The View Finder Journal
A city built around family life
Space, sunshine and a calendar that fills itself. Why so many families choose to put down roots in Dubai.
Ask families why they moved to Dubai and the answers sound alike: room to grow, a sense of ease, and days spent outdoors for much of the year. The city has grown around neighbourhoods, not only towers. Many of its newer communities were planned from the start so that homes, parks, schools and shops sit within a short drive of one another.
Room to breathe
Villa communities trade the rush of the centre for quiet streets, private gardens and water views. Lakes and lagoons run between clusters of homes, with walking and cycling paths along the shore. Children learn to ride a bike on roads with little traffic, and parents take their morning coffee on a terrace that looks out over water.
A world of choice in schools
Dubai's private schools teach many curricula, among them British, American, International Baccalaureate, Indian and French programmes. Families arriving from almost anywhere can often continue their children's education with little disruption. Private schools are inspected by the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA), which publishes its reports so parents can compare schools before they choose.
Homes, parks, schools and shops, planned to sit close together.
Care and everyday ease
Healthcare is provided by a wide network of public and private hospitals and clinics, regulated by the Dubai Health Authority. Daily life is built around convenience: supermarkets and pharmacies close to home, large malls with play areas and cinemas, and delivery for almost everything.
An outdoor calendar
From autumn to spring the weather calls families outside: public beaches, weekends in the desert, waterparks, festivals, and parks with playgrounds and running tracks. In the hottest months, life moves indoors, to ice rinks, aquariums, museums and play centres, all air-conditioned.
A global neighbourhood
Families often name a feeling of safety among the reasons they stay. Residents come from all over the world, so children grow up with classmates and neighbours of many nationalities, and English is spoken alongside Arabic in everyday life.
A fine home here is about more than finishes and floor area. It is about what surrounds it: the school down the road, the park at the end of the street, and the view from the window.
