Dubai museums: what they charge, and what the custodian no longer lists
Dubai Museum at Al Fahidi Fort has been deleted from its custodian’s website and replaced with the words “Coming Soon”. It is absent from the official museums list and from the heritage sites list. A February 2026 government statement targeted reopening in the first half of 2026; that has passed with nothing published. Meanwhile Al Shindagha’s own website still prints AED 15 for a ticket that costs AED 50 at the official sales channel — a page 3.3 times under the real price.
Admission prices, from the official sales channel
| Museum | Adult | Student / child | Free | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al Shindagha MuseumAl Ghubaiba metro, opposite | AED 50 | AED 20, ages 5–24 | Under 5, People of Determination, UAE over-60, ICOM | Daily 10:00–20:00, last entry 19:00 |
| Etihad Museum | AED 25 | AED 10, ages 5–24 | None published | Daily 10:00–20:00, last entry 19:00 |
| Crossroads of CivilisationsAl Ghubaiba, a few minutes’ walk | AED 30 | — | Under 10, and disabled visitors plus one carer | Sat–Thu 08:00–20:00 |
| Women’s MuseumAl Ras metro, 700 m | AED 20 | None published | None published | Disputed — see below |
| Coffee MuseumAl Fahidi metro | Free | — | Everyone | 09:00–17:00, closed Friday |
| Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood | No charge stated | — | — | Daily 07:00–20:00 |
| Dubai FrameAl Jafiliya metro | AED 50 | AED 20, ages 3–12 | Under 3; People of Determination and two companions | Daily 08:00–21:00 |
| Museum of the Future | Temporarily closed — “as we prepare for our next chapter”. No date, no prices published | |||
Group rates exist at the two Dubai Culture museums: AED 40 a head at Al Shindagha and AED 20 at Etihad, both for five people or more. Crossroads charges AED 15 for groups of fifteen or more.
The AED 15 that is really AED 50
Al Shindagha Museum’s own Plan Your Visit page publishes “Adults 15 AED”, “Students 5 AED” and “Groups 10 AED”, qualified as “Entry to two houses”. The official ticket channel sells an adult ticket at AED 50 which “grants one day entry to all museum exhibits”. The museum’s own printed brochure agrees with the AED 50.
So the museum expanded its product and raised its price, and left the old figure on the page most visitors land on. We publish the AED 50 because that is what you will be charged, and we are naming the AED 15 so that you recognise it if you find it elsewhere. One pavilion, “Beauty and Adornment”, is marked temporarily closed on the museum’s own map.
Two museums, two official sets of hours
| Museum | Dubai Culture says | The museum says |
|---|---|---|
| Coffee Museum | “Sunday to Thursday 9am to 5pm | Closed on Friday” — which silently omits Saturday | “09:00 AM to 05:00 PM on all days except Friday” — which includes Saturday |
| Women’s Museum | “Sunday to Thursday 10AM-5.30PM | Closed on Friday”, no price | “Daily 10:00 AM : 06:00 PM” and “Admission 20 DHS per person” |
Both pairs are official. If you are planning a Saturday at the Coffee Museum, the difference between the two is the difference between a visit and a closed door.
The museums that no longer have an official page
- Dubai Museum / Al Fahidi Fort — the custodian’s page for it now contains two words, “Coming Soon”. Its old page returns a 404 that redirects to the homepage while still appearing in search results with its original title. It is on neither the museums list nor the heritage sites list. The last dated statement, from February 2026, describes “the final phase of the Al Fahidi Fort’s rehabilitation” and six galleries, with opening “scheduled… in H1 2026”.
- Saruq Al Hadid Archaeology Museum — no page of its own any more. Its former URLs 404. It appears on Al Shindagha’s site map as a facility there, which suggests it has been absorbed. No adult price, hours or status published by the custodian.
- Hatta Heritage Village — the custodian’s page and its guided-tour booking service both return 404, and it is on neither official index. The free-entry hours we carry on the Hatta page come from other official sources and are flagged there as disputed between two of them.
- Coin Museum and Camel Museum — no official custodian publishes hours, price, status or address for either. Everything circulating is aggregator content, so we carry none of it.
Al Fahidi’s neighbourhood is worth the walk regardless, and it is free. The Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding is there and is the only institution in this whole set that publishes a clean adult-and-child price grid: cultural meals at AED 130 to 160 for an adult and AED 65 to 80 for a child aged 7 to 12, free under 7, each running 90 minutes with booking required.
What no Dubai museum publishes
- A photography policy. Not one site in this set publishes whether photography is allowed, or any charge for it.
- Guided tour prices. Etihad publishes tour times — 13:00, 15:00, 16:00 and 17:00 daily — and no price. No museum in Dubai publishes tour languages.
- A UAE national free or discounted category. Nowhere in this set. If you see one asserted, it is unsourced.
- Last entry, except at Al Shindagha and Etihad, both 19:00. Not even Dubai Frame publishes one.
- A weekly closing day, except the Coffee Museum and Women’s Museum (Friday). Al Shindagha and Etihad publish none at all.
Dubai Culture does have a combined fee table on its ticketing service page. It has the right column headers — Description, Individuals Fees, Groups Fees, Students Fees — and every data row is empty. The scaffolding for the document a visitor needs exists and has never been filled in. That, and the two live ticketing hosts of which one still serves an October 2024 calendar, are covered on the stale sources page.
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Common questions
Is Dubai Museum open?
Its custodian's page for it now contains two words, “Coming Soon”. It is absent from the official museums list and the heritage sites list. A February 2026 statement targeted reopening in the first half of 2026; that has passed with nothing published.
How much is Al Shindagha Museum?
AED 50 for an adult at the official ticket channel, AED 20 for ages 5 to 24. Note that the museum's own visitor page still prints AED 15 — a figure 3.3 times below what you will be charged.
Are there free museums in Dubai?
The Coffee Museum publishes free entry, and Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood states no charge. Several museums also admit under-5s, People of Determination and UAE over-60s free.
How much is the Etihad Museum?
AED 25 for an adult and AED 10 for ages 5 to 24, open daily 10:00 to 20:00 with last entry at 19:00.
Can you take photos in Dubai museums?
Not one museum in this set publishes a photography policy, or any charge for photography. If you see one asserted, it is unsourced.