The rule that applies everywhere
Two questions decide what you need. Who owns the place? Public land (beaches, parks, roads), a government body (Dubai Municipality, Dubai Culture), a master developer (Meraas, Emaar) or a free zone landlord (TECOM). What is the footage for? Your own album, or anything that promotes a business, paid in cash, barter or not at all.
Personal photos without a crew, lights or tripod are fine at every location below unless the venue posts a ban. A commercial shoot in Dubai needs the city filming permit, about AED 520 per application, and under Resolution 50/2014 the commission licenses filming across the emirate, free zones included, after the location owner approves. Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah run their own systems; the differences are in our guide to filming permits in Abu Dhabi and Sharjah.
Everything below was checked on 13 October 2026. Where an owner publishes nothing, we say so and name the secondary source.
Twelve locations at a glance
| Location | Emirate | Owner or authority | Personal photos | Commercial shoot needs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai Marina Walk, JBR beach | Dubai | Public promenade; land owner or master developer for beaches and managed areas | Yes | City permit + land owner's approval (J-Cut, agency) |
| La Mer | Dubai | Meraas (private beachfront district) | Yes | City permit + Meraas + Dubai Municipality, per a casting agency's guide |
| Alserkal Avenue | Dubai, Al Quoz | Alserkal (private arts district) | Yes, phones; galleries set their own rules | City permit + Alserkal management; no public tariff |
| Dubai Design District (d3) | Dubai | TECOM, under Dubai Development Authority | Yes | "Necessary permits" per the d3 FAQ: TECOM approval + city permit |
| Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City | Dubai | TECOM, under Dubai Development Authority | Your own visit, discreetly | TECOM approval + city permit; TECOM rents its spaces for shoots |
| Al Qudra lakes (Al Marmoom) | Dubai | Dubai Municipality, protected area | Yes, in opening hours | City permit + Dubai Municipality NOC |
| Hatta Dam and Hatta Heritage Village | Dubai | Dam area public; Heritage Village is Dubai Culture | Yes | City permit; Dubai Culture NOC for the Heritage Village |
| Al Madam ghost village | Sharjah | Public heritage site promoted by Visit Sharjah; fenced with a guard per a 2026 report | Phones; a July 2026 visitor report says a mirrorless camera was refused | Sharjah filming approval in advance |
| Mleiha National Park | Sharjah | Shurooq, fenced reserve, guided tours only | On the tour | Sharjah filming approval + Shurooq |
| Jebel Jais | Ras Al Khaimah | RAK government; adventure sites run by operators | Yes | RAK Tourism Development Authority, per an RAK producer |
| Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque | Abu Dhabi | Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Centre | Non-professional kit, at photo stops | The Centre's permit + CMA permit, AED 500/day |
| Louvre Abu Dhabi | Abu Dhabi | The museum | Hand-held only | Bans commercial product shoots; publishing needs approval |
The two Abu Dhabi landmarks and Dubai's own landmarks have their own detailed rules in photography rules at Dubai and Abu Dhabi landmarks.
Light, crowds and drones
Crowd levels are our studio's experience on weekdays outside holidays; weekends and public holidays change them. Golden-hour times by month are in golden hour in Dubai.
| Location | Best light | Crowds | Drone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marina Walk, JBR | Blue hour for the towers; sunset on the beach | Busy evenings and weekends | Controlled airspace; licensed operator only |
| La Mer | Sunrise on the beach, sunset over the water | Busy evenings | Licensed operator + Meraas |
| Alserkal Avenue | Overcast-soft in the lanes; any time | Quiet mornings, busy at openings | Licensed operator only |
| d3 | Late afternoon on the canal side | Quiet outside office hours | Licensed operator + TECOM |
| Internet City, Media City | Covered car parks work at any hour; lake side at sunset | Quiet in the car parks and at weekends | Licensed operator + TECOM |
| Al Qudra lakes | Sunrise and the 30 minutes before sunset | Busy Friday–Saturday evenings | Licensed operator + DM NOC |
| Hatta Dam | Early morning, before the kayaks | Busy weekends in winter | Licensed operator only |
| Al Madam ghost village | Late afternoon, before the gate closes | Calm, rarely busy | GCAA-authorised operator; ask Sharjah first |
| Mleiha | Sunset at Fossil Rock on the tour | Tour groups | Ask Shurooq; GCAA rules |
| Jebel Jais | Sunrise above the cloud line in winter | Busy winter weekends | No-fly zone near the zipline, per its operator |
| Grand Mosque | Late afternoon into blue hour | Busy every day | Not without the Centre and GCAA |
| Louvre Abu Dhabi | Mid-day "rain of light" under the dome | Busy weekends | No |
In Dubai, recreational drone flying is restricted and only authorised operators fly; the full chain of GCAA, DCAA and city permit is in our drone filming rules. In Ras Al Khaimah a commercial flight needs a NOC from the RAK Department of Civil Aviation as well.
