A Case for Making a Dubai Golf Trip Happen

This month’s Working Holiday adventure was to a destination I’ve been curious about for a very long time, and I assume I’m not alone. You hear the stories and see the images of these vast stretches of empty desert, with a small patch of green carved into the middle of it and the faint routing of a golf course running through.

Being in our early 30s, we’re part of a generation that has basically watched Dubai rise in front of us. We’ve seen the skyline being built, watched these golf courses pop up overnight, and then spent years seeing them on TV hosting some of the biggest events on the DP World Tour. For Mac Boucher, though, this trip was a little different. He was somewhat returning to where his content journey began, with an emotional connection to a place that played a pretty important role in getting him to where he is today. This one felt extra special because we knew we had some epic golf lined up, paired with some classic Dubai activities, indoor skiing, a tour through Old Dubai, and a proper cultural experience out in the desert involving old Land Rover Defenders, a falcon show and dinner under the stars.

When I sat down to write this article about our trip, I honestly didn’t know what direction to take it. One route was educational. Tips and tricks for planning a golf trip to Dubai. Where to stay, how to save some money, the things I wish we knew before going. But when I actually sat down and tried to think of those tips and tricks, I struggled. Because to me, Dubai kinda just is what it is. There’s no real sugar-coating it and there aren’t many secret cost-saving hacks I can give you. It’s probably going to be hot. It’s probably going to be expensive. You’re going to spend too much money on something at some point and question your financial decisions. But somehow, it’s worth it and I’d do it all again. So I think that’s what this article is going to be. A very simple “worth it or not,” based on an unforgettable week that I'd happily do again.

Emirates Golf Club is iconic. There’s no denying it. Whether you are a golf architecture enthusiast who loves analyzing course design or someone who prefers picking apart a routing, that shouldn't be what dictates your decision to play it. You play it for that famous towering skyline backdrop, its pristine conditions, and a chance to play a championship venue. Standing over a golf ball with the colossal skyscrapers behind the green is one of those things that still doesn’t really feel real. If you’re making the trip, I think it’s worth playing both the Majlis and the Faldo. The Majlis is the one you’ve watched on TV for years, so there’s naturally something pretty cool about finally standing on those holes yourself. But the Faldo at night might actually be the more uniquely Dubai experience. Playing golf under floodlights with that skyline glowing behind you feels like something that shouldn’t exist.

We also decided it was worth making the drive down to Abu Dhabi to play Yas Links. There were two reasons for this. One, Mac has an emotional connection with the property from spending time there earlier in his career. And two, I selfishly wanted to see the Formula 1 track next door. Adding a couple hours of driving to a golf trip might sound daunting, but a couple things out of the gate: the roads are incredible, and don’t speed. Seriously. You do not want those tickets. As for the golf, I absolutely think it’s worth making the trip. Yas Links was amazing. You’re right on the water, the course feels completely different from what we had been playing back in Dubai, and we happened to get it on one of those evenings where everything just worked. We played until dark and were treated to one of the best sunsets of the entire trip. Throw in Yas Marina Circuit sitting next door and Abu Dhabi itself being something different to explore, and I’d happily sacrifice the extra time in the car to do it again.

Dubai Creek Resort was probably the course I already knew the most about before we arrived. That iconic clubhouse has been sitting in the background of golf broadcasts for years, so actually pulling up and seeing it in person was pretty cool. And I know I press on about this a lot, but I genuinely don’t care enough about routing or architectural prowess to sit here and give you a breakdown of every hole. Was the course fun? Yes. Was it challenging? Yes. Did we get amazing views back toward the Burj Khalifa as the sun went down? Also yes. It’s also conveniently located compared to some of the other golf options, so if you’re staying centrally in Dubai, it’s an incredibly easy one to add to the itinerary.

Now we get into the golf course I would classify as a “maybe”. Like, if you had time and wanted to play more golf but it’s not necessarily going to stand out in the overall trip.

We played Jumeirah Golf Estates and The Track at Meydan because we had the time and, honestly, we felt like it was our duty to explore as much of the Dubai golf scene as we could while we were there. I enjoyed both but if you handed me the itinerary again and told me I had to lose two rounds, these would probably be the first to go. That’s less an indictment on either golf course and more a reflection of how much golf there is to choose from. If you have the time, absolutely go explore them. But if you’ve only got four or five days and you’re trying to decide where to spend your money, I’d prioritize Emirates, Dubai Creek and making the run down to Yas Links.

Golf was obviously the reason we were there, but Dubai is one of those places where it almost feels wrong to spend the entire trip on a golf course. There’s just too much weird shit to do. We went indoor skiing in the middle of the desert because, well, of course Dubai has an indoor ski hill. We spent time exploring Old Dubai, which was probably one of the more interesting contrasts of the entire trip. You spend so much time surrounded by skyscrapers, supercars and enormous shopping malls that it’s easy to forget there’s another side to the city entirely. We jumped into old Land Rover Defenders and headed out away from the city, watched a traditional falcon show and finished the evening with dinner out in the desert.

Dubai sits firmly in bucket-list golf trip territory for me. This isn’t the destination where I’m going to tell you to save $40 by staying an hour outside the city, eating sandwiches from the supermarket and finding the cheapest twilight tee time possible. You’ve already committed. The flight is long, the golf is expensive and the hotels can be expensive too. You’re probably going to spend an irresponsible amount of money before the trip is over anyway so you may as well go all in and do it properly. Play the courses you’ve watched on TV, play under the lights, drive down to Abu Dhabi, go skiing inside a shopping mall, get driven through the desert in an old Land Rover, watch the falcons, eat the food, go see Old Dubai. Do all the ridiculous stuff that made you curious about the place in the first place. It might just be the most memorable golf trip you will ever have.