DUBAI has been a draw for thousands of Brits each year and now Rio Ferdinand and his wife Kate are joining them.
The former footballer and his family are relocating from Bromley in Kent, to the desert city.
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The move comes nine years after the couple first met in the city, after being introduced by mutual friends.
They’ll fit right in, as today, 85 per cent of Dubai’s 3.5 million residents are expats – lured by low taxes and year-round sunshine.
But what is it actually like swapping the UK for Dubai? Sun Travel spoke to four Brits who’ve made the leap.
“Our evenings are much more family focused”
Just last week, Claire Gleave, 46, her husband and their three boys were living in the quaint picturesque village of Broadway in the Cotswolds.
Now, the family are settling into their new life in Dubai, with Claire’s hubby running his own company and Claire working on her maternity activewear brand Natal Active.
The family plans to live in Dubai for two years before returning to the UK, but in the short week that they have been there they have already noticed the difference in lifestyle.
She told us: “We always wanted to live abroad – we had a goal of doing something different.
“The boys (aged 10, 12 and 14) have slotted straight into school, they’ve been extremely positive about the whole move.”
“Expats in Dubai are required to put their kids into private school and pay termly fees.
“But they still follow the English educational curriculum, sit their GCSEs and A-Levels and are taught in English – the main difference is that they must learn Arabic, which is really beneficial.”
It’s not just the schooling that’s been great for the kids, as the lifestyle there also feels like a step up.
She said: “The benefits of the city as a teenager have been amazing already, with everywhere feeling safe.
“In the week that we have been here, we’ve already spent an evening playing padel on a court and been out floating on a lake together.
“Our evenings are more family focused already.
“We want an adventure – we are a really sporty family and Dubai is a sporty place – there is more of a motivation to get moving out here.”
Ultimately there are things that she will miss about the UK though…
“Hills,” she said. “Dubai is so flat – in the centre of the city and even when you venture to the outskirts.”
“And I will miss the grass, as there is so much fake grass here, as well as the higgledy-piggledy nature of the UK.”
“Dubai is always one step ahead of the UK”
April J, 30, is a mum of three, whose kids were aged 1, 2 and 5 when they relocated to Dubai a year ago.
The family from Hertfordshire decided to move for several reasons, notably Dubai’s tax-free appeal and its safe reputation.
She told us: “We didn’t feel at home anywhere in the UK, London was feeling more dangerous and I didn’t want to raise my children around that.”
April and her partner moved to the UAE without even waiting for job offers, and April now works as a content creator – regularly posting about life in Dubai on her Instagram ‘@xo_aprilxo’ , while her partner works in real estate.
For the first six months, April’s five-year-old was homeschooled, and she said: “The facilities here [for homeschooling] are amazing – you can take days off to go to the beach, for example.”
The schools were equally impressive once she was enrolled in one too, as April said: “They are one step ahead of the UK – they really care about the kids’ wellbeing and happiness.
“They get breaks every 40 minutes, have many days out to the beach and desert and have a strong focus on healthy living, with lots of sports options.”
But the convenience and cost of living were the most noticeable things about moving to Dubai as a Brit.
She said: “I would say it is like-for-like with London. Whilst you don’t have to pay tax in Dubai, you do need to pay for your kids’ school and also have medical insurance.
“But unlike in the UK where the amount of tax you pay is set by the government, you can choose the provider you want for things like insurance – so if you want to spend less, you can.”
And when it comes to ease of living, Dubai really excels.
For instance, April said: “You can get petrol delivered to your doorstep for less than a pint of milk in a UK corner shop, and you are 15 minutes max away from everything you could possibly need.
“Or if you’re out as a family, restaurants will have something for all the kids – soft play, a gaming area and nanny services.
“Dubai does everything to help you be a good mum.”
“Social life is cheaper for a girl [in Dubai] than any other European city”
For marketeer Shannon Maguire, 26, who splits her life between London and Dubai, the social life in the desert city is unbeatable.
She told us: “They have ladies days where you don’t have to pay entry [to bars and clubs ] and you’ll get free alcohol.
“And a lot of things are redeemable. For example, you could have a table at a beach club for 800 dirham (around £161) but half of that you can redeem back on drinks.”
It’s not just going out that’s cheaper – staying in is too.
Shannon said: “You can get a really cheap take out delivered, like you could get sushi and gyozas delivered for £4.
“In fact, you can get pretty much anything you want delivered to your door through the app Careem – including a lipstick for a night out in as little as 11 minutes.”
“There are so many more sides to Dubai than people think”
Mabel Golden, 27, has lived in Dubai for seven years, after moving from Manchester to work at a fast-fashion e-commerce agency.
She has lived in numerous places in and around the city, and experienced its rise to an expat hotspot, documenting it all through her YouTube channel.
She told us: “It is completely different to how it was when I first moved – it now feels a lot more comparable to European cities.
While prices have risen with its popularity – Mabel used to live in the prestigious Dubai Marina but since has been priced out – she says the lifestyle is still unlike elsewhere.
She said: “Rent is similar to London, but for reference £800 got me a two bed apartment in a building with a gym and pool, when I first moved.
“Rent must be paid in ‘cheques’ of either yearly, twice-yearly, every four months or each quarter though, and for some this can be difficult.”
But the real highlight of Dubai is the social scene.
She said: “Because everyone’s new here, there There are so many Facebook groups to meet people and I threw myself into those.
“And I always feel safe when coming home from nights out, especially as catcalling is illegal.”
Despite having a few eye-rolls when she’s told people back in the UK that she lives in Dubai, Mabel added: “There are so many sides to Dubai, including a really creative side – it isn’t just its tax-free, flash reputation.”
Read more about Rio and Kate Ferdinand’s plans to cash in on move to Dubai in bid to increase £53m fortune.
Plus, another woman shares how she works with celebs in Dubai and will never move back to Scotland.
