Best Areas for Families in Dubai

When couples with children are looking for a suitable area to live in Dubai, the availability of kindergartens and schools, a convenient location, peace and security, proximity to parks and space for walking become important factors. In this article, we will learn about the popular areas for families in Dubai where you can rent or buy property.

• Emirates Living
• Emirates Hills
• The Lakes
• The Meadows
• The Springs
• Umm Suqeim
• Arabian Ranches
• Al Barari
• Silicon Oasis
• Villanova

Emirates Living

Emirates Living is a gated community complex built by Emaar Properties, one of the leading development companies in the UAE. Emirates Living consists of several separate communities: the Lakes, the Springs, the Meadows, the Greens, the Views, and Emirates Hills. These are comfortable and secure communities offering the highest standards of living and all necessary amenities to the residents. Emirates Living is just off two large highways, Sheikh Zayed Road and Al Khail Road, which allows residents quick access to virtually any part of Dubai. Popular districts such as Dubai Marina, Dubai Internet City, and Palm Jumeirah, as well as family areas Dubai Sports City, Al Barsha, and Jumeirah Village Circle are located nearby.

Emirates Living mostly consists of villas and townhouses, only the Greens and the Views offer apartment blocks. The most popular communities among families with children are Emirates Hills (a high-end district), the Lakes, the Meadows and the Springs (the latter is considered the most affordable). Read on to find out more about the communities.

Emirates Hills

The elite gated community of Emirates Hills is part of the Emirates Living project and it has stylistic and conceptual echoes of Beverly Hills. It is an area of luxury villas for affluent people. Emirates Hills is also one of the first freehold zones in Dubai — where foreigners were first allowed to buy real estate.

In Emirates Hills, you can buy or rent two- to seven-bedroom villas. Two-bedroom houses start from 8 million AED ($2.2 million), and luxury houses with six bedrooms cost about 30 to 40 million AED ($8.2 to $10.9 million). Rent for houses with five or six bedrooms is about 1.4 million AED ($381,000 ) per year.

Emirates Hills is gated and guarded around the clock. The safety issue for families with children is the first priority here. The community has all the important infrastructure: parking spaces, playgrounds for children, swimming pools and barbecue areas, parks for walking pets and running tracks. The premium Montgomerie Golf Club Dubai is located in Emirates Hills. There is a wide selection of supermarkets, schools, clinics, as well as restaurants and entertainment venues. The community is located a short drive away from Dubai's popular shopping malls, the Mall of the Emirates and the Ibn Battuta Mall.

Unfortunately, there are no bus stops and metro stations in Emirates Hills, so it is better for the residents to have their own cars. The nearest metro station Dubai Marina and the  Marina bus stop are a ten-minute drive away.

The Lakes

The Lakes is a complex of premium-class villas. The community has excellent conditions for living in the suburbs: extensive green areas have been created here, there are parks, lakes, and golf courses. This area is particularly popular with families: there are good private kindergartens (for example, Raffles International School Nursery), many playgrounds and swimming pools, as well as an educational and entertainment club for children.

The complex is in a convenient location. It is close to the beach and just a 10 to 15-minute drive from developed urban areas with good infrastructure: Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR), Dubai Marina, Dubai Internet City, and Dubai Media City.

The Lakes also has its own infrastructure: a Choithrams supermarket, a nail salon with a hairdresser, dry cleaning, restaurants, and bars. For sports and outdoors enthusiasts, there are swimming pools, basketball courts, tennis courts, a football field, and gyms. 

The Lakes has several residential complexes: Forat, Zulal, Ghadeer, Maeen, Deema, and Hattan. In Hattan and Deema, four -to six-bedroom villas with views of the golf course are for sale. In Maeen, there are also multi-bedroom villas and townhouses. Forat, Zulal, and Ghadeer mainly offer three-bedroom townhouses. In total, the Lakes comprises 600 villas designed in a modern architectural style with high ceilings and spacious rooms.

A small three-bedroom villa costs 4 to 5 million AED ($1 to $1.4 million), and a large five to six-bedroom villa costs 18 to 35 million AED ($4.9 to $9.5 million).

The Meadows

The Meadows community occupies a fairly large part of Emirates Living and consists of several inner districts. The gated residential community is surrounded by lakes, gardens and parks, and is guarded around the clock.

The nearest highway is the Sheikh Zayed Road. It takes 10 minutes to get from the community to the Dubai Marina area, and 15 minutes to get to the city centre. Dubai International Airport is a 40-minute drive away and Al Maktoum International Airport is 30 minutes away.

