I have never considered shopping a form of recreation but we did want to get a closer look of the Burj Khalifa, even though the tallest building in the world can be seen from quite a distance. That area is surrounded by the largest physical shopping mall in the world. Much of Dubai is built for shopping. Alas, even in the cheap hotel we are in, it's a bit noisy at night as Nigerian and African business people are getting their wholesale purchases ready for export. The stuff they buy won't fit in their rooms, so they use the hallways for packing (during most of the night).
Today, we didn't buy any items but walked around looking at the various mall attractions. Oh, and we saw the newest Bond film, Spectre.
We got there at about 10:00 in the morning and stayed until we saw the first song displayed in the fountain of the 24-acre, man-made lake. Of course, it is the world's largest choreographed fountain system in the world.
Go big or go home.