Global A-list celebrities courting the UAE has now become commonplace
Let's face it, celebrity spotting in the UAE is hardly a major challenge anymore.
As the palm islands develop and fancy hotel hideaways spring up, more and more big names and faces are heading here to enjoy the luxury which goes hand-in-hand with the trip.
But it's not just a getaway. Footballers and pop stars have reportedly bought property and some have even made their homes in this part of the world.
Over the years, British footballer David Beckham and his wife, Spice Girl Victoria, have been spotted walking out of Dubai hotels, joining a list of A-list celebrities such as Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Wayne Rooney and girlfriend Coleen, Tiger Woods, Kanye West and Richard Branson, among others.
Former F1 champion Michael Schumacher was even spotted unwinding on the shorelines of Dubai and current F1 champ Kimi Raikkonen is reported to have popped over to the Dubai Autodrome between grand prix events during the year's nail-biting season.
Annual events attract the biggest star-lineups including the Dubai Tennis Championships, Dubai World Cup - the world's richest horserace - the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) and music festivals such as Desert Rock and Rhythm.
The unique palm islands also lure celebrities out of the woodwork with a number of big names from the worlds of sport, music and business reportedly having signed on the dotted line.
Over the past six years, stars including Robbie Williams, footballers David Beckham and Michael Owen, business tycoon Richard Branson and singer Rod Stewart are all said to have purchased luxury villas on either The Palm or World projects owned by Nakheel.
The Dubai Tennis Championships has welcomed stars from the tennis world and encouraged them to get out and about. Rafael Nadal enjoyed a day at Wild Wadi, while female star Martina Hingis went a step further, taking part in a game of polo at the Arabian Ranches Polo Club.
Other sport stars have also made the most of the amazing variety of landmarks and resources available with Tiger Woods famously hitting a golf ball from the top of Dubai's landmark building, the Burj Al Arab - a location which was also the spot for a tennis match between Andre Agassi and Roger Federer.
And the Williams sisters have both been spotted around the malls in Dubai and Abu Dhabi as they enjoyed some time out between games.
But it's not just sports stars who head here.
Naomi Campbell has crazy parties in Dubai once in awhile, the most famous being her 36th birthday bash at the Burj Al Arab. It's believed the supermodel held an incredible three-day party, renting 18 floors of the seven-star hotel.
Those reputedly on her guest-list, according Britain's The Sun newspaper, were the Beckhams as well as supermodels Eva Herzigova and Linda Evangelista.
But her party hit a sour note when one of her guests, music producer Dallas Austin, was arrested and held in a Dubai prison for more than a month on drug charges.
Austin, who has worked with Gwen Stefani, Madonna and P!nk to name a few, was eventually pardoned and returned to the US.
The movie world has also played its part with many celebs heading to the UAE to either shoot or research their latest films.
Both the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) and the Middle East International Film Festival (MEIFF), which held its inaugural event in October, have brought their fair share of stars to the country.
Laurence Fishburne, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Richard Gere, Harvey Weinstein, Paul Haggis, Frances Fisher, Egyptian actor Omar Sharif, renowned Egyptian comedian Adel Imam, Morgan Freeman, Shah Rukh Khan and many more have trod the red carpet at the festivals.
Big names such as George Clooney and Matt Damon have filmed movies here and Robert Redford attended a Zayed University event in 2006.
The influx of celebs is not a recent phenomenon. Bruce Willis and the team behind Planet Hollywood came to Dubai to open the restaurant about a decade ago at Wafi City.
And the late Syrian producer Mustafa Al Akkad - who produced a historic film called Al Risala, the Arabic version of The Message - was often spotted around Dubai and other locations in the UAE.
With a growing expat community, the music industry noticed a gap in the UAE's market for concerts and has done something about it.
Among the big names to have played in Dubai are Bryan Adams, Elton John, Craig David, Lionel Richie, Destiny's Child, Robbie Williams, Shakira, Joss Stone, Kanye West and the Black Eyed Peas. Not to mention old favourites from Marti Pellow to Paul Young.
Sir Bob Geldof's concert at The Irish Village was a sell-out last year.
The late Luciano Pavarotti met His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, when he was here for a one-day concert at the Madinat Jumeirah as part of his farewell world tour.
José Carreras has also visited. Arab stars, too, love to visit the UAE. Lebanese singers Fairouz, Majida al Roumy and Haifa Wehbe have performed across the emirates as has famous Syrian musician and vocalist Sabah Fakhry.
Singer Julia Boutrous, from Lebanon, now lives in Dubai and is married to the head of the American University of Dubai while her compatriot, singer Diana Haddad has also lived in the city.
Jermaine Jackson comes here now and then on private visits and his controversial brother Michael has been spotted too.
The trend shows no signs of stopping. Justin Timberlake makes his way to Abu Dhabi for a concert at the Emirates Palace Hotel on December 6.
