Amazing museum with different houses all telling their part of the story for Emirati heritage and culture. You need at least 4-5 hours to do justice to this museum.

I had a 12 hour layover in Dubai and having already visited all the main sights on a past trip I was looking for something close to the airport to pass the time. The Al Shindagha Museum is a sprawling museum complex located a 5 minute walk from the nearest Metro station which has a direct line from the airport. It can get very hot walking between museums but each is airconditioned inside. There was some confusion over where to buy an entry ticket as the main building told me to go the children's museum and then they sent me back but this was quickly sorted. I started my visit with the short 15 minute video in the theatre about the history of Dubai. There are lots of little alleys to explore with various themed museums around each corner. You show the ticket QR code on your phone at each museum to gain entry. I was there mid afternoon on a Thursday and had the entire place to myself. The displays are interactive, incorporating technology and audio visual effects along with artefacts and dioramas. My favourite museums were the archeology one, the perfume one, the food one and the culture of the sea. Special mention to Noora at the Food House who gave me black coffee and dates on the floor mat and then took me on a private tour of the gallery and answered all the questions I had. I spent about 5 hours here and covered about 80% of the museums. All the staff were lovely. Strong recommend if you have a stopover and want to pass some time near the airport. Entry about $20AUD.

We visited the Shindagha Museum today with the students of Elite English School, and it was a wonderful experience! Ms. Shama Syed, our tour guide, explained everything clearly and with great kindness. She engaged the children beautifully, making the learning experience both fun and educational. It is truly the best place for students to explore the history of the UAE and enjoy hands-on learning. A heartfelt thanks to Ms. Shama Syed for her time, effort, and dedication. Highly recommended! 🌸

Beautifully re-created traditional architecture, great place for a long afternoon walk and to hang out by creekside. It's fun to get lost in the narrow alleyways. One of the few photography-friendly places in Dubai.

Pretty enjoyable. I was amazed by the interactivity and sense of technology here. They also offer free workshops where you can make handicrafts, depending on the date you come. I made a saffron rose candle inside an oyster shell and got to take it home. Najla, who was in charge of the workshop, was extremely friendly—I really enjoyed talking with her. All the staff were polite and welcoming. My favorite part was the interactive installations in the perfume gallery (you can smell more than twenty different scents), and the VR pearl diving experience in the ocean gallery was also a lot of fun. If you only have one afternoon in Dubai, you definitely have to come here! Just so you know, the entire museum is located by the water, so when moving between the twenty or so galleries you can enjoy the waterfront scenery. The whole atmosphere is peaceful and pleasant (and it’s a perfect spot to watch the sunset!). You’ll also see lots of cats around. There’s even a museum gift shop. Nearby at the heritage house, a large bottle of water costs only 3 AED. I especially loved the perfume gallery, where you can compare scents from different origins and learn to distinguish between animal, plant, and synthetic notes. As a perfume enthusiast, I really appreciated discovering the differences between oud from various regions, the contrasts among natural saffron, synthetic saffron, and ambergris, as well as between Taif rose essential oil and regular rose oil. Don’t forget to take a walk through the long corridor in the perfume gallery—there are plenty more scents to experience there too. To sum up: If you’re interested in Arab culture, come! If you want to learn about Dubai’s development history, come! If you’d like to make your own handicraft and take it home for free, come! If you want to enjoy the comfort of air conditioning indoors while still admiring beautiful views outside, come! If you appreciate not only the elegant interior design and high-tech interactions but also natural settings with an Arabian touch, come! If you’re a perfume lover, this is a must! If you love cats, come! If you’d enjoy a sunset stroll by the water, come! I honestly can’t think of a single reason not to visit. Even if my time in Dubai were limited next time, I’d still want to come back here again. Tip: Don’t forget to have a cup of Turkish coffee at the visitor center, along with a few delicious dates!

We visited the Shindagha Museum today with the students of Elite English School, and it was a wonderful experience! Ms. Shama Syed, our tour guide, explained everything clearly and with great kindness. She engaged the children beautifully, making the learning experience both fun and educational. It is truly the best place for students to explore the history of the UAE and enjoy hands-on learning. A heartfelt thanks to Ms. Shama Syed for her time, effort, and dedication. Highly recommended! 🌸

On of the underrated place in Dubai. It is perfect place to start better understanding of the city, its history and culture. My top 3 museums here are: 1 Dubai Creek 2 Parfum House 3 Jewerly museums Others are so cosy and incredibly beautiful also. I am just a lady and these subjects are in my heart. So choose what you like more and go deeper there: museums of the sea, museums of floral or even medicine

Beautifully re-created traditional architecture, great place for a long afternoon walk and to hang out by creekside. It's fun to get lost in the narrow alleyways. One of the few photography-friendly places in Dubai.

