Sharjah

Hire a car and driver (see V. Useful) and skedaddle to the neighbouring emirate of Sharjah but 30 mins from Dubai (avoid the dreadful rush hour traffic 8-10am and 4-7pm). Apart from its status as cultural capital (don’t miss the Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization and quirky Sharjah Classic Car Museum / sharjahmuseums.ae), Sharjah has a couple of knockout stores which are worth the schlep, but be aware that it also has the strictest decency laws in the UAE, so no bare shoulders, micro-minis or macramé unikinis.