Prince Charles and his wife Camilla Parker Bowles, Duchess of Cornwall, visited Dubai in early March as part of a regional tour. The couple took up a range of engagements in the emirate, including a trip to the Bastakiya heritage site.

The first residents have now moved into their homes on The Palm, Jumeirah, with more than 60 families living on the palm shaped island, one of three being built off the Dubai shoreline. Six years after the rulers of Dubai commissioned master developer Nakheel to proceed with the concept of the man-made island, 100 villas and 650 apartments have been handed over to their owners, with more than 4,000 scheduled to be occupied by the end of the year. www.nakheel.ae

British household name Marks & Spencer has opened its largest store outside the UK at Dubai Festival City. The 64,000 square foot shop has two floors of clothes, home furnishings and food, a slightly smaller version of the retailer's flagship store at Marble Arch, in London's West End.

Dubai is home to three of the best spas in the world, according to a study by the leading Hotels of the World, published in its Leading Spas Directory. With The Emirates Al Maha Desert Resort and Spa, the Jebel Ali Golf Resort and Spa, and the One&Only royal Mirage all meriting a mention, the emirate is among the elite few cities laying claim to a trio of entries in the directory. New York, for example, has two, Paris one, and Belgium, where the term spa originated, none.

Dubai welcomed its largest-ever cruise ship when the 154,000 tonne Queen Mary 2 made her maiden call at Port Rashid in March. Of the 2,500 passengers aboard, more than half left the ship at the end of their voyage, replaced by 1,300 for the continuation of the vessel's first world tour. Also making her inaugural appearance in Dubai as part of aregional tour was Fred. Olsen's Black Watch.
Meanwhile Italian cruise line costa has announced it will itroduce jumbo ships to the Gulf next year, with both Costa Romantica and Cost Europa sailing into Dubai.