Skydiving in Dubai: Palm or Desert, Prices and How to Book

For skydiving in Dubai, Skydive Dubai runs two dropzones, and the price gap between them is AED 550 on the standard photo and video package (AED 300 without media). One is the photograph everybody recognises. The other, the Desert Campus, is listed as temporarily closed on Skydive Dubai’s contact page in September 2026. Here is what each costs, what is included, and where people pay more than they need to.

What it costs

Skydive Dubai’s contact page gives the Palm hours as 07:00 to 11:00, but Visit Dubai’s booking page says operations start at 09:00, so go by the arrival time in your confirmation email.

Palm or Desert, honestly

The Palm is the one you have seen. You exit over Palm Jumeirah with the fronds laid out below and the skyline behind, and Skydive Dubai also lists the World Islands, Ain Dubai and the Burj Al Arab among the sights. The photographs are genuinely extraordinary. That is what the extra AED 550 buys on the standard package (AED 300 if you skip the media), and for most people making a once-in-a-lifetime jump it is the right call.

The Desert Campus drops you over dunes. It is cheaper, and Skydive Dubai publishes the same figures for both sites: freefall from up to 13,000 ft at a top speed of 193 km/h. If you are jumping for the sensation rather than the photograph, it is the better value. The catch is that Skydive Dubai’s contact page lists the Desert Campus as temporarily closed (September 2026), so check it is operating before you plan around it.

What is included

Every tandem at both dropzones comes with a full briefing, the equipment, a trained tandem instructor and medical insurance. The standard package adds photographs and an edited video filmed by a separate camera flyer, delivered by email within 48 hours. A jump without media is cheaper, but it has to be booked through the reservations team.

Two extras are sold only on top of the standard package, at both sites: a one-minute Instagram highlight reel for AED 150, and selfie-view footage from a camera on your instructor’s wrist for AED 250.

Watch the headline price: the AED 2,199 “from” price at the Palm is the jump without media. The standard package with photos and video is AED 2,749 at the Palm and AED 2,199 at the Desert Campus, so the same figure buys different things at the two sites.

Booking without paying extra

Book online, in advance, through Skydive Dubai’s live booking calendar: that avoids the AED 300 walk-in fee and the AED 700 priority fee. Change or cancel at least 24 hours ahead, because later changes carry a penalty equal to the cost of the jump. With that notice, a cancellation by email gets a full refund, and a Palm Dropzone tandem payment stays valid for 12 months. Groups have to reschedule at least 72 hours ahead.

What the day actually looks like

1. ArrivalCheck in and paperworkThe time in your confirmation email is your arrival time, not your jump time. Expect a weigh-in in your shoes and clothes, the waiver, and a wait. Skydive Dubai asks you to plan three to four hours from check-in to the end of your skydive, and longer if the weather causes delays.
2. BriefingSafety briefingA full briefing from your tandem instructor on body position for the exit, then a pre-jump interview with your camera flyer if you booked media. You are not required to do anything complicated.
3. The aircraftClimb to altitudeAfter a safety check on the runway, the climb takes about 20 minutes, which is the part nobody warns you feels long.
4. FreefallUp to about 60 secondsFrom up to 13,000 ft, at a top speed of about 193 km/h. Faster and less falling-sensation than people expect. Loud, and over quickly.
5. CanopyUp to about five minutesThe quiet part, and where the view actually registers. This is what people remember.
6. AfterMedia within 48 hoursIf you booked the standard package, photos and edited video arrive by email.

If you are insuring the trip, note that Skydive Dubai’s tandem prices already include medical insurance for the jump, but basic UAE travel policies generally exclude skydiving and need a specialist adventure add-on, bought before you travel. Our travel insurance guide covers which exclusions to check.

Who cannot jump, and what to do instead

Tandem skydiving has real restrictions, and finding out at the dropzone costs you the full price: Skydive Dubai does not refund jumpers who fail its age, weight or BMI requirements.

• Weight and BMI limits: women 90 kg or less with a BMI of 27.5 or less, men 100 kg or less with a BMI of 30.0 or less, weighed in shoes and clothes at check-in.
• Medical conditions such as heart or lung disease, high blood pressure, diabetes or epilepsy (and any past or present medical condition) need a Declaration of Fitness form signed and stamped by a doctor, and Skydive Dubai strongly advises against skydiving while pregnant.
• Age: 18 to 75 on the day of the jump, and from 70 you need a Declaration of Fitness form signed and stamped by a doctor.
• Scuba diving, alcohol or drugs in the 24 hours before your jump. Skydive Dubai asks you to avoid all three, and if you cannot jump because you dived within 24 hours or are under the influence, there is no refund.

If any of those rule you out, try the indoor wind tunnel. Inflight Dubai, Skydive Dubai’s tunnel, starts at AED 240, a fraction of a tandem, and gives you the freefall sensation with far fewer restrictions. Flyers must be at least 3, under-18s need a parent’s or guardian’s consent, the weight limit depends on height and build, and you cannot fly if pregnant or with a dislocated shoulder. It is on the Al Ain-Dubai Road (E66) in Margham and, according to the contact page, opens Wednesday to Sunday from 15:00 to 23:00. It is genuinely enjoyable rather than a consolation prize.

For the view without the jump, look at a helicopter tour over the Palm. Skydive Dubai’s own gyrocopter flight along the Dubai Marina coastline is listed as temporarily closed.

Practical details nobody mentions

• What to wear. Trainers or other lace-up sports shoes with no buckles or studs, and clothes you can move in. Shorts must cover the thighs so the harness fits. Sandals, boots, heeled or platform shoes, low-cut, sleeveless or crop tops, collared shirts and swimwear are not allowed, and white or light-coloured clothes are best avoided because they get dirty.
• Glasses. Prescription glasses and contact lenses are fine: Skydive Dubai gives you protective goggles to wear over them. Smart glasses that can record are not allowed on the premises.
• What to bring. A valid government photo ID such as your passport, your gift voucher if you have one, and the stamped Declaration of Fitness form if the rules above call for it.
• Food and waiting. Both dropzones have a cafe offering food and refreshments, and an outdoor viewing deck where friends and family can watch the landings, which helps on a visit of three to four hours.
• If you are unwell. Reschedule at least 24 hours ahead with the Manage Booking link in your confirmation email, because later changes carry a penalty equal to the cost of the jump. For any medical question, Skydive Dubai tells you to ask your doctor.
• Getting there. The Palm Dropzone is on Al Seyahi Street in Dubai Marina, in the city itself, and easy by taxi. The Desert Campus is just outside Dubai on the Al Ain-Dubai Road (E66), so if it reopens, build travel time into a morning slot.

The first jump is almost always described the same way afterwards: shorter than expected in freefall, longer and quieter than expected under the canopy.