What to Wear in Dubai: Malls, Souks, Beach Clubs, the Desert and New Year's Eve

What to wear in Dubai between November and March: light clothes with sleeves for warm days from the mid-70s to the high 80s, and a real layer for January nights in the high 50s. Then dress by setting, because Dubai's own guidance does. Swimwear belongs at the beach, the pool and the beach club, not in malls or business districts. The historic neighbourhoods and souks ask for shoulders and knees covered, and a mosque asks women to cover arms, legs and hair. Our stylists dress for the malls the same way, and leave anything sheer at the hotel. In practice: a long-sleeved silk shirt dress or wide trousers for the city, a one-piece and a kaftan for the beach club, a large stole in your bag, closed sneakers and a knit for the desert, and a gown with sleeves, or a cape, for a Michelin dinner and New Year's Eve.

Below: the weather, the official dress code and where it applies, an outfit for each part of the trip, a packing list, and seventy-two pieces from Kiton, Dolce & Gabbana, Carolina Herrera, Zimmermann and 28 other houses.

What to wear in Dubai in winter: the weather

Visit Dubai, the tourism site run by Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism, puts the coolest months at December to March, with days of about 24°C to 28°C (75°F to 82°F), and says January nights can drop to about 14°C (57°F). The long-term averages the UAE's National Center of Meteorology reports to the World Meteorological Organization cover 1974 to 1991, so treat them as a guide; converted and rounded, they agree:

The other climate is indoors: malls, restaurants and lobbies run cold air-conditioning, so every look below carries a sleeve, a layer or a stole.

Two dates shape the season. The Dubai Shopping Festival, organised by an arm of the same tourism department, runs citywide from December 4, 2026, to January 17, 2027. And Ramadan 2027 is projected to begin on February 8, according to the astronomical calculations in The National's report on the expected dates; the start is confirmed only when the crescent moon is sighted, so treat the date as a projection until then.

The Dubai dress code: where it applies, and where it does not

The official guidance changes with the setting. Visit Dubai's guide to what to wear says "all attires are generally acceptable" and asks visitors to be mindful of local culture and religion. Then it draws the lines: swimwear at the beach and the pool, not in business districts or shopping malls; shoulders and knees covered in heritage areas; loose clothing that covers arms, legs and ankles at a mosque, where women also cover their hair; and nothing with offensive slogans or images. The UAE government portal carried its own visitor dress-code page until the portal was rebuilt in 2026 (archived copy, October 2025). It said visitors should dress modestly, particularly in public places such as malls; that clothing should not be transparent; that women travelling in the UAE are not expected to cover their hair or wear traditional dress; and that any nudity, topless sunbathing included, is forbidden.

Ramadan changes the tone rather than the law. In The National's February 2026 guide for visitors, the operations manager of the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Centre for Cultural Understanding recommends dressing more modestly and, as etiquette, not eating, drinking or smoking in public during fasting hours; the paper adds that women need not cover their hair outside a mosque and that swimwear is still fine at the pool. On a February or March trip, wear the long hems and sleeves of the old-town looks below in every public setting.

Dubai outfits for the malls and the city

A city day in Dubai is long walks on polished floors. The most useful piece is a long-sleeved shirt dress in silk or jersey: buttoned at the wrist it covers you in a mall, rolled to the elbow it is cool enough for a terrace lunch, and a belt makes it look deliberate.

Choose the fabric for the day. Silk twill, as in Max Mara's black-and-white printed shirt dress with double cuffs and a matching belt, holds a sharp collar. Stretch jersey, as in Pucci's floor-length Iride-print shirtdress or Carolina Herrera's ankle-length hydrangea print with a ruched waist, comes out of a suitcase without a crease. Cotton jersey, as in The Row's ankle-length Latoya with side slits, is the coolest against the skin. Kiton's petroleum shirtdress, in printed silk with blouson sleeves and a self-tie sash, is the one to build the trip around.

• Petroleum and ivory: Kiton's shirtdress with Valentino Garavani's ivory Demivee sneakers for the mall and gold flat sandals for lunch.
• Black and white: Max Mara's printed silk shirt dress, belted, with white leather sneakers and small gold hoops.
• Stars, day and night: Dolce & Gabbana prints its belted silk shirt dress with the same large stars as its chiffon kaftan, so one print covers the mall and the pool.

Before you pack a dress, sit down in it in front of a mirror: a midi that clears the knee standing can ride above it on a low banquette. Hold pale silk up to a window, too; if you can see your hand, it needs a slip. For more cuts, browse designer maxi dresses.

