Very often, I get messages from dog owners asking me what the best community is to live in, in Dubai with a dog. This is a very hard question. Not only because it obviously depends on the budget that you have but also on your dog(s). Does your dog require a lot of exercise and would a garden be required to be able for him/her to stretch the legs apart from the daily walks or would he/she be ok with an apartment?
Below you can find an overview of the communities I like, with a bit of information that will hopefully help you to find the community that both you and your dog(s) will enjoy.
The Greens/The Views
I’d like to start off with the community I live in myself. The Greens & The Views are communities developed by Emaar. Both areas next to each other are divided by a big lake which is a perfect place to enjoy a nice long walk with your dog. In these two communities you will not find villas with a big garden but there are a few apartments on the ground floor that have a nice big open terrace in the courtyard.
The Greens has a dog park that is not very big but it’s a great place for our pooches to be able to run off leash. There used to be real grass in the park but they changed it a few years ago to artificial grass which is a big mistake in my opinion and hopefully they will change it back.
Unofficially they have now opened another fenced real grass area next to Mosela tower.
Like you might expect from the name, the communities are green with attention to detail and you’ll find dog waste bins everywhere you go
You can also find a few dog friendly restaurants and cafes close by. You can find them all on the map and in the directory on my website.
Emirates Living
Some other communities that are very popular amongst dog owners are The Springs, Meadows and The Lakes. In other words, Emirates Living.
All these communities are very green and you can even find a few dog parks in these communities as well as a few dog friendly restaurants and cafes nearby.
Although this is one of the older areas in town, the state of most townhouses and villas are still very good. With a lot of space for dogs to walk in greenery and around beautiful lakes.
Palm Jumeirah
Developed by Nakheel, Palm Jumeirah is a great area for dog owners. Not only can you find a lot of dog friendly restaurants and cafes, Palm Jumeirah also has the only 2 dog friendly beaches in town.
Although dogs are not allowed off leash or in the water as per DM rules, both The Pointe beach and Palm West Beach are a great place for a stroll in the sand.
Al Ittihad park can be found next to Golden Mile Galleria and it is a great park where you will find a lot of space and shade to enjoy a nice walk.
On Palm Jumeirah you can find both apartments as well as villas and although this might not be the cheapest community to live in, it might be totally worth it.
Damac Hills
One of the newer communities in town. Developer Damac understands that dogs are part of the family and they have been trying to show that in this project. You’ll find beautiful new apartments as well as townhouses and villas in this huge community. There is a lot of greenery where your dog can stretch his/her legs and there’s even a dog park to run of leash.
The community events that are being organized are most often dog friendly which is very different from Emaar community events, which are never dog friendly unfortunately.
Victory Heights
Victory Heights is part of Sports City and offers beautiful townhouses and villas and lots of greenery. The overall feel is relaxed and there are a lot of open spaces and parks where you can walk your dog. Unfortunately there is no dog park yet in this community but since all houses have a garden, your dog can run freely at home in your own garden.
Close to Victory Heights you’ll find some nice dog friendly restaurants as well as veterinary clinics.
Arabian Ranches
Just like Victory Heights, in Arabian Ranches you’ll find beautiful townhouses as well as villas. The community is also very green with a lot of space to walk your dog. You’ll find doggie waste bins everywhere in the community and on top of that, they’re building a dog park which will open shortly.
The community has a pet shop and a few dog friendly restaurants which makes this a really nice community to live in.
Sustainable City
Sustainable City is very dog friendly. You’ll find some amazing areas where you can enjoy a walk, there’s a dog park and a lot of dog friendly restaurants.
The community also has a veterinary clinic which is great in case needed.
You can find all the dog friendly places in the directory and on the map on my website.
Other “dog friendly” communities
Of course there are many more dog friendly communities but there are also a lot of communities where dogs are tolerated but I personally feel it’s not really dog friendly.
Like JLT. Although dogs are allowed in most apartments, there are many dog friendly restaurants and even a dog park, I wouldn’t recommend it. Apart from the one dog park, grass is hard to find in JLT. On top of that you have a lot of people on bikes and e-scooters in JLT around the lakes, which can be dangerous when walking there with a dog. JLT is more the place I would go to with my dog for a nice time at one of the many dog friendly restaurants rather than living there.
JBR also has dog friendly apartments and even two dog parks. But that’s about it. There are hardly any dog friendly restaurants and overall I would not recommend it as a dog friendly area.
Dubai Marina used to be more dog friendly and apart from the grass area next to Zero Gravity, there are no other grass areas for you dog to relief him/herself. But keep in mind that you’ll have to walk on a lot of pavements before reaching that area. The whole promenade next to the water is no longer dog friendly either. A lovely area in Dubai, but not for dogs in my opinion.
Downtown is another one of those areas that I would never recommend to dog owners. There are a few dog friendly buildings and some areas to walk your dog. But no dog friendly parks and even the parks that are there, don’t allow dogs on the grass. There are a few dog friendly restaurants in Downtown but they are hard to find.
Although Townsquare has a dog park and a pretty big one even, the rest of the community is not very dog friendly. They’re also not allowed on any of the terraces of the restaurants which makes this not a very dog friendly community for me if they are restricted in some areas.
I'm sure you have noticed that I have not mentioned every community there is in Dubai in this blog. Basically, the ones I haven’t mentioned are fine in my opinion but don’t really stand out for me like Dubai Hills, Mira, Motor City, Green Community, JVC, JVT, Umm Suqeim, Jumeirah etc.
Overall my advice would be to look around in the communities that you are interested in.
Bring your dog and go for a walk, I’m sure this will help a lot. In this blog I’m sharing my opinion and experience but maybe you will experience it completely different.