Dubai Internet City and Media City: the quiet car parks
The covered multi-storey car parks in Dubai Internet City are among the most photogenic quiet spots we know in the city: repeating concrete, clean lines, even shade at noon, and almost no people outside office hours. They suit car shoots, fashion and moody portrait work.
The legal note matters more than the look. Internet City and Media City are private business districts run by TECOM within the Dubai Development Authority's jurisdiction, and Resolution 50/2014 puts free zones under the same filming permit as the rest of Dubai, with the landlord's approval as a condition. So a commercial shoot here means TECOM's written approval plus the city permit, filed before the day. TECOM's venue arm lists its community spaces in Media City, Knowledge Park and d3 as available for photo and film shoots, so asking is the normal route, not a long shot.
Al Madam ghost village: calm, photogenic, and fenced
The buried village near Al Madam in Sharjah, a 1970s housing project now half under the dunes, is promoted by Visit Sharjah to "lovers of adventure, exploration, and photography". In our experience it is calm and rarely busy, even on winter weekends, which makes it one of the easiest places in the UAE to shoot without strangers in the frame.
Check the current rules before you drive an hour out. A visitor guide from July 2026 describes a fence, a guard at the gate, closing at around 18:00, and phone photos allowed while a mirrorless camera was refused. Older guides describe open access, so the site has changed. For anything beyond phone photos, and for every commercial shoot, arrange approval in advance through Sharjah's filming route; the Sharjah Film Commission works through SHAMS. Don't climb on roofs: the structures are old and partly buried.
Desert and mountains
Al Qudra lakes sit in the Al Marmoom reserve. Personal visits are fine during opening hours; a media company needs a Dubai Municipality NOC on top of the city permit. For open dunes for personal shoots, see our desert photoshoot guide.
Hatta is part of Dubai, so the Dubai permit applies to the dam and the town. The Heritage Village is on Dubai Culture's NOC form list of sites.
Mleiha is a fenced national park managed by Shurooq; Fossil Rock and the archaeological sites are visited on guided tours from the Archaeological Centre. Plan any production with Shurooq, not on the day.
Jebel Jais is about two hours' drive from Dubai. Producers working there say permits for Ras Al Khaimah go through the Tourism Development Authority, and adventure sites need the operator's consent. Expect fog and cold in winter.
What nobody tells you
A phone does not make it personal. If the post promotes a business, it is commercial whatever the camera. The fine for filming without a permit in Dubai, as listed by Khaleej Times, is AED 25,000.
"Free entry" is not "free to shoot". Most places on this list charge nothing to walk in. The owner's fee and approval apply only to commercial work, and most owners don't publish a tariff; the legal ceiling for a private place open to the public in Dubai is AED 25,000 a day.
People in the frame need consent. A location approval covers the place, not strangers. See can you photograph people in the UAE.
Some places are off the list on purpose. Airports, government buildings, palaces and military sites are security zones; we leave them out. Malls, Downtown and DIFC have their own processes, covered in filming locations in Dubai and their permits.
How we run a location shoot
We scout, check the owner and the light, file the city permit and the owner's approval, book a licensed drone operator if the brief needs one, and shoot. If you want the location handled for you, see photographer in Dubai or video production in Dubai.
