UAE Complete Guide 2026: Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah Across Seven Emirates
Browse more guides: UAE travel | Asia destinations UAE Complete Guide 2026: Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah Across Seven Emirates TL;DR The United Arab Emirates packed more transformation into five decades than most countries manage in two centuries, and I keep coming back because the country wears that compressed history openly. Federation happened on December 2, 1971 when seven small Trucial States joined under Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, and within my own travelling life the skyline of Dubai has roughly tripled, Abu Dhabi has built a Louvre, and Ras Al Khaimah has strung the world's longest zipline across a 1,934 metre mountain. The currency is the dirham (AED), pegged to the US dollar at a fixed 3.6725 to 1 since 1997, which means I can budget in dollars or rupees with confidence and the number on the receipt never surprises me. Dubai is the obvious entry. Burj Khalifa at 828 metres has held the world's tallest building title since 2010, the Dubai ...