Weather, quality of life, a sense of community: why I left stagnant Britain for Dubai

Telegraph

4 days ago

I first moved to Dubai before it was in vogue to do so. In 2015, I was fresh out of university, a 21-year-old unsure of where adulthood would take me. So, on a whim, I accepted a job at a restaurant in Dubai and boarded a one-way flight for what I initially planned to be one year of life experience living abroad. Instead I have been here for 10 years now.
The Dubai I landed in a decade ago wasn't the same place that saturates the feeds of influencers and reality TV stars today, and where young people from the UK are reportedly fleeing to in their droves. Back then, the place was slower, more spread out, more paperwork-heavy.
But the city has worked hard – and fast – to make life more seamless and digitally-driven. There are plenty of opportunities that cater to the growing number of residents who come from the west to work and settle. There is even a government-backed 'Quality of Life Strategy', released in 2024, that encompasses 200 projects: this aims to turn Dubai into the world's best city to live in by 2033.
So I'm not surprised that so many young people are now turning to Dubai. According to a recent study from the think tank the Adam Smith Institute, 28 per cent of 18-30 year-olds are either planning to quit the UK or have seriously considered emigrating to a foreign country. Many of them are coming to Dubai, and who can blame them? Britain is plagued by stagnant economic wages and inflation; it is practically impossible to buy a property in London unless you have family wealth or work in finance.
While my own surface-level reasons for moving to Dubai ten years ago revolved around safety, sunshine and sun-soaked weekends by the beach, my reasons for staying in the United Arab Emirates are now much stronger.
Living in a city that celebrates success and hard work, I quickly climbed the career ladder and landed a job at a top entertainment magazine. Then, earlier this year, I launched my own business. This process took little over a week thanks to the diverse business license opportunities now available to expats.
One might say that this is all and good, but what about a sense of community? Isn't Dubai a transient place, a city for people who only care about themselves? This is a false impression. With such a large expat population (over 85 per cent, according to government data), there's a powerful sense of community here that makes friendships feel more genuine and deeply rooted.
When I got married last year, to the husband I met eight years before while also chasing his dreams in Dubai, our wedding party was filled with friends from Scotland, South Africa and Singapore. People from all corners of the world who'd been essential support systems through our Dubai years, and whose ambitions and drive to build better lives for themselves mirror our own.
We've now established firm roots in Dubai and, as I write this, my husband and I are beginning our third property renovation project. This time, a villa in the heart of the city that we worked hard and saved for determinedly, which we hope to make our family home.
Sure, living abroad is still hard at times. The pangs of guilt from missing my mum's birthday or my niece's first day of school are feelings all expats must grapple with.
But I'm grateful for the life I've been able to build in Dubai – in terms of better work opportunities and a greater standard of living, it beats living in the UK. And I couldn't imagine living anywhere else.