Dubai has been known as the gateway to many destinations around the world, with its airport being one of the busiest.
This rich-modern compact city is visited by millions of tourists every year.
When COVID occurred, it is without a doubt that the city experienced a massive loss in the tourism sector.
January 07, 2022.
We flew to Dubai for a 1-week tour with the group. We had already fixed up all our travel requirements such as passport, visa, hotels & tours, vaccination certificate, negative RT-PCR test and a health declaration certificate (we applied for this one online). – we were already all set for this trip & of course, hoping nothing goes wrong so that we can fully enjoy the trip despite the pandemic.
I had mixed emotions – excitement and fear. The reason was that there was a sudden surge of Omicron variants worldwide. Prior to arrival, we were given a heads up that there would be a mandatory swab test at the airport. Of course, upon hearing this a bunch of “what ifs” scenarios ran through my mind.
Travelling during the peak of a COVID-19 variant truly requires you to have a lot of courage, determination, and readiness for anything and everything.
Upon landing, we were expecting the swab test but instead, we were directed to head over to the immigration. Everything went smoothly – the immigration officers didn’t ask many questions and were also very welcoming to tourists like my group and I. After picking up our baggage, we were greeted with a warm and exciting welcome by our arrival assistant. — such a relief.
The tour is already starting out really well, looking forward to this one week tour!
Life in Dubai during COVID was completely different from the Philippines. As always, Dubai has always been very welcoming to tourists.
All tourist sights were open: museums, malls, parks, attractions, and beaches were operating at normal hours already.
People were required to wear masks at all times but there is no need to present any vaccination card prior to entering a building/establishment.
We also noticed that there were lots of groups from around the world, mostly from America & Europe.
Everything was back to normal. The only difference was that people were required to wear a mask at all times outdoors.
Our 1-week tour was not even enough to visit the majority of Dubai’s famous beautiful sights but we were able to see the best highlights of this city: the Burj Al Arab, Burj Khalifa, The Dubai Mall, Desert Safari, The Palm Atlantis, Miracle Garden, Ferrari World Adventure, Excursion to Abu Dhabi and Dubai Expo.
Another exciting thing that happened during this trip was that this was the exact period wherein Dubai celebrates its shopping festival month!
Oh, how I wish the 1-week tour could have been extended.
Personally, I do believe that Dubai has so much more to offer than what we are so familiar with. With its culture-rich places, the modern architecture, the tallest skycrapers buildings, the people and food – a week’s stay will not be enough to admire, immerse and fall in love entirely with the city.
If ever you’re doubtful about travelling during COVID, I hope my experience has enlightened you. – It is truly possible to travel amidst COVID-19. Perhaps not only in Dubai but in other places around the world.
All you need is to be prepared, have an open mind and enjoy every second of your trip whilst taking precautions and taking extreme care of yourself.
We should not stop travelling and see the world solely because of the pandemic.
No one can stop us, not even COVID – maybe for a while but not forever.
Remember it’s important to stay negative to COVID and keep a positive mindset. – there is so much out there that we have yet to discover as an individual. This is your time.
January 13, 2022.
We finally made it back to Manila – COVID FREE the entire time! Profil Holidays never fails to make this a worthwhile & memorable experience.
This one week in Dubai has been my first travel ever since COVID occurred back in 2020. Yes, I was afraid but I was also brave and kept a positive mind. I came home with many memories.
Every second was worth it.
I hope you too will start seeing the world again. Remember, we can pause once in a while but we can never let the pandemic stop us from doing what we love the most.
Until then, I hope to meet you in one of your travel adventures.
