Did you get a job opportunity in Abu Dhabi but you can’t imagine what life must be like there?
Or are you just thinking about moving somewhere new and different? Whatever the reason is, this article will help you get a basic picture of what life in the UAE is like. I’ve put together a list of questions that people keep asking us since we moved to Abu Dhabi 5 months ago.
UAE consist of 7 number of Emirates: Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Ajman, Fujarah, Ras al Khaiman, Sharjah, Umm Al Quwain.
Every emirate is a bit different in their rules and customs. There are things that will apply to all the Emirates, but there will be rules specific to each one of them. We can only tell you about Abu Dhabi as that is where we’ve been living. Most expats live in Dubai, and Abu Dhabi.
So these are the questions people often ask us:
Q: What is life like in Abu Dhabi?
A: Most of the time it is like living in any other developed country.
Q: Is it safe to live there?
A: Abu Dhabi has been declared one of the safest cities to live it. And we’ve also experienced it, people don’t lock their door when they leave the house, they go into the shop and leave the car open. Whenever we forgot something at a place we found it where we left it. We’ve heard that you can go out at night and you’ll be totally safe (we haven’t tried). So yes, it is pretty safe.
Q: What do people do in their free time?
A: People tend to stay inside more because of the hot temperatures, so there isn’t a real city centre to take a walk in, which was surprising for me at the beginning. There are many shopping centres, that’s where many people spend their free time. That’s especially true in the summer, you will not encounter another living being on the streets between May and October. Dubai on the other hand has a proper city centre where you can take a walk and explore.
There is always something happening in Abu Dhabi, interesting, exciting events all the time. I check in on Facebook everywhere we go so I get notifications when they organise events. I am also on Meetup and Local, which you can download from your app store and you’ll find lots of events going on every day. There are weekly meetups for expats where you can make new friends. I find it quite easy to make friends with people. There are so many expats, most of them open and welcoming.
You can also just find a new hobby like dancing, yoga or workout classes and start meeting people that way, you’ll have friends and things to do in no time.
For a long weekend you can go to Oman (like we have), to Dubai (several times), Fujairah or Ras Al Khaiman. These are all interesting destinations with a lot going on and lots to discover. In summer of course all the events will move indoors, but you will not get bored if you are sociable.
Q: Are there public holiday, like Christmas? Which are the working days of the week?
UAE is a Muslim country, hence they follow Muslim traditions here, and they do not celebrate Christmas. There are special days coming from the countries culture and religion, some of them are public holidays, some of them are not. One more thing that is different here is that we don’t know the public holidays ahead of time, they only announce them a few weeks (or maybe even days) before, so it can be difficult to plan a holiday. The days off are Friday and Saturday, Friday being the main one (the way Sunday is for Westerners).
Q: What about women? Do western women get stared at?
They might get stared at, if they wear very revealing clothing. People here are sometimes not used to that kind of outfits so they might look at it because it’s unusual for them. Also a lot of men come here from Asia without their families, they don’t socialise a lot because they work a lot, so seeing a woman might be a rare occasion for them. According to their customs it might not be rude to stare and they will not realize that for us Europeans it’s kind of offensive. But if you wear clothes that cover your thighs, belly and shoulders, you won’t get stared at too much.
Q: What are services like? How much do they cost?
A: You can get most of the services you are used to in your home country here too. Services can be quite bureaucratic and slow here, and you can also count on people being late a few hours, whether you need something installed or delivered. They call it ‘Abu Dhabi time’ around here. But, people are incredibly helpful and they try to do their best to help you.
The price of services varies, some of them are very cheap (for a Westerner), some of them are very pricey. E.g.: taxi 30km in the city 50 AED, Barber for man 40-120 AED, internet 100Mbps unlimited: 400 AED/m, laundry and ironing of a shirt 2 AED
Q: What are the prices like in general?
A: Food prices are similar to the UK, which is a bit higher than Eastern Europe, but most things about the same as Western Europe. A weekly shopping for two (eating most meals at home) costs me 350-450 AED. A meal at a restaurant is between 50 and 150 AED, depending on the restaurant. An alcoholic drink at a restaurant will cost you around 50 AED, a hotel will be between 150-300 AED for a midrange 3* room.
Q: How does it work with renting an apartment and how much is it to rent one?