Pretty enjoyable. I was amazed by the interactivity and sense of technology here. They also offer free workshops where you can make handicrafts, depending on the date you come. I made a saffron rose candle inside an oyster shell and got to take it home. Najla, who was in charge of the workshop, was extremely friendly—I really enjoyed talking with her. All the staff were polite and welcoming. My favorite part was the interactive installations in the perfume gallery (you can smell more than twenty different scents), and the VR pearl diving experience in the ocean gallery was also a lot of fun. If you only have one afternoon in Dubai, you definitely have to come here! Just so you know, the entire museum is located by the water, so when moving between the twenty or so galleries you can enjoy the waterfront scenery. The whole atmosphere is peaceful and pleasant (and it’s a perfect spot to watch the sunset!). You’ll also see lots of cats around. There’s even a museum gift shop. Nearby at the heritage house, a large bottle of water costs only 3 AED. I especially loved the perfume gallery, where you can compare scents from different origins and learn to distinguish between animal, plant, and synthetic notes. As a perfume enthusiast, I really appreciated discovering the differences between oud from various regions, the contrasts among natural saffron, synthetic saffron, and ambergris, as well as between Taif rose essential oil and regular rose oil. Don’t forget to take a walk through the long corridor in the perfume gallery—there are plenty more scents to experience there too. To sum up: If you’re interested in Arab culture, come! If you want to learn about Dubai’s development history, come! If you’d like to make your own handicraft and take it home for free, come! If you want to enjoy the comfort of air conditioning indoors while still admiring beautiful views outside, come! If you appreciate not only the elegant interior design and high-tech interactions but also natural settings with an Arabian touch, come! If you’re a perfume lover, this is a must! If you love cats, come! If you’d enjoy a sunset stroll by the water, come! I honestly can’t think of a single reason not to visit. Even if my time in Dubai were limited next time, I’d still want to come back here again. Tip: Don’t forget to have a cup of Turkish coffee at the visitor center, along with a few delicious dates!

The whole museum area are converted from the old Royal houses which includes over 20 museums with the focus on different topics. Each building itself was beautifully built and maintained. Inside filled with lots of interesting information and exhibits are all very well presented. The museum staff and security staff are all very friendly. Some of the museums we visited, staff even gave us a quick tour to give us an overview so that we can even more enjoy our walk around of the museum. As the museum areas is so so big, it is useful to visit the visitor center first to obtain the latest opening information of all museums and the staff also can arrange the shuttle to take you to the museum you targeted to start. After your visit of the museum, you can do the same thing to ask for shuttle to the next museum. We spent around 5 hours in the areas but unfortunately only able to visit 4 museums. It is recommended to start early and spend whole day there in order to enjoy all museums. We definitely will visit the museum again in our next visit of Dubai

It was so fun, I actually enjoyed learning new facts about the UAE I didn’t know myself! And the tour guide was super nice and friendly, I really enjoyed having her as our tour guide!

Rahma Alsaadi was an outstanding guide,friendly, and very professional. She made the tour engaging and enjoyable with her clear explanations and warm personality. I would highly recommend her to anyone looking for a memorable experience

One of the best tours I’ve ever had rahma Al Saadi was very nice she explained everything in details I would definitely go back again and have the tour with the same person

I had the absolute pleasure of having Rahma Alsaadi as my tour guide, and I can confidently say that she made my entire experience unforgettable. From the very beginning, Rahma was warm, welcoming, and incredibly knowledgeable about the history, culture, and hidden gems of the area. She had a special way of explaining things in a clear and engaging manner, which kept the whole group interested and excited throughout the journey. What impressed me the most was her genuine passion for sharing her culture and her ability to make every traveler feel comfortable and included. She went above and beyond to ensure we had a memorable time. I would definitely come back again!

We were taken through the various sections of the pavilion by Bdoor Abdullah Alkamali. She shared her knowledge of the history of the creek together with some family memories. Bdoor explained the stages of the history of the creek extremely clearly. I would recommend this pavilion and the perfume house to anyone wanting to understand how Dubai developed throughout time.