows unloading cargo on the Deira wharves, gulls following the boats and the minarets and towers of both banks. On the Deira side, the spice souk is a few lanes of sacks of saffron, dried limes, frankincense and chillies, and beyond it the gold souk glitters with window after window of necklaces and bangles sold by weight. Go in the morning or the evening, dress modestly, carry some cash and leave space in your bag.

A good route takes about three hours at an easy pace. Begin at Al Fahidi in the cool of the morning, before the lanes heat up, and give it an hour; the Al Fahidi Fort, which housed the old Dubai Museum, has been closed for a multi-year restoration and has been due to reopen as a new museum, so check whether it is open when you visit. Walk west along the Creek past the Grand Mosque to the textile souk, then take an abra from the Bur Dubai station to the Deira Old Souk station. Abras leave when they fill, which is every few minutes, and the crossing is one of the great cheap thrills in travel; for a longer look, you can hire a whole abra for a private ride up and down the Creek at a fixed hourly rate.

On the Deira side, the spice souk is right by the landing, and the gold souk is a few minutes' walk further. Shopkeepers are persistent but friendly; walk away if a price feels high, and remember that gold is priced by weight and daily rate, with a separate charge for workmanship. For a break, the heritage area of Al Shindagha, at the mouth of the Creek on the Bur Dubai side, has a museum about the Creek and the city's founding families, and the restored waterfront of Al Seef has cafes and boutique hotels in traditional-style buildings. In the evening the Creek is at its prettiest, with dhow dinner cruises lit up along the water and the souks busy with residents shopping after work.

Practical notes: the Green Line metro stops at Al Ghubaiba and Al Ras, and Al Fahidi station on the Green Line is closest to the heritage quarter. Many small shops close for a few hours in the early afternoon and on Friday midday, so mornings and evenings work best. Dress modestly, with shoulders and knees covered, especially near mosques. This is where you buy spices, oud, textiles and gold, and where you eat cheaply and well in the Indian, Pakistani and Iranian restaurants that serve the neighbourhood. Above all, it is where you see that Dubai has a history, and that it began on the water.