5 Things To Do This Weekend: Christmas Market at The Garden, Fort Island’s Festive Market, Family Winter Fair and more!

A few of our favourite things to do this weekend

Here are some of our favourite events as we count down for the big day…

Christmas Market at The Garden

Raffles Brunch receives a sprinkling of festive magic as the Raffles Garden is transformed into an outdoor Christmas Market, with live cooking stations serving traditional festive delicacies including mince pies, roasted chestnuts, mulled grape and a twist on a UAE favourite – turkey shawarma! All of this will be available alongside the Raffles Brunch, a mouth-watering buffet menu featuring the famous Raffles Roast with all the trimmings. Live music from Stereo Sound will echo throughout the market, and there will be gift stalls with homemade crafts for sale – handy if you need to purchase those last minute presents! Perfect for the whole fam.

When: Friday, 16 December (1-6pm)
Where: Raffles Garden, Dubai
How much: Free entry, brunch is priced at AED 235 including soft beverages, or AED 385 for house beverages and all Raffles Brunch guests enjoy unlimited access to the food and beverage stalls in The Garden until 4:30pm.

Family Fete at Dubai Sports City

Dubai Sports City’s family fete is back and bigger than ever. Enjoy a FREE fun-filled, family evening at Dubai Sports City’s Canal Residence West’s Retail Promenade as they host their festive holiday spectacular. With fantastic raffle prizes to be won, lots of activities for the little ones including play areas, festive themed activities and food tasting with live cooking stations as well as event day discounts at all participating Canal Residence West’s outlets, Dubai Sports City is the place to be to start your holiday celebrations!

When: Friday, 16 December (4-9pm)
Where: Dubai Sports City’s Canal Residence West’s Retail Promenade
How much: Free!

Fort Island’s Festive Market

Santa Claus is coming to town – and you’ll get to meet him at Fort Island’s Festive Market! Featuring a shimmering, beautifully-decorated festive tree at its centre, a live band playing seasonal favourites, a series of rides, slides and games, including a North Pole train for the little ones, a two-lane bungee jump for teenagers, and a snow ball zone for children of all ages, this Festive Market will sure make this Christmas an unforgettable one. Kiddies can also take tours with Santa and decorate a huge gingerbread house and cookie garden – here’s to a fun-filled Christmas holiday!

When: Saturday, 17 December – Tuesday, 27 December (3pm-1am on weekdays and 12pm-1am on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays)
Where: Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai
How much: Free entry!

Zawayed Pop-up at thejamjar

Here’s your chance to shop for Christmas gifts that are both special and meaningful! Head over to thejamjar for a pop-up featuring Zawayed, a creative and innovative project, developed by Mohammad Alhajji and Liyan Al Jabi to create sustainable products from waste. It evolved to be a community empowerment organization that hosts workshops for youth, adolescents and women in local marginalized societies across Amman to discover their creative potential.

When: Thursday, 15 December – Thursday, 22 December
Where: thejamjar Mezzanine at Alserkal Avenue, Dubai
How much: Free entry

Family Winter Fair

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in the desert city so don’t let it stop! Bring the fam to 3 days of Music, fun and Christmas Markets featuring Handmade Dubai market at Reform Social & Grill. Savour the creative work of artists and pop-up shops whilst digging into some delicious food and sipping amazing beverages on offer by the renowned Reform Social & Grill restaurant. Clowns, Face Painting, Henna and Balloon Benders will keep the young ones happy and busy.

When: Thursday, 15 December (5-10pm); Friday, 16 December (12-10pm); Saturday, 17 December (12-6pm)
Where: Reform Social & Grill, The Lakes, Dubai
How much: Free entry

Have a fab weekend, mama!