The Meadows has everything needed for sports: running tracks, swimming pools, gyms (outdoor and indoor), football fields, tennis courts, and basketball courts. You can use the fully equipped barbecue areas, walk the picturesque paths along the lake or in the park.

All necessary infrastructure is available in the community: residents can go to the Meadows Souk market, local shopping malls, cinemas, restaurants, and even 24-hour fast food places. You do not need to go far to buy quality food, clothes, get a manicure or a new hairstyle. Everything is nearby. The Meadows has medical offices and clinics, and the Hayya wellness club. The community has a mosque, a community centre, and a golf club.

Residential property in the Meadows is represented by two-storey villas with three to six bedrooms, the developer has provided several layout options. The houses are designed in the same style; each villa has a veranda and covered parking, and each plot has a large garden. A villa with three bedrooms can cost 6.5 million AED ($1.8 million), five bedrooms costs 7.9 million AED ($2.1 million), while six bedrooms costs 8.5 million AED ($2.3 million).

The Springs

The Springs community is a comfortable, picturesque and quiet area with green zones, beautiful parks and lakes. All the necessary infrastructure for residents is here: swimming pools, basketball courts, tennis courts, fitness clubs, beauty salons, medical facilities, as well as places for recreation and walking (including a 24-hour dog park). For shopping, locals go to the Springs Souk, a shopping mall with many shops, a grocery supermarket, and a cinema.

There is a separate Clubhouse entertainment area for children in the Springs. The Springs Souk shopping mall also has an indoor Dig It play park, which is a children's construction site. The community also boasts a kindergarten and Dubai British School, one of the most prestigious English-speaking private schools in Dubai.

You’ll find villas for every budget and taste in the Springs. A two-bedroom house can be purchased for 2.4 million AED ($653,434), while a three-bedroom house can be bought for 4.5 million AED ($1.2 million). You can rent a two-bedroom villa for 120,000 to 160,000 AED ($32,671 to $43,562), a three-bedroom for 200,000 to 260,000 AED ($54,452 to $70,788), a six-bedroom for 1 to 1.2 million AED ($272,264 to $326,717). 

Umm Suqeim

Let’s learn more about the other areas of Dubai that are suitable for families with children.

Umm Suqeim is a picturesque, quiet and safe area stretching along Jumeirah Beach. It is considered one of the oldest and most attractive areas of Dubai. The area is very conveniently located at the junction of the old part of Dubai and the new one. In addition, it stretches along the sea, so locals do not have to travel far to reach the beach. The Kite beach with white sand is located here, a popular destination for kitesurfing, surfing, and kayaking. Families with children can go to Wild Wadi Water Park, one of the best water amusement parks in the world, with dozens of waterslides and attractions.

Umm Suqeim is a convenient place to live and has everything you need: supermarkets, pharmacies and medical centres, cafes and restaurants, educational institutions for children, parks and sports facilities. Thanks to the convenient transport links, residents can easily and quickly get to the main urban locations from here: in 20 minutes you can drive to the Dubai International Airport, in 15 minutes to the major shopping malls, Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates, and in 10 minutes to the Internet City area.

The district of Umm Suqeim consists of several communities. In Umm Suqeim 1, there are mostly small houses without a garden or a swimming pool, with only a few spacious luxury villas. In Umm Suqeim 2, you can find the most luxurious villas and apartment complexes. Other communities have a choice of apartments, villas, and townhouses.

The annual rent for a studio in Umm Suqeim is about 37,000 AED ($10,073). Renting a two-bedroom flat costs from 60,000 to 120,000 AED ($16,335 to $32,671), a three-bedroom from 120,000 to 150,000 AED ($32,671 to $40,839). You can rent a three-bedroom villa for 110,000 AED ($29,949) per year.

A one-bedroom apartment will cost from 1.8 million to 3 million AED ($490,075 to $816,793). A two-bedroom apartment costs 2.8 million AED ($762,340), a three-bedroom apartment costs 4.9 million AED ($1.3 million).

Some of the villas in the area are not freehold real estate, which means they can be rented but not purchased. Despite this restriction, Umm Suqeim remains very popular among expats due to its location and infrastructure.

