All Duty Free and You Can't Decide What to Buy? 15 Awesome Items to Buy from Dubai Airport (2019)

Dubai airport is one of the most busiest and important airports in the world. Enjoying a favourable location in the midst of major continents in the world, it is a significant stopover or transit point where most long-distance airlines stop over for refuelling or travellers stop to change flights. Dubai airport also plays an important part in boosting the local economy. Around 90,000 employees run the airport seamlessly. It also has one of the best duty-free sections in the world. Right from branded cigarettes to local dry fruits, Dubai airport has an interesting list of items available for the tourists and some of these items are available exclusively here only.

Apart from the impressive infrastructure and amazing facilities for the world travellers, this busy airport has a whole host of stores offering shopping galore. in fact, Dubai Airport is synonymous with Dubai Duty Free. If the duty free shops aren’t enough to lure you with some exotic chocolates, cigars and liquors, you can seek some local items here for that last minute shopping too. Other Islamic countries do not allow the sale of liquor on their territories but Dubai does and that is also one reason, why the airport’s liquor shops are always crowded. One can find a wide range of latest electronic gadgets and that too tax-free. Other than electronics, there are some interesting items available too which are jotted down below.

You can find branded outlets of all major brands here such as Gucci, Armani, but if you are looking to buy exotic stuff at the best prices and stuff which is only available here, then below we have jotted down 15 items which are worth buying at Dubai Airport. If you really want to shop the best items at Dubai Airport, considering their prices elsewhere in the world, then you need to read the list below.

If you smoke cigarettes and are fond of puffing up some exotic brands then Dubai airport is your go to place. Cigarettes are the most popular items one would seek at a duty-free shop. Any good duty-free shop would compulsorily stock on some of the best branded and exotic cigarettes. There is usually a heavy duty on cigarettes and buying them from a duty-free shop makes so much sense. Travellers departing from DXB- Gates A, B and C or those strolling on the upper floor by Gates D, will find a lot of stores selling premium and budget cigarette brands. Expect to find Gauloises Blondes Filter, Camel Filter, Marlboro Filter and many such brands here at discounted rates.

If the mention of olives makes your mouth water, then you should invest in some premium quality olives available at many of the Mediterranean eateries here. There are some 600 varieties of olives in the world with each type having a distinct flavor and taste. But the world knows them as ‘black’ and ‘green’ only. At Dubai airport, you can get the best varieties of black and green olives. Ocean Basket is a popular South African restaurant chain selling Greek cuisine and impressive fish platters. You can bag in some delicious varieties of olives from here at quite reasonable prices.

Just like cigarettes, expect to find liquor in many stores here. These stores are located around both arrival and departure gates. Le Clos is one outlet at the airport selling premium quality and rare alcoholic beverages. You might have to shell in a bit extra here but with the best quality of liquor, you will also get some expert advice. Expect to find Glen Moray 1988 Rare Vintage Whisky, Charles Heidsieck Rose 1985 Champagne, Moet & Chandon MCIII Cuvee Champagne and many such other brands here. You can also buy your regular brand at the duty-free section here and you will be surprised to find low rates on Chivas, Scotch, Baileys, Grey Goose and many such regular brands. Each person is allowed 4 litres of alcohol from Dubai Airport and this section is always bustling with tourists who want to buy alcohol for friends, family and themselves.

Most tourists travelling back home from Dubai do purchase some souvenirs as memorabilia or giftables. These souvenirs always remind you of your trip to this wonderful place. A stylish store named Gifts from Dubai stocks on some impressive souvenirs of the Burj Khalifa, Burj-Al-Arab, camels and many such others. The camel artefacts available here are crafted from various precious and semi-precious materials and can be invested in for sure. You can find various decorative souvenirs in all price ranges and you can choose your pick according to your budget.

If you have a sweet tooth and haven’t got the chance to taste the famous Arabic sweets of Dubai, then you can get plenty of them here at the Dubai duty-free section. These Arabic sweets include Dellisse, assorted Baklawa, Nadiya-Al-Mealim Arabic sweets, Dellisse pearls and many such items. Although these items are also available in the bazaars of Dubai, you can expect to find premium quality Arabic sweets in better packaging and better pricing at the Dubai Airport.

You cannot leave the airport premises without buying some high-end branded perfumes. The duty-free shops in Dubai Airport stock some of the most amazing perfumes and many tourists buy these for gifting and personal use. Expect to find Dior, Givenchy, Gucci, Lacoste, Salvatore Ferragamo and many other perfumes here. Every fragrance has a sample bottle from which you can try out before buying. Gifts from Dubai store stocks some really good perfumes and some of the brands are available in bottles of different capacities. You can choose to buy a small or big size perfume as per your desire.

