Dubai Rating

Dubai Rating · season 2024–2025

Best place for the whole family

The second nomination of the rating is about the best place for the whole family — one that is comfortable and interesting not only for children but for parents too. Which will it be? An amusement park, a hobby centre or a café with a play room? We choose together with our family and kids experts.

Voting closed12 nominees3 categories8 criteria

Criteria and selection method

In this nomination we rate nominees against eight criteria:

  • Universality — How well the place suits everyone, parents and children alike. The higher the score, the more universal the place; the lower, the more focused it is — for example, fun for kids but nothing for adults to do
  • Safety — Security staff, CCTV, low risk of falls or injuries, not too crowded — the safer the place, the higher the score
  • Comfort — Low noise, a place to grab a snack and use the restroom, quality materials, furniture and equipment, polite staff, climate control, good upkeep, a well-thought-out layout and no crowds — the signs of a truly comfortable place
  • Price level — The more reasonable the prices, the higher the score. Where you are overcharged for no clear reason, the score is lower
  • Modernity — How worn the infrastructure is, whether it feels dated, whether the place is trendy and in demand
  • Usefulness — How much the place helps you grow, learn new things and become better
  • Accessibility — Is it easy to get to, how long is it open, are there queues, is there free parking, are pets allowed
  • Repeat value — Some places are worth visiting once, others you can return to again and again and keep discovering something new. The more 'repeatable' the place, the higher the score

Shortlist

The experts assessed dozens of family places against these criteria — the best made it to the shortlist for the public vote.

Cafés and restaurants

  • Ribambelle

    Ribambelle

    A family café on Bluewaters with not just a kids' corner but a full playground. It opened in 2024, so everything is brand new.

  • Roasters coffee

    Roasters coffee

    A spacious coffee shop with five locations and a big menu for adults and children alike. With your order you can ask for a free colourful croissant and a drink for little guests — so while you enjoy your coffee, your child can enjoy a bonus babyccino.

  • Roll & Boil

    Roll & Boil

    A dumpling project from Lepim i Varim with two locations in Dubai. Its main family features are free portions for children and workshops where kids learn to make dumplings with their own hands.

  • Shvili/Osteria

    Shvili/Osteria

    Two restaurants, Georgian and Italian, with several locations around the city. Our favourite and the main candidate for your vote is the combined restaurant with a shared eco-friendly kids' area. There isn't a single plastic toy in the play room, and at weekends there are free workshops for children aged three and up.

  • Unicorn Cafe

    Unicorn Cafe

    A stylish café for adults and children in the Marina where you can leave your child in the free play room under a nanny's supervision. Besides the play area, the café's second floor has an education centre with all kinds of activities for kids — from acting and singing to chess and ceramics.

Hobby centres, sports and entertainment venues

  • Green Planet

    Green Planet

    From the Dubai heat you step into a rainforest where plants wrap around a giant artificial but very realistic tree, birds fly, lemurs run around, sloths laze and it 'rains' from time to time. It's easy to get around even with a pram.

  • Safari Park

    Safari Park

    A spacious green zoo where you can see around 3,000 animals in near-natural conditions. Safari Park has several themed zones that you can explore on foot or by special train. To keep children interested there is a separate Kids Farm — both a farm and a petting zoo.

  • Ski Dubai

    Ski Dubai

    An amusement park and the first ski resort in the Middle East. Children under three aren't allowed on the slope, but from the age of two they can visit the snow park, have a snowball fight, build a snowman and meet real penguins.

Parks, public spaces and shopping malls

  • Dubai Hills Mall

    Dubai Hills Mall

    One of Dubai's quietest malls that still has everything you need. Installations inside the mall easily turn into kids' entertainment, and there are several family restaurants with kids' corners, the Hamleys Play area, Like Bricks with construction sets and other fun for all ages.

  • Dubai Hills Park

    Dubai Hills Park

    A green park in the middle of one of Dubai's newest and most family-friendly districts. It's great for a walk or a scooter ride, a run along the paths, lying on the grass or sitting in the Angel Cakes café with its play area. Dubai Hills Park also has a shaded water play area with slides and a skate spot.

  • Dubai Mall

    Dubai Mall

    The mall no Dubai guidebook can do without. It's almost impossible to list everything inside, but this nomination couldn't do without the giant aquarium, the ice rink, KidZania, the DXB Play arcade and the Trampo trampoline park.

  • Kite Beach

    Kite Beach

    One of Dubai's most family-friendly beaches, with clean sand and good facilities. There are changing rooms open to all visitors, a big food court and areas for padel and beach volleyball. Next to the beach you'll also find XPark Jr, a forest-style playground, and the small Splash n Party water park.

Nomination experts

We shape the methodology and the list of nominees together with experts — opinion leaders in their fields. For the second nomination we chose people who can judge family places on their merits: comfort, interest and benefit for both children and adults.

Nomination partner

Regale Innovation Polyclinic

A centre of innovative medicine and dentistry in Dubai.

Regale Innovation Polyclinic offers an individual, expert approach to health, a high level of service, safety and comfort for the whole family. Regale provides comprehensive adult and children's dentistry, endocrinology, gastroenterology, cosmetology, care from a general practitioner, paediatrician and sports doctor, as well as IV drips and tests for every occasion.

Partner website

Sources and links