The 18th Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) kicked off on Thursday and until February 3 the city will be chock-a-block with deals.
Seventy malls are participating in the event and 6,000 retailers are offering discounts and promotions.
Festival organisers have linked up with Arabian Automobiles to organise a raffle over the 32 days of the festival. Each day, one winner will drive away with an Infiniti JX 35, an Infiniti G25 and Dh100,000. Raffle tickets cost Dh200 and can be bought at Eppco and Enoc petrol stations, kiosks and malls.
The Italian-themed Mercato mall will run an "Around Europe in 32 Days" promotion giving shoppers discounts at its stores and the opportunity to win prizes. For every Dh200 spent at Mercato, or its Town Centre Jumeirah sister mall, shoppers will receive one raffle ticket for the grand prize draw and the chance to win one of two new Toyota RAV4s.
Visa has been a sponsor of the festival since its inception. This year, its main attraction is a mystery prize contained in a giant box at The Dubai Mall.
Every time they use their Visa card, shoppers can have a stab at guessing the box's contents, which will be kept secret until the end of the festival. There will also be opportunities to win instant prizes and participate in other activities next to the big box throughout the festival.
This year's festival is putting a focus on the Dubai Creek area. Four of the six main destinations are creekside: the Festival Promenade at Dubai Festival City, the Al Seef Street area, the Creek Park and the Heritage and Diving Village. The two other venues are Al Riqqa Street and Downtown Dubai.
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Hertz is offering UAE travellers discounts of as much as 33 per cent on all bookings made between now and January 31. The deal covers locations in more than 100 countries and vehicles can be picked up any time until June 30. Cars in the promotion include Mercedes, BMW and Porsche. Eco-friendly customers can choose from a range of hybrid and electric vehicles. As a bonus, customers can also earn frequent-flyer miles with Emirates Airline and Etihad Airways.