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Up until a short time ago, Dubai was awash with independent instructors. But since the clampdown on road safety the only way to learn is with a large, government sanctioned school. Far and away the two most organized schools in Dubai are Belhasa School of Motoring and the Emirates Driving Institute. Your learning car is likely to be a Nissan Sunn or a Toyota Corolla, and you can choose to learn in a manual or an automatic. Both schools have a structured, professional teaching system and female instructors for women. Both schools also have the ability to issue your license from the traffic department so the process is relatively easy.

Belhasa Driving Centre
(04 344 0276)
Probably the best known school in Dubai, Belhasa uses clean and well maintained vehicles. They charge Dhs45 for a normal 45 minute auto or manual lesson. New drivers must take 40 lessons before they can take a test.

Emirates Driving Institute
Al Qusais (04 263 1100)
All the cars are up-to-date and they use a standard teaching technique. They even has a driving simulator to get you up to speed before letting you loose on Dubai's roads. They charge Dhs50 for a lesson in manual car and Dhs55 for an automatic. Again, like Belhasa the minimum number of lessons you have to take is 40.

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If you are in search of great deals travel to the Al Rashidiya exit on the Hatta Road where you will find the used car souk. This is where most of the smaller independent used car dealers have been gathered together. This has created a kind of car supermarket, where you can wander between loads of different dealers comparing vehicles prices.

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Municipality taxes of around 30 per cent are applied on alcohol from liquor stores and service charges of around 15 per cent at restaurants are usually factored into the displayed prices.

Loan pay back duration: Six years (nationals), four years (expatriates).