Welcome to the New Members of the Gang!

School’s almost closed, and you know what that means: SUMMER CAMP TIME!

There are camps for everything right now — sports, art, coding, cooking, drama — at schools, clubs, and community centers across the city. A quick Google will surface most of them, so it’s better if I don’t list them all down.

However, if you're looking for something specific, message me, and I'll try to point you in the right direction. One worth calling out specifically is the Al Ain Zoo Summer Camp — animal care, wildlife education, and conservation workshops, directly with the zoo's own teams. Different from your average sports camp. It’s worth a look if you have a wildlife-obsessed 8–14-year-old.

What do I have for you this week? Well, dinosaurs, escape rooms, ceramics, stargazing in the desert, kids running their own markets, and more. Here's what's worth your time.

➤ Professor Boom and the Golden Secret — TODA, Souk Madinat Jumeirah. June 27, 11am. 60 mins. Ages 3+. An interactive science theatre adventure where you get to participate in experiments, storyline, live performance — a show that perhaps can hold a 3-year-old and a 9-year-old equally.

➤ Magic Phil — Sanderson's, Al Quoz. June 27. AED 95. Ages 5–12. The comedy magic show that keeps selling out. Intimate venue, fully interactive. Book early — it always fills up.

➤ Dinosaurs: The Immersive Odyssey — Dubai Festival City Mall, Level 2. Open daily. Tickets from AED 59. The minimum age is 4. For the child who has been obsessed with dinosaurs since they were wee little — this is the summer outing. Takes an hour to complete.

➤ Terra — Ocean Quest Weekend — Expo City Dubai. June 20–21, 10am–6pm. Kids can dive into creative workshops, scavenger hunts, and the Heroes of the Future show, while parents sample local market vendors. Take the metro (Expo Station, Red Line). So

➤ Stargazing at Emirates Astronomical Observatory — June 20, 8:30pm–midnight. AED 125/person, AED 100/group. Guided session under the desert sky — waxing crescent moon, lunar craters, surface features through professional telescopes, led by astronomers. For older kids and parents who want one genuinely different evening this summer. Ages: 10+.

➤ Animal Adaptation — Extreme Equestrian Events, Fujairah. June 21, 4–6:30pm. AED 145–175. Ages 2+. Water play, showering horses, up-close animal encounters. A proper Fujairah outing for families who want something completely different.

➤ World Camel Day — Camelicious Arabia. June 22. Ages: All. Meet camels, feed them, taste Camelicious signature ice cream. Better than it sounds, genuinely good for young children, and one of those only-in-the-UAE mornings.

➤ Ripe Market Roast by Bubblicious — Western Dubai CI Beach Resort and Marina. June 21, 1–5pm. FREE entry. Ages: All. Jewellery, food, fashion, kids' beachwear, local makers. A relaxed Sunday afternoon that costs nothing to walk around.

➤ The Workshop Dubai — Al Quoz. Various dates June 19–28. AED 189–399. Ages 14+. A creative studio running a full calendar of workshops this week and next — Moonlight Painting, Boho Textured Art and Botanical Relief , Impasto Art and Sculpture Painting, Food Illustration and Luxury Oud, Paper Quilled Bookmarks and Art of Perfumery. Everything hands-on, all materials included. Great for older kids, teens, and parents.

➤ Painting with Free Breakfast — Secret Garden Ivy. June 20–21. Ages 12+. Canvas painting with a proper breakfast included. A slow Saturday or Sunday morning for older kids who appreciate something calm and creative.

➤ Comic Creation Workshop — Al Safa Art & Design Library. June 19–21, 10am–1pm. FREE. Ages 14+. Three days of learning how to build a comic — characters, panels, dialogue, structure. In Arabic and English. Run by Dubai Public Libraries.

➤ Pencil Shading Fundamentals — Dubai Digital Park, DSO. June 19–20. FREE. Ages 12+. Two days. Practical drawing skills. One of the better no-cost creative finds this week.

➤ Little Savvy Chefs Around the World — June 20, 1–3pm. Ages 45 days to 5 years. Global cuisines, zero fire, hands-on tasting, and texture exploration. For the tiny ones who want to be in the kitchen. Now, this one’s in a nursery, so I suggest call or WhatsApp before going: +971585708135

➤ Art Sessions by Prime Stage Studios — Daily, 10am–6pm. Ages: Kids and families. Daily drop-in art and ceramics sessions. My kids went last week. They were smiling throughout.

➤ Hungarian Games — Warehouse 35, Al Quoz 1. Six escape rooms designed by Attila Gyurkovics — the inventor of the escape room concept, whose venue Parapark has locations across Europe and Australia. These aren't generic padlock rooms. They're proper puzzle experiences designed around flow psychology. There's also a board game café and open space games for groups who want something less intense. A solid indoor option for teenagers who need a challenge rather than a screen. (More)

➤ Little Merchant Bazaar — Amaya Mall. June 20, 4–7pm. FREE entry. Ages: All. Young business minds selling products they've made themselves. Worth going even just to see a 9-year-old successfully negotiate a sale.

➤ D3 Tiny Preneurs Market — Building 6, Dubai Design District. June 27, 10:30am–1:30pm. FREE entry. Ages: All. Same concept, bigger setting. Kids showcasing and selling what they've created, in one of Dubai's most visually striking creative districts.

Hope you found something inspiring from the above selection. Write to me with questions, feedback, if nothing resonated, anything. I respond to everyone.

See you next week.

Parves