The Palm Islands were designed and built with the idea of creating more beachfront land for Dubai, which was previously in short supply. During the initial brainstorming sessions, the ruler of Dubai is said to have drawn a sketch of a palm tree, realising that its fronds would provide more beach space than the traditional circular island, and from this insight, the idea of Palm Islands were born.

Three separate Palm Island projects exist: The Palm Jebel, The Palm Jumeirah, and The Palm Deira. The Palm Jumeirah was the first to be completed, and residents started moving into properties at the end of 2006. The trilogy is the largest land reclamation project in the world and also represents the world’s largest artificial islands and they can even be seen from space. The trilogy required extensive studies, planning and research, which was unprecedented in its scale and complexity.

The Jumeirah Palm doesn’t just feature luxury villas and white sand beaches, however. The Atlantis Resort is an ambitious construction featuring the Royal Towers – an architectural wonder, and yet another impressive landmark for Dubai, with its towering arches, arabesque domes and ornate spires overlooking the warm, clear and calm waters of the Arabian golf.

The Atlantis resort also features hotel accommodation in the form of 1539 rooms and suites, the first open air marine habitat in the Middle East, and Aquaventure: a huge 17 hectare water park, featuring a 2km long wave river, a tidal pool and the 27.5 meter near-vertical drop slide which propels visitors through a submerged tunnel into a shark filled lagoon. The entire Atlantis complex is set amongst manicured aquatic gardens and white sand beaches, and is expected to be fully open to the public by autumn 2008.

With such a vast amount to see and do, Dubai holidays are becoming extremely popular with westerners, and many are finding that Dubai’s ever developing landscape means that despite the relatively small size of the Emirate, there is always a new architectural wonder to experience.

With the other two Palm Islands constructions in progress and many more exciting projects in the pipeline, Dubai’s dynamic landscape continues to grow, creating an outstanding destination for a honeymoon, family or luxury holiday and shows that the Emirate has become the Middle East’s foremost vacation destinaiton.

Author: Andrew Regan.

Andrew Regan is an online, freelance author from Scotland. He is a keen rugby player and enjoys travelling.

The emirate of Dubai is considered as the pearl of the Middle East. Every year tourists from around the world flock to the Dubai Islands to experience the magic of its endless beauty, white beaches, shopping malls and luxurious hotels. Dubai Islands, also known as Palm Dubai or Palm Islands are the world’s three largest man-made islands constructed in the shape of a palm tree. These islands are built on the coast of the emirate of Dubai and they maintain Dubai’s reputation as a premium tourist place. It consists of 300 small private artificial islands which are divided into four categories i.e. private homes, estate homes, dream resorts, and community islands.

These three islands are located near Jumeirah, Jebel Ali and Deira. They are palm tree-shaped islands and each island has a main trunk, a circular ring and 17 branches supported by luxury hotels, 4000 exclusive residential villas, posh estates, 1000 awesome water homes, marinas, water theme parks, facilities like sports, theaters, shopping malls, restaurants, spas etc. A lot of people consider Dubai Islands as eighth wonder of the world.

The Palm Jumeirah is a residential area for living, relaxation and leisure. It has three types of villas i.e. Signature Villas, Town Homes, and Garden Homes. The Palm Jebel Ali is an entertainment destination for everyone. The island is 50% larger than Palm Jumeirah, and includes six marinas, a Sea Village, a water theme park and water homes.

The development of Palm Deira was announced in October 2004. It will become the world’s largest man-made island and housing for more than a million people, once finished by 2015. This island is 8 times larger than the Palm Jumeirah, and 5 times larger than the Palm Jebel Ali.

It is amazing that such a tiny city in the middle of the desert has so much to offer for every visitor. Dubai Islands are not just for your holidays but they are the best for your everyday lives. It is the most exclusive development and mega investment in the world.

Dubai has so much to offer that anyone can get confused where to start. Here you can enjoy warm blue waters of the Southern Gulf and winter sunshine in five star luxurious hotels. Go for camel riding, sunbath, swimming, sail, exciting nightlife and water ski and you will get the opportunity to visit magnificent palaces. This place has emerged as the most popular gateways to the UAE and offers a huge choice of things to do on your holiday. If you are pressed for time, just go for organized tours, they offer the unique opportunity to see so much in a short period of time.

Dubai is on the migratory path between Europe, Asia and Africa and therefore in spring and autumn, it is an ornithologist’s delight with more than 300 species of bird life passing through. You can experience new and old Dubai in a fascinating way by taking part in a creek tour. If you are interested in camel racing, it is in October when the season starts.

Finally, you can be one of many tourist to visit Dubai Islands, what has become one of the world’s “hottest” destinations, often compared to the energy and excitement of Hong Kong when it was first making a splash on the world stage. I must say that Dubai is a fantastic place to visit where you can have everything you need for your enjoyment.

Author Terrence Cohen.