What you see
What you see on a Dubai helicopter tour, in the order it appears
Knowing the sequence is the difference between filming the sea and being ready when the Burj Al Arab comes past the window. Here is everything on the route, when it arrives, and which flight lengths reach it.
Quick answer
Every Dubai helicopter tour starts over Palm Jumeirah and Atlantis, reaches the Burj Al Arab at around six minutes and the Marina at around ten. Sheikh Zayed Road and Burj Khalifa come at about fourteen, and only the thirty-minute flight carries on to Dubai Creek and the old quarter. Prices run from $184.
The route, at a glance
- 00:00
- Palm Jumeirahthe pads are on the Palm itself
- ~00:03
- Atlantis and the crescentboth resorts, and the waterpark
- ~00:06
- Burj Al Araba sail on its own island
- ~00:10
- Dubai Marina and JBRthe densest towers on the route
- ~00:14
- Sheikh Zayed Roadwith Burj Khalifa at the end of it
- ~00:22
- Dubai Creekon the thirty-minute flight only
- ~00:25
- The old quarterwind towers, souks and dhows
- On every flight
- The Palm and Atlantiswithout exception
- Commentary
- On five of eightthrough the headset
- Seating
- Assignedand the pilots bank both ways
Why the order matters
You have between twelve and thirty minutes and no second pass
Each landmark is in the window for under a minute. Knowing the order is most of the preparation.
This is not a bus tour where you can look up when somebody says look up. The aircraft moves at a hundred knots or so, the landmarks arrive on a schedule, and each one is in the window for well under a minute.
People who know the sequence get the photographs. People who do not spend the first third working out which direction they are facing, and then realise the Burj Al Arab has gone past.
The good news is that the sequence is fixed and short. Everything leaves from the Palm, runs south-west down the coast, and turns inland at the Marina. That is the whole shape, and once you have it you will know what is coming next for the entire flight.
The route in order
Seven sections
Times are approximate and vary by operator and by air traffic.
- Palm Jumeirah, from the first second
The fronds, the trunk road, the water between every street, and the monorail line running up the middle. On every flight here.
- The crescent and Atlantis, about three minutes
The breakwater, the pink twin towers of Atlantis The Palm, the staggered white of Atlantis The Royal, and Aquaventure behind them. Watch the water change colour at the crescent.
- The Jumeirah coast, about five minutes
Low villas, beach clubs and the long shallow shoreline. The transition from the reclaimed Palm to the actual coast of the Gulf.
- Burj Al Arab, about six minutes
On its own artificial island with a causeway to the shore. From the beach it is a tall hotel; from above it is unmistakably a sail.
- Dubai Marina and JBR, about ten minutes
The densest cluster of towers on the route, the marina cut through the middle, and the beach strip along the front. Seventeen minutes and longer.
- Sheikh Zayed Road and Burj Khalifa, about fourteen minutes
A canyon of towers with twelve lanes at the bottom, and the tallest building in the world standing over the end of it. Twenty-two minutes and longer.
- The Creek and the old quarter, about twenty-two minutes
Only on the thirty-minute flight. Wind towers, souks, abras crossing constantly, and dhows loading on the wharfage. The oldest working part of the city.
Only the thirty-minute flight reaches the Creek. Everything else turns back along the new coastline.
The thirty-minute flight→Three things people do not expect
And all three come up in the reviews
The lagoon colour, the abrupt edge of the city, and how quiet it is with the headsets on.
The colour change at the crescent. The lagoon inside Palm Jumeirah is a visibly different colour from the open Gulf outside it, with a sharp boundary. Nobody mentions this in advance and everybody photographs it.
How empty the desert edge looks. Fly ten minutes inland from the coast and the city simply stops. The transition from towers to sand is abrupt in a way that a map does not prepare you for.
How quiet it is once the headsets are on. A helicopter is loud until you are plugged in, and then the cabin becomes conversational. People consistently report being surprised by this.
Common questions
What you see, answered
What do you see on a Dubai helicopter tour?
Palm Jumeirah and Atlantis on every flight. From about six minutes the Burj Al Arab, from ten the Marina, from fourteen Sheikh Zayed Road and Burj Khalifa. Only the thirty-minute flight reaches the Creek and the old quarter.
Do you fly over Burj Khalifa?
The longer routes cover Sheikh Zayed Road with Burj Khalifa at the end of it. Separation from any structure is decided by the operator and air traffic control on the day.
Can you see the World Islands?
They lie off the coast between the Palm and the city. What is visible depends on the route and the day; the listings do not promise them, so neither do we.
What is the best thing you see?
Almost everyone says Palm Jumeirah, because it is the only landmark here that does not exist as a shape from the ground. The surprise answer is the colour change between the lagoon and the open Gulf.
Is there a commentary?
On five of the eight flights, through the headset. At helicopter speed it is what turns a sequence of buildings into a city you understand.
Which side should I sit on?
Seating is assigned by the operator to balance the aircraft. The pilots fly this route many times a day and bank in both directions so that every seat gets the Palm.
Go deeper
More on helicopter tours in Dubai
What a Dubai helicopter tour costs
Eight flights priced per person and per minute, from $184 to $911.
The PalmThe Palm Jumeirah flight
The one landmark in Dubai that does not exist as a shape from the ground.
VerdictThe best helicopter tour in Dubai
Eight flights ranked for one decision, with a straight answer at the end.
How longTwelve minutes or thirty
What each extra minute buys you down the coast, and why twelve is not a compromise.
AtlantisAtlantis from the air
The outer crescent, the two resorts on it, and which flights reach them.
PrivatePrivate helicopter tours
One flight is private by default and four more can be chartered on request.
