INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT DUBAI

. You'll probably only meet one 'local' person

Emiratis tend to keep to themselves, away from the main tourist drag, so it’s highly unlikely you’ll get chatting on the beach – indeed, most tourists only encounter one Emirati on their holidays: when they get their passport stamped at the airport.

Border control is staffed almost entirely by Emiratis (indeed, most bureaucratic roles are reserved for “nationals”), but this isn’t the ideal place to strike up a conversation about local life. If you do have burning questions, keep them for a visit to the Sheikh Mohammed Museum of Cultural Understanding – a brilliant initiative that connects holidaymakers with Emirati people for cooking lessons, traditional dinners and heritage tours.

Emirati nationals are far outnumbered by expats in Dubai, to the tune of almost six to one. The majority of the population is Indian, Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Asian and Western.

2. It’s not as tall as you think

At last count, Dubai has 1,344 completed skyscrapers – that’s small fry compared with Hong Kong (6,606) and New York (6,180), according to construction data from emporis.com. The city is indeed home to the world’s tallest tower (Burj Khalifa – more of which later), which peaks at 828 metres.

In 2006, a quarter of the world’s cranes were working on Dubai building sites, but those days are over – after the 2008 financial crisis, the crazy construction rate has slowed.

3. Its police cars are epic

With so many supercars on Dubai’s roads, its law enforcers couldn’t just pootle around in Fords like the British constabulary. To keep up with the crims, they turn to Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Bentleys – of course.

4. It owes a lot to Abu Dhabi

Burj Khalifa, the world’s biggest skyscraper, looms high above the rooftops of Dubai – but it wouldn’t have been completed without the financial help of Abu Dhabi, Dubai’s neighbouring emirate.

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Until just before it opened in 2010, the tower was actually called Burj Dubai (literally “Dubai Tower”), but it was renamed in honour of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahayan, the Emir of Abu Dhabi and President of the United Arab Emirates. Dubai, which had been deep in the throes of a financial crisis, had just been bailed out by Sheikh Khalifa to the tune of £6.13bn – so it showed its gratitude in typically lavish style.

5. It should have had a Steven Gerrard Tower

For all of the architectural follies that have been built in Dubai (man-made islands, record-breaking towers, et al), there are countless other outlandish designs that haven’t made it past the drawing board.

International Chess City (a cluster of 32 black and white skyscrapers, designed to look like chess pieces) was proposed, but didn’t make the cut. The Steven Gerrard Tower met a similar fate. Dynamic Tower, whose floors were designed to spin (yikes), was never built either.

6. You can buy pretty much anything from a vending machine

The Gold to Go ATM in Dubai Mall allows you to buy anything from a 2.5-gram, 24-karat gold coin to a one-ounce gold bar. There’s even a computer inside the vending machine that changes the prices every 10 minutes in line with real-time fluctuations in the market.

7. Its Crown Prince is an action man

The son of Dubai’s ruler, Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum – or Fazza, to his friends – is the handsome, media-friendly poster boy of the royal family. He’s widely respected by both the expat and national community, and counts skydiving, falconry, fishing and diving among his hobbies. He also publishes poetry in the region’s traditional Nabati style, which dates back to the 16th century.