Tourists traveling on a trip to another country need to respect the customs and customs of the local population. If in Europe you don’t need to follow any canons in clothing, then in Muslim countries this question is taken very strictly: they can be fined, arrested or deported from the country for open defiant clothing.
Tourists, accustomed to the permissiveness of Turkish and Egyptian resorts, are often disappointed with rather stringent restrictions. In order to avoid problems and misunderstandings, it is necessary to study in advance how to dress tourists in the UAE.
Clothing Rules for Women
Local residents in the UAE are forced to hide their bodies from prying eyes. The head should be covered. Some hide their face. Those wishing to visit the Emirates should know how to dress tourists in the UAE. They should at least approximately correspond to the image of a Muslim woman. But the burqa cannot be tried on, as this is clothing for the faithful. The traveler herself will not be too comfortable in revealing clothes among Muslim women hiding their bodies.
According to the traditions of the UAE, there is no dress code on site. The hotel is the territory of tourists, so you can dress as usual: shorts and T-shirts here are the most common clothes. But clothes to enter the city should be carefully selected.
Tourists should remember: transparent or translucent clothing in the UAE is regarded as its absence. Therefore, troubles will not keep you waiting.
How to dress women tourists in the UAE? Keep in mind that the UAE is very hot. Clothing should be made of natural fabrics, in synthetic it will be extremely difficult to tolerate heat.
Sundresses, tops, miniskirts, open dresses, T-shirts are unacceptable clothes for this country. It is necessary to close the chest, shoulders and knees. T-shirts that cover your shoulders, skirts below the knees are suitable. Trousers made of light tissues can be a good option. When planning a trip to the UAE, you need to know that, in addition to the moral side of the issue, closed clothing is more practical for the climate of the United Arab Emirates. In open dresses, you can be badly burned, being under the mercilessly scorching sun. And no sunblock cream will save.
Note to women: it is useful to have a light scarf, shawl or cloak with you, which could be worn in crowded places or in shopping centers where you can freeze under air conditioners. In addition, closer to winter in the UAE, there are strong temperature differences, so the cape will save from evening coolness.
Clothing Rules for Men
Men have less clothing restrictions than women. For example, you can freely walk in shorts. The exception is tight-fitting cycling shorts. But cycling in them is not forbidden. Sportswear may also be worn outside the gym.
A man should carefully study what is written or painted on his T-shirt, because this can make an insulting sense for Muslims. Unaware of anything, it is possible to provoke a cultural religious scandal with an extremist inscription on a T-shirt.
And one more But: just as women are forbidden to wear a burqa, so men are not allowed to try on and wear traditional Arabic clothing.
In the restaurant
Dubai's restaurants have specific clothing rules for men and women. Elite restaurants especially follow this, so they can simply not let them in shorts and a T-shirt.
The man should have trousers and a shirt with a long sleeve, closed shoes. On the woman - an elegant evening outfit, and the degree of his frankness is not specified.
The most visited cities in the UAE
Abu Dhabi and Sharjah are the most conservative cities. In them, the appearance of tourists is very strict. But Dubai is the most loyal to tourists. And this is not surprising, because it is one of the largest centers that attract tourists from all over the world. But it is better to refuse to visit the old areas of Dubai . Indeed, in typical clothing for tourists, you can cause a sharp negative among local residents of this city of the UAE.
The reasons for the loyalty of Dubai residents to tourists
Dubai is a multinational city in the UAE. Here you can meet many residents who have moved from Asian countries, Europe, America. All of them, respecting the traditions of the indigenous population, have brought some freedom to everyday clothes. In addition, a considerable number of Arabs studied in European and American universities, so the European style of clothing does not bother them. Moreover, the Arab youth, who returned to their home country after training, continues to walk in European clothes.
Visit to the mosque
In the UAE, there are only two mosques that can be visited by representatives of the non-Muslim religion: Sheikh Zayed Mosque and Jumeirah Mosque. The rules for visiting are the same for everyone: women are not allowed to appear in the mosque with their bare legs, arms, and shoulders. Choose a skirt below the knees and do not forget the scarf. Men should be in long trousers.
Tourists are only allowed to visit mosques on certain days.
On the beach
You cannot be on the beaches of the United Arab Emirates without any part of your bathing suit. Therefore, lovers of sunbathing topless will have to abandon this, otherwise they will have a lot of problems.
Walking in a swimsuit in the areas adjacent to the beach is strictly prohibited by the laws of the UAE.
Warnings
The UAE is undoubtedly accustomed to the ignorance of visitors who do not know how to dress tourists in the UAE. Therefore, in public places posted signs explaining what you can and what you can not go. It also writes about measures that will be taken by the police. Most often, too strict measures are not applied to tourists, unless the police come up and ask them to change clothes.
Local residents are unhappy with such loyal treatment of violators of public morality. In their view, measures should be more stringent.
The reaction of the local population
Women who appear in the UAE city in an inappropriate form - in open or transparent clothing - must be prepared for the retaliatory actions of Arab men who can demonstrate their unambiguous intentions. This surprises many, they conclude that Arab men are rude and completely uncivilized. This is not true. Arabs regard a tourist in open clothes as a woman offering herself. Therefore, the ratio is appropriate.
But local residents pay special attention to bare European women. They escort the ladies with gaze and reproachful glances. Having walked a day or two in a revealing outfit, the guest herself will decide to dress in something more closed.
Traditions and rules of conduct to be aware of
In addition to information on how to dress tourists in the UAE, tourists should learn about the main traditions of this country.
The laws of the Qur'an govern all human life. Believers strictly adhere to them. For example, prayer should be performed five times a day at a certain time. Tourists who become unwitting witnesses should behave correctly, respecting the feelings of believers. It is forbidden to shoot a prayer on a camera or photograph in the UAE.
During the great Muslim festival of Ramadan, tourists should not eat or drink in public places, as this will offend the feelings of believers. Canteens may refuse to feed during the day.
Loving couples should not show their passionate feelings in public places. The only thing that lovers can afford is to walk holding hands. Hugging and kissing in public is absolutely unacceptable.
Men cannot turn to Muslim women on the street, even if you just need to clarify the road. Any appeal to a local resident will be regarded as sexual harassment.
Taking pictures of local residents is a crime. It is also forbidden to rent mosques, government buildings, military facilities.
It is unacceptable to swear, drink alcohol and appear drunk in public places, to show rude indecent gestures. This will result in arrest, fines or deportation.