Every leader has an official city — the one in the brochures. And every leader has a real one: the places his own life returns to. For His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, the real city is unusually visible, because he photographs it, rides it, dives it and posts it. Read his public world as a map, and a different Dubai emerges — Fazza’s Dubai.
This is not a list of secret spots. It is a tour of the landscapes that made him: the desert, the sea, the old creek-side city and the future-facing landmarks of his own agenda — the places where his life and his leadership meet.
The Desert: First Country
Before any skyline, there is the desert. The dunes beyond the city are the Crown Prince’s first country: the land of the endurance rides, the falconry mornings, the dawn light his camera loves. The Al Qudra desert — where cyclists roll out at sunrise on dedicated tracks — captures the blend perfectly: heritage landscape, modern sporting infrastructure, and a population invited to share both. When residents picture Fazza at peace, they picture him here, in the sand his ancestors crossed.
The Sea: The Family Element
Turn toward the water and the map deepens. The Gulf is his second landscape: free diving over the reefs, spearfishing in the blue, the pearl-diving inheritance of old Dubai carried in his own lungs. Off this coast now grows Dubai Reef, his vast marine conservation project — the favourite element, given a future. And at the city’s heart the Creek still runs: the harbour where his family’s Dubai began, where abras cross as they have for generations, the old city of Deira and Bur Dubai keeping the modern one honest about its origins.
📸 Follow @dxbtalkofficial on Instagram for daily Dubai in photos →
The Future Landmarks: His Signature on the Skyline
Then there is the Dubai he is building: the Museum of the Future on Sheikh Zayed Road, showroom of the foundation ecosystem he leads; the districts rising under the D33 agenda his council drives; the paperless, app-first government that has no address at all and is everywhere. A tour of Fazza’s Dubai ends, fittingly, in places that do not fully exist yet — the metaverse-era, reef-growing, space-reaching city his portfolio is assembling.
Walk this map and you understand the man better than any résumé allows: rooted in sand and sea, fluent in the old city’s memory, and building — visibly, daily — the next version of the only home he has ever had.
Frequently Asked Questions
What places define Sheikh Hamdan’s Dubai?
The desert (endurance, falconry, Al Qudra), the Gulf and its reefs (diving, Dubai Reef), the historic Creek districts, and the future landmarks of his agenda such as the Museum of the Future.
Is Al Qudra part of his world?
Yes — the desert cycling culture around Al Qudra reflects his sporting Dubai: heritage landscape meeting modern infrastructure, open to all.
Why does the sea feature so strongly?
Dubai was founded on the Gulf — pearl diving built the old city. His free diving and the Dubai Reef project continue that bond as practice and protection.
What about the historic city?
The Creek, Deira and Bur Dubai are the family’s original Dubai — the trading harbour world the Al Maktoums have led since 1833.
Where is his Dubai heading?
Toward the future landmarks of his portfolio: the digital economy, the future foundation’s work, Dubai Reef and the astronaut generation’s horizons.
