Take note if you’re heading out this week…

A circular issued by Dubai Tourism and the Government of Dubai has announced a dry night coming up in Dubai this week.

On the occasion of Hijri New Year holiday for the year 1442, there will be no entertainment or parties between Wednesday August 19 at 6.30pm and Thursday August 20 at 7.30pm.

This includes a ban on live music, performers, entertainers and alcohol. Dry nights are usually linked to a particular Islamic holiday, this time it will be in respect of the Islamic New Year’s Day holiday, which falls on Sunday August 23.

While the dry night is observed, no alcohol will be displayed in bars or restaurants and some outlets might remain closed for the entire period. We recommend to call ahead if you’re going out to eat during this time.

UAE residents will be treated to a three-day weekend for both the public and private sectors in honour of the event, with residents returning to work on Monday August 24.

After this weekend, we still have two more long weekends coming up for the rest of 2020. One is scheduled for Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) birthday which will fall on Thursday October 29.

The final long weekend of the year combines UAE National Day and Commemoration Day, formerly referred to as Martyr’s Day. This is likely to be an extended long-day weekend, but as always we’ll let you know as soon as we receive an official announcement.

Image: Getty