Go, but pay attention.
The UAE Sketch Score rose to 73 today, and with government advisories ranging from level 1 to 3, you are on your own to weigh the risk. Global measles notices remain active.
Governments, one trip
What they're telling their own citizens about United Arab Emirates
The advisories disagree by 2 level(s) — read all four before you decide who to trust.
The real score
The breakdown
See it from your perspective
Go, but pay attention.
The general Sketch Score, unweighted for any specific traveler.
Don't do this
Laws that jail tourists
Strict drug and medication laws
Possession of drugs, including microscopic traces on clothing, carries a minimum four-year prison sentence. Certain painkillers like codeine are illegal without a prescription, and blood tests can lead to jail for substances ingested abroad.
Public conduct and morality laws
Homosexuality, sex outside marriage, public displays of affection, and public nudity are illegal and punishable by fines or jail. Homosexuality specifically carries a penalty of death or life in prison.
Cyber-crime and defamation
Defamatory statements made about someone in the UAE on social media can result in jail time or fines, even if the statement was made years ago in another country.
Staying healthy
What to watch out for, health-wise
Active notices
- • Global Measles
Vaccines
Recommended:
From people who've been there
Local know-how
Staying safe
- •The UAE is one of the safest countries in the world with regard to crime.
- •Homosexuality is illegal in the UAE, and it may carry the penalty of death or life in prison, so gay and lesbian tourists should be discreet and avoid any public displays of affection.
- •Sex outside marriage is illegal, but the penalty is not enforced unless it results in pregnancy.
- •The UAE has extremely strict laws on drug usage; the punishment for possession is typically 4 years in prison, and tourists have been arrested and sentenced under this law for having microsc…
- •Some common painkillers, like codeine, are illegal narcotics in the UAE.
- •Under cyber-crime laws, if a person makes or has made a defamatory statement about someone in the UAE on social media, even if a number of years ago in another country, they can be jailed or…
Staying healthy
- •General medical care in the Emirates is quite good, with clinics for general and specialized care widely available, including some which are now open 24 hours.
- •The main government hospital in Abu Dhabi is quite good; as is the Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, now managed by Cleveland Clinic.
- •In Dubai, the government hospitals are Rashid hospital, which has a new Trauma Centre and Dubai Hospital which are very good.
- •Al Ain is served by modern hospitals and care centers: Tawam Hospital, now managed by Johns Hopkins, and host to the UAE University Faculty of Medicine and Health Science; Al Ain Hospital (a…
- •The water is safe to drink in the UAE, although most people prefer bottled water for its taste.…
Adapted from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA — edited by travelers, not us.
Pack this, know this
The little things that trip people up
Plug & voltage
G · 230V
Driving side
right
Emergency
police: 999 / ambulance: 998 / fire: 997
Zoom in
5 United Arab Emirates cities on SKETCH.WORLD
Real, resident-submitted Numbeo crime data at the city level — the same national picture above, with crime swapped for what people who actually live there report.
Show the receipts (10 sources)
- us-state — observed 2026-07-12
- uk-fcdo — observed 2026-07-12
- ca-gac — observed 2026-07-12
- worldbank-political — observed 2026-07-12
- worldbank-policeTrust — observed 2026-07-12
- cdc-health — observed 2026-07-12
- wikivoyage — observed 2026-07-12
- unodc — observed 2026-07-12
- acled-hdx — observed 2026-07-12
- lgbtq-legal-wikipedia — observed 2026-07-12