United Arab Emirates: country facts, travel advice and health

Careem: ride-hailing app for trips around town.Uber: ride-hailing app for trips around town.Zoom: video calls work, while many consumer apps block them.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Cards or cash

Mostly cashMostly cards

Step 4 of 5: Cards are accepted in most places; cash is needed less often.Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Money in United Arab Emirates

United Arab Emirates Dirham · AED

When paying by foreign card, ask to be charged in dirham rather than the home currency.

Emirates NBD, Emirates Islamic, HSBC and ADIB cash machines are free; others charge about 20 dirhams.

Tourists can claim back VAT at participating shops on single purchases above 250 dirhams.

The smallest fils coins are rarely in circulation, so check the change.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Collect United Arab Emirates Dirham in CointryOur sister app for coin and banknote collectors · cointry.appOpen

Public holidays in the next 12 months

Mon, 8 Feb 2027–8 Mar · Ramadan (expected date)

Tue, 9 Mar 2027 · Eid al-Fitr (expected date)

Sun, 16 May 2027 · Eid al-Adha (expected date)

Source: Umm al-Qura calendar (computed with ICU) · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

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Safety today

Germany, the US and the UK publish their travel advice openly. Here is what those that cover United Arab Emirates say, side by side, checked daily.

German Foreign Office says

No travel warning

Calm ●

Caution

Serious

Don’t go

Source: Auswärtiges Amt
Updated 23 Oct 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

U.S. Department of State says

Reconsider travel

Calm

Caution

Serious ●

Don’t go

Level 3 of 4

Source: travel.state.gov
Updated 22 Oct 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

UK Foreign Office says

No advice against travel

Source: GOV.UK
Updated 24 Jul 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

Scams to know

Drink spiking

Never accept a drink from a stranger, and keep an eye on your glass.

Source: GOV.UK · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Property scams

Get independent professional advice before buying property.

Source: GOV.UK · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Countrywise is a summary. The official page is authoritative.

03Free

Health

Routine vaccines plus hepatitis A; typhoid and hepatitis B are also advised.

Vaccinations

Be up to date on routine vaccines; hepatitis A is recommended for unvaccinated travellers aged one and over, and typhoid and hepatitis B are also advised for most visitors.

Talk to a travel clinic 4–8 weeks before you go.

Source: CDC
Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

Summarised from the CDC’s Travelers’ Health pages. Using them does not mean the CDC endorses Countrywise.

04Travel layer

In the app: the travel layer

The travel layer

Read a country like someone who’s been there.

What’s different from home, and what’s the lawMust-see places, free entry and World Heritage sites20 words to remember, with pronunciationStrange and surprising factsThe anthem and national symbolsSaved for offline use

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Must-see · 1Burj Khalifa

The world's tallest building, with views from the top

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Strange & surprising · #1

The dialling code +971 refers to 1971, the year the country became independent.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

National anthem: Ishy Bilady. The lyrics, translated, and the story are in the app. Source: Wikidata · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

3 World Heritage sites in United Arab Emirates, each with a photo and its story, in the app. Source: UNESCO World Heritage List

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Deep facts

Economy
GDP	≈ $552.3 billionSource: World Bank · 2024 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Per person	≈ $50,274Source: World Bank · 2024 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Top exports	crude petroleum, refined petroleum, gold, broadcasting equipment, natural gas (2023)Source: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Population
Population	11.5 millionSource: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Median age	35.8 yearsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Life expectancy	79.9 yearsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · 2024 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Religions	Muslim 74.5% (official) (Sunni 63.3%, Shia 6.7%, other 4.4%), Christian 12.9%, Hindu 6.2%, Buddhist 3.2%, agnostic 1.3%, other 1.9% (2020 est.)Source: The World Factbook (archive) · 2020 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Geography
Area	83,600 km²Source: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Climate	desert; cooler in eastern mountainsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Terrain	flat, barren coastal plain merging into rolling sand dunes of vast desert; mountains in eastSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Government
Type of government	federation of monarchiesSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Calling code	+971Source: libphonenumber · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

About the data

Written from the sources we link, and checked against them before each release. Countrywise summarises public sources. We are not an official source. For safety and entry rules, always follow the official page we link to.

From your foreign ministry when it publishes its advice openly (Germany, the US, the UK). Otherwise we show those three side by side. Checked daily, with the date next to every entry.

CDC · 24 Oct 2026 ↗GOV.UK · 24 Oct 2026 ↗IANA Time Zone Database · 23 Oct 2026 ↗libphonenumber · 23 Oct 2026 ↗The World Factbook (archive) · 23 Oct 2026 ↗U.S. Department of State · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Umm al-Qura calendar (computed with ICU) · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Unicode CLDR · 23 Oct 2026 ↗Wikidata · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Wikivoyage · 24 Oct 2026 ↗World Bank · 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Flag artwork from flag-icons (MIT licence).