Avoid luxury hotel brands. Although their rates are competitive, the fees will still be far higher than the city's more basic accommodations. A large number of the most popular and famous hotels are spread across the city's coastline, so avoid areas such as Jumeirah, Dubai Marina and Sheikh Zayed Road if you are seeking accommodations on a budget.
Even if you can't afford to stay in the major luxury hotels, many of these hotels allow tourists to visit or use the facilities for a fee.
Begin your search for budget accommodations in downtown Dubai in an area known as Bur Dubai. Bur Dubai is the city's historic district. Unlike the rest of the city's shiny skyscrapers and huge multilane highways, Bur Dubai has narrow winding streets and local markets, and this area is the nearest Dubai gets to budget accommodations.
Hotels here are often in high-rise apartment blocks, but some offer good value for the money and many come with a small swimming pool on the roof. Rooms are basic -- well, as basic as Dubai gets -- but typically clean and spacious, with a TV and a private bathroom.
Explore the option of hotel apartments, which offer a good alternative for tourists wishing to visit Dubai on a budget. Not only are hotel apartments significantly cheaper than the international hotel brands, but they come complete with a kitchen so visitors have the option to self-cater.
Bur Dubai has a range of hotel apartments, including a number of residential apartment blocks that offer rooms to rent on a short-term basis to tourists. The area behind BurJurman Shopping Centre has a particularly high concentration of hotel apartments for tourists.
Call ahead to book. Unless it's the summer season (in which case, be sure to bring plenty of suntan lotion), Dubai's hotels are often busy, so booking ahead is essential.
When it comes to budget accommodations, call and book directly. Make a list of the hotels you have found on the Internet or in holiday brochures and call all of them to compare and find the best rates. Negotiating lower prices maybe possible in some hotels, but make sure you have a rough idea of what the competitors' prices are first.
