# cheep booze??



## paulg0170 (Oct 20, 2008)

Hi, im new to the forum and will be arriving in dubai in jan. I also enjoy a drink. I understand totally about private purchasing, but where are the cheapest places and whats the price. Last week i bought a litre bottle of smirnoff from tescos for 8 quid and a 4 pack of fosters for 2.50. whats the price in dubai??


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## Elphaba (Jan 24, 2008)

Firstly, you should quote all figures in Dirhams, as not everyone here is familiar with Sterling, nor are they all from the UK.

Alcohol her is generally not cheap as Dubai imposes a 30% tax. in Duty Free a known-brand litre bottle of spirits starts at Dhs 55 with similar prices at the tax-free shops in certain other emirates. The booze shops here are more expensive.

Note however, that you require a licence to buy alcohol in Dubai or to keep it in your house.


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## crazymazy1980 (Aug 2, 2008)

paulg0170 said:


> Hi, im new to the forum and will be arriving in dubai in jan. I also enjoy a drink. I understand totally about private purchasing, but where are the cheapest places and whats the price. Last week i bought a litre bottle of smirnoff from tescos for 8 quid and a 4 pack of fosters for 2.50. whats the price in dubai??


These were the prices of a few items I bought recently at MOE MMI:

Pack of 24 stubby budweiser cans 125AED
Bacardi Breezers 8.50AED each
75cl Absolut Vodka 77AED
Bottle of Rose (not sure what brand, it wasn't for me) 27AED

Then add 30% tax at the till, so the Vodka comes out to be GBP16.74 - Not cheap!!

There are places cheaper such as Barracuda in Um Al-Quwain but it involves a drive through Sharja which is a dry emirate and if the police catch you... 

Also you need to be aware that to buy you need a liquor licence and that means having your name on the tenancy agreement so if you flat-share you won't be able to get one if you're not the name on the lease.

HTH


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## Andy Capp (Oct 5, 2008)

Good advice from crazy. There's also the hole in the wall in Ajman (walking distance for me) which is a highly amusing experience, it literally is a hole in the wall - well 3 actually. A 5 litre box of plonk is AED70, cans are aed5 each, branded spirits are 45 or thereabouts. It's on the corniche near the kempinski, just after the Ajman beach hotel, in a construction site. It really is an experience that I heartily recommend to everyone, who wants the MMI/A&E experience when you can have the frontier town feeling. No tax either.


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## ACoz2000 (Sep 15, 2008)

It is advisable to buy as much as you can at the arrivals in the airport! At least it will see you through until you find out where you can buy stuff and get a license sorted out, there is a shop in Abu Dhabi off airport road where you dont even need a license (Paying cash) cheapest beer there is called Kaiser!!! 85 Dhs a slab of 24 big cans!! Whehey thats about 14.19 GBP = 59p a can!!! 4 pack for 2.36!!!! Bargain! 5.5% feel a bit bloated after 15 cans mind..


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## hari (Jul 12, 2008)

ACoz2000 said:


> It is advisable to buy as much as you can at the arrivals in the airport! At least it will see you through until you find out where you can buy stuff and get a license sorted out, there is a shop in Abu Dhabi off airport road where you dont even need a license (Paying cash) cheapest beer there is called Kaiser!!! 85 Dhs a slab of 24 big cans!! Whehey thats about 14.19 GBP = 59p a can!!! 4 pack for 2.36!!!! Bargain! 5.5% feel a bit bloated after 15 cans mind..


The shop in Abudhabi is selling illegally to those without licence, at their own risk( Many shops do it in Abudhabi and Dubai). If police check your vehicle and find alcohol then you will need to show the licence.


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## ACoz2000 (Sep 15, 2008)

Nice work Sherlock, thats why I implied you pay cash... and dont need a license.. Of course there is a danger of being caught but whats wrong with that... I lived in Abu Dhabi 5 years and never got asked never heared of any house raids and other stories.... as long as you buy and go about you way discreetly you have no problem! If you buy and act the goat you deserve to get caught!


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## mazdaRX8 (Jul 13, 2008)

So do they have Absinthe there? I know bubbles said they had it at MMI, and it goes for 200 dhs inclusive of tax. Just wanna double check if the cheaper places, or Abu Dhabi has it.


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## crazymazy1980 (Aug 2, 2008)

mazdaRX8 said:


> So do they have Absinthe there? I know bubbles said they had it at MMI, and it goes for 200 dhs inclusive of tax. Just wanna double check if the cheaper places, or Abu Dhabi has it.


Why oh why would you want to drink that stuff - it's lethal!!


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## Maz25 (Jul 6, 2008)

crazymazy1980 said:


> Why oh why would you want to drink that stuff - it's lethal!!


Very true! I only had a sip of the stuff and it felt like there was a blazing inferno down my throat!

Crazy, what is it with you and alcohol!!! You seem to know everything that there is to know about the stuff! I feel sorry for your liver - do you have one!!


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## crazymazy1980 (Aug 2, 2008)

Maz25 said:


> Very true! I only had a sip of the stuff and it felt like there was a blazing inferno down my throat!
> 
> Crazy, what is it with you and alcohol!!! You seem to know everything that there is to know about the stuff! I feel sorry for your liver - do you have one!!


Nothing wrong with having an acitive social life - naturally I drink responsibly.


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## Maz25 (Jul 6, 2008)

crazymazy1980 said:


> Nothing wrong with having an acitive social life - naturally I drink responsibly.


You mean you drink until your brain loses communication with your legs but you leave enough brain cells alive to be able to tell the taxi driver where you live! 

That's the bit that I find puzzling as well - how do you always manage to get home!!!


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## crazymazy1980 (Aug 2, 2008)

Maz25 said:


> That's the bit that I find puzzling as well - how do you always manage to get home!!!


Crazymazy's Drunken Compass (patent pending)


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## Pasanada (Feb 5, 2008)

There is an "Off Licence" in RAK where a licence isn't required, there is no tax charged and you can use your Debit/Credit card to pay. 

I believe there is a back road that avoids going through Sharjah and thus avoiding potential problems with the Police.

Not that I know of people doing such a thing........ahem.....


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