Separates give more combinations. Silk trousers are cooler than jeans and dressier than linen, and a loose silk shirt over them covers the hips without a jacket. Pucci's crepe de chine shirt and matching straight-leg pants, in a pink and chocolate geometric print on black, work as a set or apart. Carolina Herrera's iris-print wide-leg pants are high-waisted and floor-length, so wear them with a heel or a platform sneaker; TOTEME's burgundy monogram silk twill pants have an elasticated waist for a day of walking.

• White and iris: Balmain's fitted white silk satin shirt, with French cuffs, tucked into Carolina Herrera's iris-print pants.
• Ivory and burgundy: Gabriela Hearst's ivory Cruz shirt in printed silk twill with TOTEME's burgundy pants and gold sandals.
• Nautical: Max Mara's Teglia tunic shirt, with side slits and gold-tone knotted buttons, over Dolce & Gabbana's pleated cotton-linen trousers in natural white.

Dubai vacation outfits for the beach club and the hotel pool

At the beach, the pool and the beach club, wear the suit you like; the firm line is no nudity, topless sunbathing included. What our stylists add is the walk: a lobby, a corridor of shops or a lunch room is no longer the beach, so plan the cover-up as part of the outfit.

A one-piece reads more finished at a club lunch than a bikini, and a halter or tie-neck holds through an afternoon in and out of the water. Zimmermann's Aster, in a shimmering brick-red swim fabric, gathers into a halter with gold-tone hardware. Bottega Veneta's black halter suit is trimmed in metal; Prada's black square-neck suit ties at the back and carries the enameled triangle logo; Missoni's floral and wave suits are lined viscose, per their listings.

• Brick red and stars: Zimmermann's halter one-piece under Dolce & Gabbana's black star-print chiffon kaftan, lined through the body per its listing, with gold flat sandals.
• Black and lime: Prada's one-piece under Casablanca's Degrade Monogram silk kaftan, black shading to lime.
• Missoni head to toe: the Wave suit under the house's long zigzag robe, tied at the waist.

For cut and support, see the 25 best swimsuits of the year, or browse all designer swimwear.

Match the cover-up to the distance. By the lounger, anything goes: Missoni's long-sleeved raschel cover-up dress plays with transparency, which is the point at the pool and the wrong choice for a lobby, and Dolce & Gabbana's Carretto-print silk twill kaftan is cut short, as a mini. For the walk to lunch or through the hotel, choose an opaque kaftan that falls past the knee: Pucci's silk twill kaftan with a scalloped V-neck and wide sleeves, Casablanca's long silk kaftan, or TOTEME's striped Garderob tunic, a shirtdress with the volume of a kaftan. More shapes are in our edit of designer kaftans.

The souks, Al Fahidi and a mosque visit

The old city around Dubai Creek is where Visit Dubai asks for more modest dress: the Gold Souk and the Spice Souk in Deira, the restored lanes of the Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood, and the wooden abras that cross the water between them. Dress for heat, narrow lanes, a step down into a boat and a lot of standing.

• Length: a maxi dress or wide trousers; a long hem in loose silk or cotton jersey is cooler than it sounds.
• Shoes: flat and closed, or flat sandals that fasten. The abra step can be wet and souk floors are uneven.
• A stole: it covers the shoulders over a short sleeve, shades the neck, warms you in an air-conditioned café and covers your hair at a mosque.
• A crossbody bag: both hands free for the boat rail.

Our old-town outfit: TOTEME's black slouch-waist ankle dress with long sleeves, Saint Laurent's ivory Cassandre stole and The Row's ivory MH slip-on sneakers. Or The Row's ivory Latoya dress with TOTEME's crinkled cotton wrap in its taupe Desert colour.

What to wear to Jumeirah Mosque

Jumeirah Mosque, whose visits are run by the same Centre for Cultural Understanding, describes itself as one of the few mosques in Dubai open to non-Muslim guests. Public guided visits run at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., Saturday to Thursday; registration opens 30 minutes before, and no booking is needed. The mosque's dress code asks women to cover arms, legs and hair, and men to avoid shorts and sleeveless tops. Abayas and sheilas, the long robe and the headscarf, are available for visitors who need them, and the site also asks women to bring a head covering. Visit Dubai notes that, as at many places of worship, shoes are usually left outside a mosque, so wear a pair you can step out of easily.

Size the scarf to cover hair, not just to knot at the neck: a 20-inch silk square will not do it. Saint Laurent's Cassandre stole is about 71 by 39 inches, Max Mara's cashmere stole about 27 by 77 inches, Saint Laurent's cashmere-and-silk Grand Carré about 55 inches square, and TOTEME's cotton wrap about 98 by 59 inches, per their listings. We take a plain or tonal scarf into a mosque and save a bold logo or print for the souk. Browse all designer scarves and wraps.

