Your first trip to Dubai could hardly be better timed than December. Days reach around 27°C, warm enough for the beach and cool enough to walk about in at midday, and nights drop to about 16°C. Expect one wet day in the month, if that. Everyone wants this month, though, so book flights and hotels well ahead, and the week between Christmas and New Year earliest of all.
Most first-timers worry about what to wear, and the rules are simpler than the rumours. Swimwear is fine on the beach and by the pool. Everywhere else, the malls and the Metro included, cover your shoulders and knees and skip anything sheer; many malls put up signs asking for modest dress. A T-shirt with trousers or a long skirt is all it takes by day, and after dark you'll be glad of long sleeves anyway.
The month opens with Eid Al Etihad, the UAE's National Day, on 2 December, marking the union of the emirates in 1971. It's a public holiday, so beaches and malls fill with residents, and flags go up on buildings and cars. On the evening of the 2nd there are usually fireworks in several places at once, The Beach at JBR and Dubai Festival City among them, and around the city you may come across the ayala, the Emirati stick dance, performed by men in facing rows with thin bamboo canes over a steady drumbeat. Visitors are welcome to stand and watch.
Will Christmas feel strange in a Muslim country? Less than you might expect. The big malls put up trees and hotels lay on festive lunches. The prettiest market is the one at Madinat Jumeirah, on Fort Island among the resort's wind towers and waterways, with a very tall tree and a carousel for children. Entry is free, though the rides cost extra. The Dubai Shopping Festival normally starts in December too, bringing mall sales and more fireworks; its dates move each year, so check Visit Dubai before you plan a shopping day around it.
New Year's Eve is the one night that takes real planning. The fireworks at the Burj Khalifa draw enormous crowds to Downtown Dubai, and the free viewing areas along Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard close their gates once they are full, so aim to be in place hours before midnight, with water and snacks. Roads shut from the afternoon and the Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall Metro station closes early in the evening, so ride to Business Bay or Financial Centre and walk in. If crowds make you anxious, a ticketed spot such as Burj Park is calmer. Getting home is the easy part, because in recent years the rest of the Metro has run right through the night.