They've showed me a Villa in Jumeirah during the interview as well and when I joined three months later everyone was being put into temporary housing... For 9 months! And then put way into the desert. Yeah it depends... ;)

So, yes, best would be to just come over, enjoy company housing for a while, get to know Dubai and then make an informed decision.

We've spent a few years and then opted out and are super happy. But that's us, others have stayed in and are happy too. But then we didn't do it for the money and we don't need a four-bed villa.

For maximum QoL it's probably good to ask for accommodation in Umm Suqeim or Jumeirah (Villas only) and for the best villas (But quite a bit out of town) for Silicon Oasis or Layan.

Locations for apartments are all good except 21st Century, those apartments are very dark and small. Preferably the one's on Sheik Zayed Rd. Millennium used to be a bit off the path but now it's getting much better with a lot of shops and restaurants opening in Executive Towers.

Good luck!

final words..
 

Of course. as a wife, you know we like to have the final word so let me make this brief as you roll your eyes...

1. Thank you for the private messages and I've finally had time to respond.

2. My original post was NOT to try and advertise. If so, I would have dropped my phone number and company details. Whether or not you want to believe it, I was honestly ( at the advice of the 2 EK pilots who I met with that day) let you guys know that EK has been in meetings with an agency about moving some guys here because they have found out that there are a few EK pilots living here already. I promise you, it was with only good intentions.. because its nice to see guys be able to get the difference in the rent and pocket it themselves.

3. GLF.. its not far from you, right off the coast. Give me a call and come have a drink. Although.. I've seen the hottie that is occupying your time and she's gorgeous! Do you even leave the house ? :)

4. If you are new to EK.. like i said previously, DO NOT move down to UAQ as you do need to live close to your new job, close to amenities that are westernized because you won't know how to get around let alone find anything that you need and your children need to be close to surroundings that are closer to what they left behind. My suggestion to move here should have included that statement. If I had moved here the first time I arrived in the UAE, I would have went back home after 1 month and we moved to Al Ain after our arrival LOL.

5. Please remember that the majority of posters on this thread are aviator families living away from our families, the lives we know, the environment we once knew and more often than not, our friends here become our families, So please, even if you feel I'm trying to advertise on here, give me a break! I'm an aviators wife who works out here. In fire/ems, back home where I am a paramedic, we often , as a professional courtesy, give our business to our brothers/sisters for services we need that range anywhere from heating and a/c to landscaping to even real estate sales and leasing, I would hope living 8500 miles away, and being a pilots wife, we can do the same here. I'm sure out there some of your spouses may have been self employed, artistically creative or have a trade offering somethign they specialize in where the opportunity to gain business would mean the world to them if it came from another aviator family. I'm a wife who doesn't sit around playing Jumeirah Jane while my man flies in less than desirable circumstances and I have to be his co-pilot when it comes to finances. So why not be supportive ?

nuff said.....

PS. I have a new development in the Caymans if interested :E