What to wear on a desert safari

An evening in the desert usually starts in afternoon sun and ends at a camp after dark, and Visit Dubai's own packing list asks for a thicker jacket for it. Sand and wind ask for three things: closed shoes, a layer for when the sun drops, and something to pull over your face and hair when the wind lifts the sand. Leave silk and heels at the hotel.

• Shoes: closed sneakers; sandals fill with hot sand and heels sink. Tod's Sportiva has elastic laces, per its listing, so it slips off at the edge of a rug and back on without retying.
• Trousers: long and loose, in cotton or linen, for sun, a camel ride and the cooler evening.
• A layer: a cashmere knit or cotton jacket in a sand colour, which shows less dust than black.
• A wrap: TOTEME's crinkled cotton scarf is big enough to cover head and face in wind.

Our desert looks: Bottega Veneta's dove-ivory wool-and-cashmere half-zip over a white cotton shirt and wide sand trousers, with Dior's gray Mile sneakers. Or Casablanca's beige jacket in Japanese cotton denim, with a standing collar, over an ivory knit and ecru trousers, with Tod's blush suede Sportiva. Gabriela Hearst's Dalton, hand-knit in cashmere by Manos del Uruguay, per its listing, is the knit to keep for every cold evening after the trip.

Shake the sand out before your sneakers go back in the suitcase, and brush suede only once it is dry. One pair for the whole trip? A rubber-soled lace-up that also carries you through the malls; our guide to designer sneakers for women has more, or browse low-top sneakers.

Dinner at Dubai's Michelin-starred restaurants

The MICHELIN Guide Dubai 2026, its fifth edition, lists 122 restaurants. FZN by Björn Frantzén and Trèsind Studio keep three stars, Orfali Bros moves up to two, and KIGO and Birch are new at one star. Each sets its own dress code, so check the booking, but plan for a long tasting menu in a cool, air-conditioned room.

That points to fabric with some weight and a sleeve. A long sleeve with a high neck or a collar, as in Isabel Marant's ivory Samsha, a crêpe maxi with fireworks embroidered in beads across the shoulders, or Etro's navy floral midi with a band collar, is as dressy at a table as any strapless dress. Emilia Wickstead's Malinda, a mock-neck maxi in 100 percent wool crêpe, per its listing, suits an air-conditioned room; Elie Saab's floral silk chiffon midi has long buttoned sleeves and comes with its own camisole to wear beneath the chiffon.

• Midnight and gold: Victoria Beckham's Bela, a midnight satin midi with tulip sleeves, with gold sandals and a gold clutch.
• Chocolate and cream: Emilia Wickstead's chocolate Malinda with cream satin pumps and gold earrings.
• Champagne: Elie Saab's chiffon midi, from the Lebanese couturier, with gold flat sandals for a long hotel corridor.
• Black and silver: Saint Laurent's long-sleeved black maxi, fully lined with an open twisted back, with silver earrings and black pumps.

What to wear in Dubai in December: the holidays and New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve spreads across the city. Last year, for December 31, 2025, Dubai Police mapped 48 fireworks displays at 40 venues, from Burj Khalifa, Palm Jumeirah and Dubai Creek Harbour to beach hotels and desert sites such as Bab Al Shams and Marmoom Oasis, Gulf News reported; Emaar sold tickets for Burj Park, and Downtown's public viewing areas were free, first come, first served. This year's plans had not been announced when we checked on October 20, so read last year's map as a guide, not a schedule. Dress for where you will be.

• Downtown, in the crowd: a public place, for hours, on your feet. Wear a long sleeve and a long hem with some shine, flat shoes, and a layer for a December night that averages about 60°F: Isabel Marant's Felby, a long-sleeved silver zebra-print maxi in silk and Lurex, with silver ballet flats.
• A hotel gala: wear the gown. Carolina Herrera's midnight crêpe gown with long cape sleeves and an embellished yoke is made for a ballroom; Oscar de la Renta's platinum draped metallic gown and Tom Ford's black silk column with chainmail-trimmed shoulders both cover the arms. Over a strapless dress such as Zuhair Murad's champagne Mikado gown, from the Lebanese house, add Alexander McQueen's black crushed-satin cape for the walk through public spaces.
• A beach hotel: sand at midnight, so a knit that moves, such as Missoni's sleeveless metallic crochet maxi, with flat gold sandals and a stole for the shoulders.
• The desert: the coldest option. Add the cashmere from the desert edit and keep sneakers on until you sit down.

If you are spending the night back home instead, see our New Year's Eve outfits guide.

A seven-night Dubai packing list

This assumes two city days, two beach-club days, an old-town morning, a desert evening and four dinners, one of them a party.

