Dubai has dengue mosquitoes now, and they're busiest in the cooler months.
After the April 2024 floods, dengue spread locally in Dubai, and a year-long survey found the dengue mosquito across the city and the virus in mosquitoes near the main airport. Bites still tend to be uncommon at beach resorts, so a daytime repellent habit for parks and gardens and ankle cover on the sand at dusk handle most trips.
Yes, and more than there used to be. Aedes aegypti, the day-biting mosquito that spreads dengue, is now established across Dubai, and dengue spread locally after the heavy rains of April 2024. There is no malaria, bites tend to be uncommon at beach resorts, and the mosquitoes are most numerous from November to March, the cooler months when most visitors come.
Dengue after the April 2024 floods
Heavy rain flooded Dubai in April 2024. That month, health authorities told the Associated Press that locally transmitted dengue had been documented since 2023, though they released no case counts, so the size of the outbreak isn't known. A report published in August 2026 in the CDC's Emerging Infectious Diseases journal describes the rise in dengue after the rain, including locally acquired cases, and a mosquito survey that began in Dubai on June 20, 2024 and ran for a year.
The survey found Aedes aegypti throughout the city, 1,598 of the 3,743 mosquitoes trapped, mostly at labor camps, construction sites and green spaces, away from the main tourist areas. Dengue virus turned up in 5 of 151 pooled mosquito samples: type 2 near the main Dubai airport in late June 2024, and types 1 and 2 in the Al Hebiah 5 district from mid-November to mid-December 2024, while a type 2 outbreak was under way in people. The survey found no chikungunya or Zika. The first recent record of the species in Dubai dates to May 2016.
The CDC's UAE page doesn't list dengue, and there is no CDC travel notice. For a visitor, that adds up to a light daytime routine. Aedes bites by day, with peaks after sunrise and in the late afternoon, so put repellent on over sunscreen before a morning in a park, a garden villa or anywhere near standing water, and again before sunset. Large hotel grounds are sprayed, and guests there tend to report fewer problems. Our dengue & Zika routine has the full schedule.
Winter is Dubai's mosquito season
Dubai's mosquito calendar runs opposite to what many travelers expect. The survey found the fewest mosquitoes in the summer months, and forum posters also say mosquitoes are more common in winter. The November–March high season is when they're most numerous, and the 2024 virus finds came in late June and again from mid-November to mid-December. Heavy rain drives surges, so the weeks after one of Dubai's rare downpours are the worst time of all. June to September has the fewest mosquitoes, along with extreme heat.
Beaches, desert camps and sand flies
Forum posters often blame sand flies, more than mosquitoes, for clusters of itchy bites on the beach and on desert sand around dusk and dawn. Dry desert has few mosquitoes. For a desert safari or a camp out toward Liwa, spray your ankles and lower legs before sunset and wear light long pants for the evening. Our sand fly guide explains the beach biters. On the same trip, keep your distance from camels and livestock, since the CDC's UAE page lists MERS, which may spread to people from camels, and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, spread by ticks.
Where you're going
Here is how the main stops compare.
Dubai
The 2024 outbreak was here, with dengue virus found in mosquitoes near the main airport and in the Al Hebiah 5 district. Most of the dengue mosquitoes turned up at labor camps, construction sites and green spaces, and beach resorts tend to report few bites.
Abu Dhabi
No dengue figures single out Abu Dhabi, since the 2024 evidence comes from Dubai. Bites tend to be few, and repellent for an evening in a park or by the water is enough.
Desert camps & safaris
Dry desert has few mosquitoes, and sand flies at dusk are the usual complaint. Cover ankles and legs at sunset, and skip close contact with camels and livestock.
Flying on to the Maldives? Dubai is a common stopover, and our Maldives briefing covers the resort-versus-local-island question there.
The Dubai kit
- Picaridin 20% travel sprays: odorless in the heat and layers over sunscreen for a day in the parks or a garden villa. The 3.4 oz size rides in a carry-on, which helps on a Maldives stopover too.
- Light long pants or socks for a desert camp evening, when the sand flies come out.
Two last notes. A yellow fever certificate matters only if you arrive from a country with yellow fever risk, including layovers of more than 12 hours in one; the FAQ below has the details. And any fever during or after your trip means a doctor visit, and you tell them you were in Dubai. That includes a fever with headache, rash or body aches.
Traveler questions
Is there dengue in Dubai?
There was in 2024. Health authorities told the Associated Press that locally transmitted cases had been documented since 2023, and after the April 2024 floods dengue rose, with the virus found in mosquitoes near the main airport in late June and in the Al Hebiah 5 district in November and December. No official case counts were released, and the mosquito survey ended in mid-2025. The CDC's UAE page doesn't list dengue. The mosquito that spreads it bites by day, so wear repellent in parks and gardens in daylight as well as at dusk.
When are mosquitoes worst in Dubai?
In the cooler months, November to March, and in the weeks after heavy rain. A year-long survey found the fewest mosquitoes in summer, and forum posters also say they're more common in winter. Even then, bites tend to be uncommon at beach resorts and on sprayed hotel grounds.
Do I need malaria pills or a yellow fever vaccine for the UAE?
The CDC lists no malaria for the UAE and recommends no malaria medicine. The Dubai survey did find small numbers of Anopheles stephensi, an invasive malaria mosquito, in peri-urban areas with standing water, and none carried malaria parasites. The CDC doesn't recommend the yellow fever vaccine, and you don't need proof when you fly in directly from the US. The UAE does require it from travelers 9 months or older arriving from a country with yellow fever risk, including airport transits or layovers of more than 12 hours in one. If Dubai comes after a trip like that, see a travel clinic 4–6 weeks before departure.
What bites at a Dubai desert camp?
Mostly sand flies around dusk and dawn, going by forum threads. Dry desert has few mosquitoes. Spray your ankles and legs before sunset and wear light long pants for the evening. The CDC's UAE page also lists MERS, which may spread to people from camels, and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, spread by ticks, so skip close contact with camels and livestock.
Sources
Health authorities, surveillance reports and news coverage of official bulletins used for this briefing, last checked October 2026. Traveler reports are linked where they appear. This page summarizes public-health guidance and is not medical advice.