12 of 14 places fit
Full dinosaur skeletons and the Evolving World galleries take you through Earth's history, and under-18s go free, which makes it an easy family afternoon.
An 18-metre reconstructed Bronze Age Magan boat fills the atrium, and the Abu Dhabi Pearl is in the galleries beyond it.
Sheikh Hamad bin Hamdan's collection of around 200 vehicles sits in a desert pyramid, from rainbow-painted Mercedes to absurdly oversized trucks.
A hall of restored cars from the early 1900s onward, small enough to see in under an hour and rarely crowded.
The museum fills the 18th-century fort that was once the ruler's residence, so you see the watchtowers and courtyard as well as the exhibits, for AED 5.
It stands on the spot where the union was signed in 1971, and the original Union House and the round guesthouse are part of the visit.
A string of restored courtyard houses on the creek, each covering a piece of old Dubai, with a perfume house that lets you smell the oud and attar trade.
Housed in the restored Al Ali fort, it shows finds from Ed-Dur, one of the largest pre-Islamic sites in the Gulf, for AED 4.
Five thousand objects across Islamic science, faith and craft for AED 10, under a gold-mosaic zodiac dome.
The country's oldest museum reopened in October 2025 with pre-Islamic graves found during the rebuild now on show, and Sultan Fort is part of the visit.
Bronze Age and Iron Age finds from the east coast, including weapons and pottery from Bithnah and Qidfa, for AED 5.
The former Qawasim fort and ruler's home holds archaeology from Julfar and a room of pearling gear, for AED 5.