Bastakiya

This architectural heritage site is a complete restoration of one of Dubai’s original neighborhoods settled by wealthy Persian merchants in the late 1800s. The buildings are historic, but the pristine quarter looks brand-new. You can walk along meandering lanes, see traditional Gulf courtyard houses with hand-carved wood doors, and marvel at the ornate wind towers that were used for cooling in the days before air-conditioning. The coral stone and cement wind towers, defined by double or triple wind openings, arched ends, and stepped recesses, once lined the Dubai Creek and cooled the residences using innovative air-current systems that passed from the wind towers to the floors below. Bastakiya also houses a museum, cultural center, restaurants, and a heritage hotel with an art gallery. The Al Fahidi Fort, which today is the Dubai Museum, was built in 1799 and is the city’s oldest surviving structure.