Editor’s Travel Tips: Digital, Jewellery & Watches Editor Charlie Boyd’s Guide To Dubai
Having only moved to Dubai two years ago, Charlie is still exploring everything the city has to offer – from its glittering skyline and swimming pools in the clouds to the authentic hotspots to find shiny treasures and trinkets
Stay: The Bvlgari Resort Dubai is a dream – roam the halls adorned with original gouaches of some of the maison’s most exquisite jewellery creations, indulge in haute cuisine, and retreat to the Serpenti Beach Club with its own floating island and sparkling mosaic pool to bask in the city’s inimitable sunshine.
Shop: For incurable magpies looking to window shop, the original gold souk at Deira feels like a step back in time – explore its streets at dusk with fresh juice in hand, and don’t forget sunglasses to fend off the golden gleam from every window.
Culture fix: Whether you want to watch a regional masterpiece or the latest Box Office hits, Cinema Akil – owned and founded by former Bazaar Arabia cover star Butheina Kazim – is a true gem. Think velvet sofas, jacquard covered walls and a comprehensive Summer Programme of unmissable films.
Drink: The Rialto bar at Jumeirah Marsa Al Arab is an ultra-chic spot that feels intimate yet impossibly glamorous, and the tiramisu is unbeatable.
Best people watching: The bar at LPM Dubai is where the OGs flock to start and end their most eventful evenings. Begin with an aperitif and I will bet you’ll be back at the end of the night.
What’s the first thing you pack?
A comprehensive sunscreen edit. When you’re in and out of the water, trying to protect your kids’ delicate skin and want to remain shine-free, you need a clutch of high strength sunblock options.
Suitcase Staples
1. A Cowboy Hat: This one from Hermès fits the bill perfectly.
2. Jewellery…that doesn’t feel claustrophobic in the heat and that you don’t have to worry about when swimming. Bangles are super easy to slip on and off, stud earrings will feel less cumbersome than long drops, and an anklet will twinkle at sunset.
3. Tote Bag: Always and forever. On holiday or not, I always sport a bag big enough to hold my life inside.
What do you always over-pack, even though you know you shouldn’t?
Swimwear. No one needs that many one-pieces.
Your packing philosophy in three words?
Roll, roll, roll. Whenever I’m packing for my kids I build them individual outfits and roll each one as a single bundle – that way mornings are slick as they can grab their roll, pop it on, and be out the door in a flash.
Which table would you book if you had one night in town and why?
Pier Chic, for delicious Italian cuisine and the most sensational views of the ocean, overlooked by the iconic Burj Al Arab.
Where do you go when you want to feel like a local, not a visitor?
Home Bakery at the Galleria Mall. Locals don’t go anywhere else for their morning coffee, and if you try their signature chewy melt cookies you won’t manage to leave without taking a whole box with you.
What’s the soundtrack to this trip?
I’m a huge country music fan, which is perhaps considered at odds with Dubai’s high-octane glamour, but each year the Summer in Nashville Dubai festival brings a little Texas to town.
The souvenir you’d bring back that says everything about this place?
A box of dates, a bag of fragrant Arabic coffee or a charming camel keepsake – small treasures that capture the spirit of Dubai.
If Dubai were a look, what would it be? Louis Vuitton SS/26
Beauty Mvp’s
You Haven’t Really Experienced Dubai Until… You’ve Been To Aura Skypool.
With sensational views of the Palm and the surrounding city, swimming in its balmy 360 degree pool on the 50th floor is an unforgettable experience – whether you choose their evening breathwork sessions, yoga classes against the skyline, their stand-up comedy events or their family swims, it’s impossible not to be enchanted.
Images Supplied
From the Harper’s Bazaar Arabia July / August 2026 issue