The short answer
Hair up at Dubai Marina is AED 350 with a Stylist, AED 420 with a Top Stylist and AED 510 with an Art Director, booked as a two-hour appointment. At Palm Jumeirah, Maestro Signature Styling is AED 420 with a Hair Stylist, AED 510 with a Top Hair Stylist and AED 610 with an Art Director, booked at ninety minutes to two hours. Downtown Dubai has hair up on its menu, and the salon confirms the price when you book.
No row on any of the three menus is named for a wedding, so the wedding details, from a trial to the timing, are something to settle with the stylist at booking.
What does a bridal hairdresser do?
A bridal hairdresser styles the bride's hair for the wedding day, and can style the bridal party as well. The styling is planned around a fixed start time, the dress, and any veil or headpiece that has to sit in the finished style.
Two terms come up in bridal hair. A trial is a rehearsal: the style is done in full before the day, so the bride can see it, change it, and know what to ask for. Styling on location means the hairdresser comes to the bride, at home or at the venue, rather than the bride coming to the salon. Neither appears as a row on the three menus, so ask about both when you book.
What is an updo?
An updo is any style in which the hair is gathered up off the neck and pinned in place. It is what the menus call hair up.
- A bun gathers the hair into a round knot, high on the crown or low at the nape.
- A chignon is a low knot of hair at the nape of the neck.
- A twist or French roll folds the hair vertically up the back of the head and pins it along the seam.
- A braided updo works one or more plaits into the shape, either as the structure or as a detail across the top.
- Half up, half down gathers the top section and pins it, and leaves the rest loose.
Each of these can be smooth and polished or soft, with loose pieces left around the face. The name describes the shape and not the finish, so bring a photograph of the finish you want.
How much does a hair updo cost in Dubai?
At Dubai Marina, hair up is priced by the grade of the stylist who takes the booking: AED 350 with a Stylist, AED 420 with a Top Stylist and AED 510 with an Art Director. It is a two-hour appointment at every grade. Hair with extensions carries an extra charge on the Dubai Marina styling menu, AED 110, AED 135 or AED 170 by the same three grades.
At Palm Jumeirah, hair up is on the styling menu alongside braids, and the salon confirms the price for either when you book.
At Downtown Dubai, hair up is on the hair menu, and the salon confirms the price when you book. The Downtown Dubai hair menu also carries an extra charge for extensions, at AED 110.
What is signature styling?
Signature styling is a separate line from hair up on two of the menus, and the menus give it a price and a time but no description beyond its name. What it covers over a hair up is a question for the stylist.
At Dubai Marina it is Maestro Signature Styling: AED 350 with a Stylist, AED 420 with a Top Stylist and AED 510 with an Art Director, booked at ninety minutes to two hours.
At Palm Jumeirah it is Maestro Signature Styling too: AED 420 with a Hair Stylist, AED 510 with a Top Hair Stylist and AED 610 with an Art Director, also booked at ninety minutes to two hours.
Bridal hairstyles for long hair and for short hair
Length decides which shapes are possible. Long hair has enough length to gather into a full bun, a chignon or a braided updo. Hair at shoulder length or above may not reach to form a full knot at the nape, which is where half up, half down styles, pinned-back sides and a headpiece come in.
Hair that is too short to gather at all can still be styled for a wedding, with smoothing, waves or volume, and accessories pinned in.
Clip-in or bonded extensions add length that can be gathered. Dubai Marina and Downtown Dubai both carry an extra charge for extensions on their hair menus, so mention them if you wear them.
Hairstyles for a wedding guest or an evening event
Guests, mothers of the bride and anyone dressing for a gala or a graduation book from the same menus. Hair up, signature styling and braids have no separate bridal or guest price. At Dubai Marina and Palm Jumeirah the price is set by the service and the grade of the stylist.
For an evening event, tell the stylist how long the style has to hold, whether you will be outdoors, and whether a hat, a headpiece or a scarf has to sit over or around it.
Planning bridal hair in Dubai
Hair up at Dubai Marina is a two-hour booking, and signature styling at Dubai Marina and Palm Jumeirah is ninety minutes to two hours. Dubai Marina and Downtown Dubai open at 09:00 every day, and Palm Jumeirah at 10:00. For a morning ceremony, work back from the start time and ask the salon about the first slot of the day.
Hair absorbs moisture from humid air, and curls set with heat loosen as it does. For an outdoor ceremony or photographs outside, tell the stylist in advance and agree how the style is set for it.
Bring the veil, headpiece, clips or flowers to the appointment, or to a trial if you book one, so they are placed as part of the style rather than added to a finished one.
How can you tell an updo was done well?
It should not hurt. Pins that press into the scalp or pull at the hairline are a sign the style is set too tight. Say so before you leave the chair.
It should feel secure when you turn your head, and it should look finished from the back and the sides as well as in the mirror in front of you. Ask for a hand mirror.
What to ask when you book
- Which grade of stylist the booking is with, at Dubai Marina and Palm Jumeirah. The grade sets the price.
- Whether a trial can be booked before the day, and what it costs.
- Whether the stylist can come to you, at home or at the venue.
- The earliest appointment available on the day.
- What signature styling covers compared with hair up.
- The price at Downtown Dubai, and for hair up or braids at Palm Jumeirah, where the salon confirms it at booking.
Frequently asked questions
How much does bridal hair cost in Dubai?
At UNIQUE PERSONA, hair up is AED 350, AED 420 or AED 510 at Dubai Marina, by stylist grade. Maestro Signature Styling is AED 350 to AED 510 at Dubai Marina and AED 420 to AED 610 at Palm Jumeirah. At Downtown Dubai the salon confirms the price for hair up when you book.
How long does a bridal updo take?
Hair up at Dubai Marina is booked as a two-hour appointment. Signature styling is booked at ninety minutes to two hours at Dubai Marina and Palm Jumeirah.
Is a bridal hair trial included?
There is no trial row on any of the three menus. Ask the salon whether one can be booked and what it costs.
Can I have an updo with short hair?
It depends on how short. Hair that reaches the nape can be gathered into a small knot or pinned half up, half down. Shorter hair is styled for the finish instead, with smoothing, waves and accessories.
Do you style hair with extensions?
There is an extra charge for extensions at Dubai Marina, AED 110, AED 135 or AED 170 by stylist grade, and at Downtown Dubai, AED 110.
In short
Occasion hair is on the menus as hair up and, at Dubai Marina and Palm Jumeirah, Maestro Signature Styling. None of it is sold as a bridal package. Hair up at Dubai Marina is AED 350 to AED 510 and takes two hours. Maestro Signature Styling at Palm Jumeirah is AED 420 to AED 610. Downtown Dubai confirms its hair up price at booking. For cuts and blow-dries, see haircut and blow-dry in Dubai, and the full list is on the hair pages.
