Packing list for Dubai and the Gulf
What to bring for Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha from October to April: loose layers that cover shoulders and knees, a sweater for malls chilled against 86°F (30°C) outside, serious sun kit, and the paperwork for any medicine the Gulf counts as controlled.
On a phone with Waystop installed, the button adds the list to your trip as a bag you can tick off. Otherwise copy it and paste it into Waystop’s Chat with “add this to my packing list”.
Checked October 10, 2026.
Tick things off as you go and this browser will remember. Changed your mind?
0 of 15 packed
Clothes
0/6Sun and heat
0/4Documents, money and power
0/5What the weather is like
October still reaches 97°F (36°C) by day. From December to February days sit at 75 to 81°F (24 to 27°C) with nights around 61 to 64°F (16 to 18°C) and the sea at about 72°F (22°C). Short downpours arrive between November and March, with February the wettest month at around 35 mm. In July and August the city runs at 109°F (43°C) with humidity over 90 percent and life moves indoors.
- Shorts and vest tops as your daytime outfitFine at the pool, awkward in malls and souks, refused at mosques and government offices
- Your vape, if Doha is a stop or a connectionQatar bans e-cigarettes outright. Legal in the UAE for over-18s in smoking areas, but customs at Hamad confiscate them even from transit passengers, with fines or worse.
- A winter coatJanuary days are 75°F (24°C); one light jacket covers the desert evening and the air conditioning
- Anything with CBD, including skincare and e-liquid refillsIllegal in the UAE and Qatar whatever the label says. It can be confiscated and lead to criminal charges.
- A Nol card for the Dubai MetroSold at every station; it also pays for buses, the tram and the abra across the creek
- Sunscreen and after-sunEvery pharmacy and supermarket stocks SPF 50 at normal prices; no need to carry a liter of it through security
- A tourist SIM or eSIMThe du and e& counters in arrivals sell short packages; a connected phone makes Careem, the metro map and the mall directory easier
Worth knowing
- The UAE weekend is Saturday and Sunday; Qatar's is Friday and Saturday. Mosques close to visitors around Friday midday prayers, so put a mosque visit on another morning.
- Ramadan moves about eleven days earlier each year and falls in February and early March in 2027. Eating, drinking and smoking in public by day is restricted in Qatar and frowned on elsewhere; restaurants screen their windows and dinner starts late and lively.
- Distances are far bigger than the map suggests and sidewalks end without warning. Taxis and the Dubai Metro are cheap and air-conditioned; plan to walk inside a neighborhood, not between them, after 11 a.m.
Trips to pack this for
Never leave the charger in the hotel again.
Waystop keeps a list for each bag and each person. On the morning you change hotels it walks you through a quick pack-up check, and Chat can suggest items to add when you ask what to bring.