• City (4): two long-sleeved shirt dresses, wide silk trousers and a silk shirt.
• Beach (4): two one-pieces, an opaque kaftan for the walk to lunch, a sheer cover-up for the lounger.
• Old town (2): an ankle-length dress with long sleeves and a large plain stole.
• Desert (3): long cotton trousers, a cashmere knit or cotton jacket, a cotton wrap.
• Evening (3): two dinner dresses with sleeves and one piece with shine.
• Shoes (4): lace-up sneakers, flat sandals that fasten, a dinner heel, evening flats.
• Accessories: sunglasses, a brimmed hat, a crossbody bag, a beach tote, an evening bag.

Leave at home: anything sheer you meant to wear outside the hotel, slogan T-shirts, stilettos and a heavy coat. For fitting it into one bag, see how to pack efficiently for travel, and for the flight, how to dress for travel.

Fit, care and what to buy once

• The sleeve. Bend your arm; a cuff that rides above the wrist will sit near the elbow once you carry a bag. Kiton and Max Mara size on different scales, so read each house's chart.
• The swimsuit. Zimmermann sizes swimwear 0 to 3, which its listing converts to extra-small to large; Prada and Dolce & Gabbana use letters, Missoni US sizes. Try a halter with your arms raised, as you would climbing out of a pool.
• The layer. TOTEME's waxed desert jacket is an oversized fit, about 30 inches from shoulder to hem, Isabel Marant's ecru denim Valineo is relaxed with dropped shoulders, and Burberry's Clara cardigan is a classic fit, per their listings. Buy your usual size.

Let sunscreen dry before a silk kaftan goes on, and hang silk and wool crêpe in a steamy bathroom on arrival rather than ironing them.

Buy once: a long-sleeved silk shirt dress, which works in a New York spring as well as a Dubai winter; a large plain stole; a black one-piece with a structured neckline; an ivory cashmere knit. Enjoy for a season: the metallic crochet maxi and the logo kaftan. The usual mistakes are packing only for heat, wearing a sheer cover-up into a mall and trusting heels on sand. If much of this is already in your closet, ask our AI stylist to plan each day of the trip from what you own and suggest only the gaps.

How we chose

• The official lines first: city and old-town picks have sleeves and hems long enough for the modest dress Visit Dubai and the UAE portal describe, and nothing in those edits is sheer without a lining.
• Two kinds of cover-up: opaque silk and cotton for walking through a hotel; sheer pieces only where lined or meant for the pool.
• Scarves by size: every stole and square is large enough to cover hair, by the dimensions on its listing where one is given.
• Soles for sand and stone: closed rubber-soled sneakers for the desert, and no stilettos in a daytime look.
• Sizes: 47 of the 56 clothing picks were offered in four or more sizes when we chose them in October, and every pair of sneakers in at least four.
• Range: 32 houses, from Kiton's printed silk to Zuhair Murad's Mikado; prices run from about $400 for a cotton scarf to just under $10,000 for a gown, and 50 of the 72 pieces sit between $900 and $3,500.

Frequently asked questions

What is the dress code in Dubai for tourists?

Visit Dubai sets no strict code, but draws lines: swimwear at the beach and the pool, not in malls or business districts; shoulders and knees covered in heritage areas and souks; no offensive slogans or images. Venues set their own codes, and at a mosque women cover arms, legs and hair.

What should I wear in Dubai in December?

Light, covered clothes for days in the high 70s and a layer for evenings around 60°F: silk shirt dresses and wide trousers for the city, swimwear and a kaftan for the beach club, sneakers and a knit for the desert, and a gown with sleeves or a cape for New Year's Eve.

Can you wear a bikini in Dubai?

Yes. Visit Dubai's packing guide tells visitors to bring swimsuits and bikinis for the beach and the pool. Cover up before you walk into a mall or business district; the UAE government portal's visitor page said topless sunbathing is forbidden.

Do women have to cover their hair in Dubai?

No. The UAE government portal's visitor page said women travelling in the UAE are not expected to cover their hair or wear traditional dress, and The National said the same in 2026. At a mosque, women cover arms, legs and hair; Jumeirah Mosque lends abayas and headscarves to visitors who need them.

What should I wear on a desert safari in Dubai?

Closed sneakers, long loose cotton trousers, a top with sleeves, a cashmere knit or light jacket for after sunset, and a large cotton scarf against sun and blowing sand.

What should I wear in Dubai during Ramadan?

Dress more modestly in public, with sleeves and long hems, and do not eat, drink or smoke in public during fasting hours, as a courtesy rather than a law. Ramadan 2027 is projected to begin on February 8, confirmed only when the moon is sighted.

Keep reading

• Beach vacation outfits for winter sun, from a cold departure to New Year's Eve
• Resort wear: what to pack for the beach, the harbor town, the yacht and the safari
• What to wear in Tulum: beach clubs, cenotes, the ruins and New Year's Eve
• New Year's Eve outfits for a gala, a dinner, a club or a party at home