BIGGEST, widest, highest, ritziest, glitziest, sandiest - you name the 'est' and Dubai will claim, probably rightly, that they have it.

And if they don't, they'll rapidly tell you just how they're going to build it.

From the world's tallest building, the Burj Dubai 'Tower of Dubai' skyscraper - currently standing at around 100 floors and due to reach somewhere in the region of 189 - to the world's only seven-star hotel, the Burj Al Arab, Dubai is hell-bent on selling itself as the middle eastern equivalent to Las Vegas, minus the tacky slot machines and gambling, of course.

The Emirates' main city is the height of glamour with more five-star hotels and upscale restaurants packed into the Persian Gulf than virtually any other holiday destination on earth - which is exactly what the country is aiming for. None of your riff-raff holiday hooligans here - if you're looking for pure luxury, have packed a fat wallet and don't mind the vaguely Armageddon sight of the skeletons of half-built skyscrapers, then Dubai is just what you're after.

It's tempting to say the place will be a fabulous destination in a couple of years, when the construction has calmed and the occasional sight of palm trees lying flat on their sides in the blazing sun waiting to be planted, look like they've always been there;

but that wouldn't be doing the place justice.

If the sight of so much building work as you speed along Sheikh Zayed Road from the airport puts you off, it will be forgotten as soon as the taxi slopes up the avenue, lined with gold horses, of the magnificent Madinat Jumeirah.

Traditional Arabian-dressed hosts serve dates in the lobby as they whisk away your bags. Follow that with a few cocktails or dinner in the famous Buddha Bar at Grosvenor House, further into Jumeirah, or in trendy celebrity haunt Bar 44 at the top of the building.

By the time you struggle out on your balcony to watch the sun rise over the Arabian Gulf next morning and hear the spine-tingling call to prayer, that dull thrum from machinery working 24/7 to finish the infamous 'Palm Island' will be a distant memory. Aside from the gastronomic delights, the luxury spas and the gulf 's sun, sea and sand, Dubai is sparking a new kind of tourism, that of the property voyeur.

For the property-obsessed Irish who take pride in counting the cranes on Dublin's skyscape, this city will be a vision of what its like to play in the big league, the really big league. Ten percent of the world's cranes are said to be in Dubai at the moment and the building work is on a fantasy scale.

On your way to dinner stroll up a few blocks from the beach towards the new Jumeirah Beach Residence and marvel at the dozens of skyscrapers all nearing completion and the hordes of buses lined up every evening waiting to take the army of mostly South Asian construction workers back to their camps. For the sheer scale of opportunity and excess you'll see nothing like Dubai anywhere else on earth.

MUST SEES ANDDOS Burj Al Arab The renowned seven-star Burj Al Arab is, in fact, a five-star hotel, bestowed with the accolade of seven stars by an enraptured journalist who thought its service so much better than your average five-star joint that it needed two further luminaries. But don't let that put you off - with it's over-the-top once-ina-lifetime atmosphere, the plaudits have more than justifiably stuck.

Skiing In a city capable of whipping up islands out of the sea the way others build office blocks, skiing in a mall should barely raise an eyebrow. For Dubai's residents it doesn't any more but your average tourist is still awestruck to find, plonked in the middle of what looks like the average upscale American mall, a huge capsule with a snowy mountain and skiers careering down it - particularly given that this is a desert country.

In fact it has proven so popular since it opened over a year ago that a second slope is planned for the Dubailand sports centre, due to open in 2008.

Shopping If you go to Dubai around Christmas or new year you'll be smack bang in the middle of Dubai Shopping Festival, when many stores slash their prices by half. Though a visit in late January didn't unearth too many bargains, with every store from Harvey Nichols to Debenhams to Starbucks in the Kempinski Mall of the Emirates, even the most hardcore shoppers won't be disappointed.

The Dubai Mall, which, of course, will be the world's 'largest', is set to open soon complete with an Armani hotel and an enormous Tiffany's and Cartier.

Jumeirah Mosque Tour Jumeirah Mosque allows tourists visit for a tour at 10am on Thursday mornings. The tour is organised by the non-profit Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding, which aims to break down the barriers between the many different cultural groups in Dubai (80% are ex-pats) and promote a better understanding of Islam.

Women must wear long skirts or trousers, long sleeves and a scarf to cover their heads.

Men must wear trousers and a shirt or Tshirt. Visitors must also remove their shoes before entering but photography is permitted.

Desert Safari While it might conjure up images of large game, the wildest animals you're likely to see on a Dubai desert safari are the faces of your fellow passengers as your jeep slides precariously down steep sand dunes. The area around Dubai is proper desert - none of your scrub brush tumbleweed here - and if you're bringing children on holiday this will be particularly popular.

After skimming around the dunes for an hour or so you'll be brought to a Bedouin camp for some henna tattoos, a slap-up dinner and belly dancing. Don't be disappointed that the Bedouins all live in villas these days and the 'camp' is more like a replica.

Nakheel sales office It might seem like an odd place to visit, particularly if you're not in the market to purchase a chunk of the manmade erection of islands known as 'The World' or one of the 2,500 villas on the soon-to-be-completed palm Jumeirah that Nakheel is developing. (Sorry, Ireland and Thailand have already been bought by an Irish developer. ) But to grasp the sheer scale and engineering feats of the glamorous projects underway, and the even larger ones planned, a trip to the Nakheel or Emaar sales hubs - the two companies responsible for some of the country's largest and most dramatic building projects - is fascinating.

Having your picture taken beside the scale models and watching the progress photos really is like being in a modern museum of construction.

Food Pack a thick wallet and an empty stomach and sample some of the 450plus upmarket restaurants in Dubai's luxury hotels.

With Gordon Ramsey's Verre at the Hilton, Viktor Stampfer at the RitzCarlton, John Wood at the Burj Al Arab and a host of celebrity chefs about to open restaurants there, you'll have plenty of choice.

For somewhere more local there's Shahrzad at the Hyatt Regency hotel.

Also try their fabulous lunchtime buffet in the revolving restaurant at the top of the building.

Note that only hotel restaurants are licensed to sell alcohol so if you decide to pop into a street caf� you won't be enjoying an afternoon beer.

Gold Souk All that glitters in Dubai really is gold.

Head to the Gold Souk in Deira, which has 320 different units in narrow streets with windows that sparkle from the sheer volume they stock. You can even buy 24-carat bars of the stuff here. But remember: bargain, bargain, bargain.

You're usually expected to halve the starting price the vendor offers and then settle somewhere around three quarters.

GETTING THERE If you're going on an all-out luxury holiday, fly to Heathrow and treat yourself to a Virgin Upperclass fare. Prices start from �2,000 return in March. Aer Lingus flies every other day and prices in March start at �149 each way, not including taxes.