Heritage House

This free museum in Deira is a perfect way to see traditional Dubai. It is a restored merchant's house from 1890, originally built by Mattar bin Saeed bin Muzaaina. It is built in the traditional "courtyard" style, and videos and manniquin set-ups display the original functions of each room (signs in English and Arabic). The staff even seat you in the inner courtyard and serve you a traditional meal and tea (free) to get more of a taste of how it must have been to be rich and living in Dubai a hundred years ago. It is an outstanding exhibit in its own right, and shows how you can have a lot of fun in Dubai without spending any money.