The old district of Bur Dubai, which is home to old traditional houses and picturesque wind towers. Many of them were destroyed in the 80s, but later the territory was allocated for them for the preservation and reconstruction of old buildings.
The houses in the Bastakiya region were built after 1902 by a group of Iranian merchants. They left their hometown of Lingan on the Iranian coast after high customs duties were imposed there, threatening their well-being. Thus, the Iranians chose the trading harbor of Dubai, where there were no taxes at all. Their region was named Bastakiya, as many of the settlers were from the Bastakiya region in South Persia.
Now Bastakiya is being actively restored, and it is turning into a cultural and tourist center with cafes, restaurants, souvenir shops and art galleries.