Arabian Ranches

The suburban community of Arabian Ranches is another Emaar Properties project. This is a freehold zone, and foreigners can buy real estate here. Arabian Ranches is a huge area of 6.7 square kilometres consisting of 15 residential complexes/communities. This area is considered one of the greenest in Dubai — there are parks with walking paths and three large lakes with landscaped promenades. Recreation areas, tennis courts, workout areas, barbecue areas, golf courses, playgrounds and swimming pools with aqua zones for children, as well as grounds for walking pets are available to the residents. All houses are provided with parking spaces. Arabian Ranches also boasts an equestrian complex and a golf club. 

For families with children, there is also the Raffles nursery for children up to four years old and the Ranches Primary School.

Prices for villas in Arabian Ranches start at 1.6 million AED ($435,623), this is the cost of a small two-bedroom villa. You can rent the same house for 90,000 to 100,000 AED ($24,503 to $27,226) per year.

Al Barari

This is an elite gated residential area in the centre of Dubai consisting of several residential sub-communities (The Nest, Seventh Heaven, Ashjar, The Reserve, and The Residences). There is a resort hotel, retail stores, medical facilities, and several residential complexes.

Al Barari is a very beautiful location, there are many green gardens, parks, and lakes. This quiet community, located away from the hustle and bustle of the city, is suitable for families with children. There are spaces suitable for walking and spending time in nature. There are two kindergartens with nurseries and several schools in the district (including ones following the British education system). The Body Language wellness club, the famous gourmet restaurant The Farm and the Heart & Soul spa centre are also located in the district.

In Al Barari, you can buy or rent villas with four to seven bedrooms. A four-bedroom house costs an average of 3 to 4 million AED ($816,793 to $1,089,057), the annual rent for such a house will be about 230,000 to 240,000 AED ($62,620 to $65,343). A five–bedroom house is sold for 8.5 to 10 million AED ($2.3 to $2.7 million), the rent for such a villa is 740,000 to 900,000 AED ($201,475 to $245,037).

Silicon Oasis

Dubai Silicon Oasis is a comfortable community in the centre of Dubai which includes a technology park, a complex of residential buildings with apartments, and villa complex. The latter belongs to a freehold zone, where foreigners have the right to buy houses. Foreigners can only rent apartments in the residential complexes, they are not available to buy.

Silicon Oasis has everything for families with children: supermarkets and organic food shops, restaurants and cafes, medical clinics, playgrounds for children and the Kids Jungle entertainment centre. Kindergartens (Emirates British Nursery and British Orchard Nursery) are available for young children in the district, GEMS Wellington Academy, Kings School Nad Al Sheba and Vernus schools are available for older children.

Prices for three-bedroom villas in Silicon Oasis start at 2.9 million AED ($789,566). The annual cost of renting such a villa starts from 130,000 AED ($35,394). Most residential buildings have their own parking spaces, there are also many public car parks in the area.

In the Silicon Gates or Axis Residences complexes, you can rent studios and apartments with one to three bedrooms. Rent for a studio is 25,000 AED ($6,806) per year, while a one-bedroom apartment will cost 37,000 AED ($10,073) per year to rent.

Villanova

The Villanova area is also very popular among families. It is part of the freehold community of Dubailand and is located next to Dubai’s main roads: Emirates Road and Sheikh Zayed Road. From the community, you can quickly get to the Dubai Outlet Mall and other popular locations in the city.

Villanova has four residential clusters of villas and townhouses surrounded by greenery, scenic paths, and places to relax. All villas in the community have covered parking spaces for two or more cars. There is also a public swimming pool and the Al Habtoor polo club equipped with barbecue and picnic areas, running tracks, sports fields, and a good playground for children.

In the community, you can purchase or rent villas with two to five bedrooms. Two-bedroom houses cost from 1.2 million AED ($326,717), the rent for such villas averages 80,000 AED ($21,781) per year. Annual rent for a two-bedroom townhouse will be about 80,000 AED ($21,781), a three-bedroom is between 85,000 and 100,000 AED ($23,142 to $27,226). The price for a two-bedroom townhouse is 1.2 to 1.4 million AED ($326,717 to $381,170).

In a Nutshell

Our selection includes areas that are considered the most suitable for families with children as these locations are usually far from the noisy centre and offer a quieter and more relaxed life. Complexes in these areas are usually gated, safe, and offer a wide variety of entertainment to keep residents busy. Those who cannot afford to buy or rent a villa should consider apartments in areas located away from the bustling business and tourist centre of the city. Many of these areas have good educational institutions for children, all the necessary shops and clinics, as well as places for recreation and entertainment for the whole family.

Cover photo: Emirates Hills by Ellington