Photos of Jumeirah, the most exclusive part of Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Jumeirah (meaning "burning embers") is a coastal residential area, to the west of the old city of Dubai, where the incredible construction boom has taken place over the past years.

Jumeirah is where expatriates working in the emirate live and what most tourists associate with "Dubai". It is also a site of spectacular shopping malls and, at the western limit of the emirate, the Dubai Port and Customs Free Zone of Jebel Ali with an industrial city and the new Al Maktoum International Airport, that was opened on 27 June 2010, the main part of Dubai World Central, a planned residential, commercial and logistics complex.

Historically this was an area of fishermen, pearl divers and traders, but after 1960 it became the principal area for the residences of western expatriates. The beachfront area used to be called Chicago Beach after a beach hotel with that name and the "Chicago Bridge & Iron Company" which once built huge floating oil storage tankers on the site. The old hotel was demolished in 1997 and a new, spectacular hotel was being built: the "Dubai Chicago Beach Hotel", until Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum announced its new name: the Burj Al Arab, offshore on a manmade island, which has become an iconic symbol of Dubai.

A great view of the area can be had from the top of the Burj al Arab hotel: just below it is Wild Wadi Water Park, an outdoor water park with a wave pool, multiple water slides and two artificial surfing machines. The tallest and fastest free-fall water slide outside of North America, Jumeirah Sceirah, rises to 33 metres and has riders hurtling down at up to 80 km/hour. Nearby is the Jumeirah Beach Hotel, whose patrons have unlimited access to the park. On the horizon is the spectacular Palm Jumeirah, an artificial archipelago created using land reclamation in the shape of a palm tree, to feature themed hotels, beaches, villas, apartment buildings and marinas. Similar projects on other artificial islands are under construction.

The Jumeirah Mosque is open to non-Muslims for tours at 10:00 am on most days other than Friday to give insights into Islam. The mosque is the focal point of the "Open Doors, Open Minds" programme, dedicated to receiving non-Muslim guests.