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Electricity and water services in Dubai are excellent and power cuts or water shortages are almost unheard of. However, following the big blackouts in London and New York in 2003, Dubai proved it could keep up with the big boys by having its own city-wide blackout in June 2005 - no electricity, no air conditioning (in summer!) and traffic mayhem. The official reason for the blackout was a fault at the main Jebel Ali plant (just a symptom of a city growing at a phenomenal rate), but the fun part was hearing all the theories that sprang up - terrorist attacks, fire in the pipeline, alien invasion... fortunately power was restored to most parts of the city after a few hours.

Both electricity and water are provided by Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (known as DEWA). The electricity supply is 220/240 volts and 50 cycles; the socket type is the same as the three pin British system; most hotels and homes have adapters for electrical appliances.

The tap water is heavily purified and safe to drink, but most people prefer to drink the locally bottled mineral waters, of which there are several different brands available. Bottled water is usually served in hotels and restaurants.