A: The one thing that’s different here to other places is that they never do monthly rent here. You will need to sign an annual contract and most likely pay the whole year’s rent up front. If you are lucky they might let you do 3-4 payments. The amount you will need to spend on rent will depend on the area and the type of apartment you choose. You can either rent a villa or an apartment here. Villas are big houses divided into smaller apartments, they are usually in compounds with a common swimming pool and sometimes a gym. Apartments are in tall buildings, they also have facilities like swimming pool and a gym. The area where you will be living will depend mostly on where your workplace is.
Abu Dhabi is huge and you might have to drive 30-40 minutes to get from one place to another. Many expats like to live on Reem Island, it’s close to the main island, the apartments there are not expensive and have good facilities. We live in Al Raha beach area, a half an hour drive from the centre, in one of the more expensive areas. This is the location that suits us the most.
And how much will you have to pay to rent a place? Let’s look at studios and one bedrooms as these are usually the most sought after. So depending on the area, whether it’s a villa or an apartment, most of the time it will be between 30,000 AED and 120,000 AED (plus commission and deposit, which are both around 5% of the total price).
Most of the apartments for rent are unfurnished, so you will have to get your own furniture, including white goods. This makes things a lot more difficult of course, but there is an IKEA here (not too expensive), and people who are moving away sell their stuff in Facebook groups. You could join a few of these before coming here just to get an idea on the prices. There is a website for all kinds of used things too called Dubizzle.
Q: Is healthcare good?
A: It’s all private healthcare here, your employer arranges it for you and your family (If you have a spouse here on spouse visa), and they pay for it too. The level and quality of your specific health insurance will depend on what kind of job you have an how much your employer can afford to pay.
Q: What is the food like?
A: It’s so very international here, over a 100 nationalities live in the UAE and many of them brought their cuisine with them, so the food here has a lot of variety. You’ll find anything from Indian to Italian through Chinese and Lebanese cuisine. It will actually be an effort to find a restaurant that offers Emirati food, which is a shame because we like it a lot.
Q: What is the landscape like? Is there any green there to take a walk in?
A: UAE is a country in the desert, so you won’t find much natural forest here. There are trees and it’s green at some places but you won’t take a walk in the forest around here. However in the city you can find many green parks where you can go and have a picnic. They are planted, and irrigated, but still beautiful and green.
Q: What’s the weather like?
A: It’s quite pleasant throughout the year, around 20 – 30 degrees C, except for the summer when it goes up to 50. From May until October people don’t go out on the street because the heat is unbearable. Their lives happen airconditioned spaces during those months. There have been a lot of rain this year (when I say a lot I mean it has rained about 10x in 5 months), which is unusual for this place. There have been sandstorms, those are not nice as the sand is blown into your face when you go out. We are in April now and the temperature goes up to 40 C already.
Q: Will I need my diploma, language exam translated or attested?
A: Not the language exam, because you are expected to be able to speak English (unless maybe if you are selected because you speak another language that they are looking for).
With the diploma, if your CV says you have one, the employer will most likely want you to get it attested (that needs to be done at the University that issued it and then also at the UAE embassy in your home country) and also translated into Arabic. It can be quite a lengthy process.
Q: Is there public transport or do I need to buy a car?
A: In Dubai the public transport is quite good and you might be ok without a car, in Abu Dhabi you will need one. There is public transport, but there are only buses, and they take long to get from one place to another. You don’t have to buy a car though, it’s quite easy to rent one, which is what we are doing too. We are using diamondlease agency. Car rental will cost you between 1300 and 2500 AED/month with full insurance, depending on the type of car. With full insurance you are covered for everything, but you will need a police report for any, even minor scratches.
Buying a car isn’t that expensive here, used cars are not expensive here. A good site for used cars is yallamotor.com
Q: Can I get by with German, Italian or Spanish in the UAE?
A: Almost everyone speaks English here and many people speak Arabic, other languages not so much.
Q: Can I find gluten free or lactose free products here?
A: Yes, the UAE is well developed and you can find almost anything you need here. They have Carrefour, Tesco, Waitrose, etc all with a well-stocked gluten and lactose free section. In restaurants you might find it more challenging to find gluten free bread, that’s not usually offered.
Q: Is tap water drinkable?
A: It is, but most people here drink bottled water. Tap water is made from sea water and it is more chlorinated than in other places. So you can drink it if you want, but you’ll probably end up drinking bottled water like everyone else. We order our water weekly from Oasis Water in 19 litre bottles for 12 AED. Tap water is Ok to brush your teeth in though and for cooking.
So if you are thinking to move to Abu Dhabi, I can only say go ahead and do it, it’s a great experience!