Day one on Dubai and we booked the afternoon Dune Safari and Barbecue under the stars

That gave us the morning free so it was onto the shuttle bus for, you guessed it, more shipping and our new favourite shop Max fashion

The shuttle went to The Mall of the Emirates, that’s the one with the ski slope, but you’ll be glad to know we didn’t ski!

We did however visit Debenhams, Monsoon and Evans, all shops we no longer have!

A quick restorative coffee and then it was back to the ship in time for our afternoon tour

We were in groups of 4 in the jeeps and drove out over an hour to get into the desert If you are at all nervous my advice would be don’t take the front seat. If you’ve back problems or get queasy, don’t go in the middle seat or the very back – we were dishing out the sea sick pills to some friends who were suffering!

We pulled over in convoy while the drivers let the air out of the tyres, I think it’s down to 15psi but don’t quote me on that. Now I’d have loved a go in the front, but the guy in our group wasn’t for changing. Jane had the middle and she really got bounced about, but I was fine at the side.

Our driver was excellent and it was certainly a thrilling ride!

After a good hour in the dunes, there may have been the odd bump, we regrouped and while we stretched our legs the drivers got the compressors out and pumped up the tyres!

From there it was off to the Bedouin village for our Barbecue. A camel ride was included, not being the smallest I chose not to get on the camels though there didn’t appear to be any size restrictions

I did however get a henna tattoo. You could also have done some sand boarding

The Barbecue was delicious. There were loads of veggie options and the entertainment was good to although there was no Bellydancer due to Ramadan I particularly enjoyed the fire eater & juggler

Back to the jeep, and the highlight for me was our guy in the front decided I could have a turn in the front seat! Now our driver who knew I was desperate for this made the most of it and we certainly did not take the straight route out. It was amazing!

Being at the new cruise terminal we got to see the stunning lights of Dubai as we drove through and even some of the light shows. A fantastic end to a brilliant day