One can find a crazy range of chocolates here at the airport. Chocolates are the most common buys at the Dubai Airport and tourists tend to spend their remaining Dirhams on chocolates before they leave this lovely place. You can find all kinds of Arabic, Western chocolates and other types here at the duty-free section. There are plenty of gift boxes for those who want to take something home. Apart from chocolates, you can also try some of the candy bars and jelly candies available here. Expect to find exotic varieties of Toblerone, M&M’s Peanut Butter Chocolates, Al-Nassma Chocolates, Cadbury’s, KitKats and many such famous brands.

Dry fruits not only are light snacks meant to munched upon during transit, but they are also loaded with nutrients. You can find plenty of these healthy munchies here at the duty-free section. Dubai is famous for varieties of premium quality dry fruits and some delightful combinations of nuts, dates, honey and jaggery. You can find impressive range of all kinds of exotic and premium quality dry fruits here at reasonable prices. Do not leave the section without buying a pack of exotic Dubai dates, as they are famous throughout the world for their quality and taste.

Cigars sell like hot cakes at the Dubai Airport. If you have never tried a cigar in your life before, then do try one at the airport here. One can find exotic Cuban, American, Honduran and other types of cigars here at the duty-free section too. You can also find exotic cigars at any of the plenty cigarette stores at the Dubai airport. These cigars are sourced from around the world and cost quite less when compared to their rates in other countries. You will find brands like King Edward Special Tip Cigarillos, Camacho Corojo Figurado, Cohiba Coronas Especiales and many such other brands here.

Makeup kits are often first in the list of anyone travelling to Dubai because of their own personal needs or demands of someone close. Everyone is aware of the high-end makeup brand stores at the Dubai Airport which sell quality makeup at much lesser price. There is a MAC store which stocks a wide range of products from this renowned brand. A Slay Ride Lipstick, Shiny Pretty Things Eye Party Smoky makeup kit and a few others are some of the most common buys at the MAC store here.

Dubai Airport also has some lottery prizes and one can buy lottery tickets from 200 Dirhams to maximum 1000 Dirhams. The prize for a 200 lottery win is a good sports bike, for 500 the prize is a luxury car like Audi, Mercedes or BMW, and for 1000 Dirhams, you get a chance to win 1 million USD. The lotteries conducted here are very genuine and the cash prizes are announced by email and courier services. Spend your remaining currency here with a lottery ticket, if you have nothing else to buy, and you never know, a winner notification might be awaiting you when you get home!

People can also buy gold from Dubai Airport if they have not bought from the Gold Souk or those who are here on transit. Gold is an asset forever and gold available here costs much less than other big cities. You can buy beautiful gold ornaments for your family members from here. You will be surprised by the wide array of gold ornaments on display here and you can also bargain at the shops. The price of gold here is around $30 per gram.

Dubai is quite famous for its spices and while roaming at the Dubai airport, if you get a whiff of the heavily fragrant spices, then do grab some. You can try the traditional Oudh or Bakhoor at the airport. Oudh is fragrant oil obtained from Agarwood resin. You can find the purest versions of this oil here and some other variations of Oudh oil mixed with other floral oils like jasmine and rose. You can also try Oudh fragrance perfume such as Ne’emah and Ajmal. Bakhood is name given to Agarwood chips which can be burned to produce aromatic scents. Many houses in Dubai use Agarwood chips as a great alternative to incense and candles. You can invest in these middle-eastern delights which will remind you of the Dubai culture and tradition for a very long time. These also make excellent gifts for near and dear ones. A bottle of Oudh can cost between AED 1000 to AED 40,000 while Bakhoor will cost you between AED 100 to AED 500.

Pashmina shawls can be really expensive. Real pashminas are made from cashmere that is derived from the hair of a particular breed of goats from South Asia. This cashmere is then blended with 30% silk to produce pashmina fabric which is very soft and smooth. There are many duplicate pashmina shawls available worldwide but if you want to buy some real ones, you can buy them at the Dubai airport. If you want to find out whether the shawl is authentic or not, you can pull the shawl through a ring to find out. If it passes easily, it is authentic. These shawls are also costly and starts from AED 250.

Leaving Dubai without purchasing Arabica coffee? Not happening! Get it at the airport before you leave this wonderful middle-eastern city. Arabica coffee is a legendary item being passed on from generations of coffee farming in the Middle East. You need to develop the taste for Arabic coffee as it is quite different from the one you would have been drinking. Arabic coffee is served in pretty little ‘dallah’ or Arabic coffee pots and you can buy some of these for decorative purposes at the airport. It will cost you approximately AED 20 for a coffee pot and AED 125 per kg for Arabic coffee.