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February 14 — Valentine's Day in Abu Dhabi: red roses in the busiest week
In the five days before one recent February 14 — Valentine's Day in Abu Dhabi and across the Emirates — Dubai Flower Centre handled 227,530 kg of flowers, red roses most of all. On the peak day alone the centre moved 59,800 kg, more than double an ordinary day's volume. For the person sending flowers, the choice is simpler: red or something softer, a box or a bouquet carried in the hands, and what to lay beside the flowers.
Red roses in the Gulf's busiest flower week, boxed or hand-tied
Cut flowers sold in the UAE are imported; by weight, the largest suppliers are Kenya, the Netherlands, India, Ethiopia and Ecuador. Eleven red French roses are a set choice for the day: a French rose isn't a variety, it's a rose whose outer petals a florist turns back by hand.
A box needs no vase, so it can be opened wherever it's handed over: at a restaurant table, on an office desk, in the car on the way home. For a restaurant, the delivery time is agreed with the staff in advance and the box is brought in for dessert or a toast. Where the moment is a doorstep rather than a table, a hand-tied bouquet works better: it goes straight into someone's arms rather than being set down first. Either format reaches hotel rooms and offices across the city.
Not every Valentine's flower has to be red. The Abu Dhabi selection includes white Ecuadorian and French roses, lilies, gerberas, hydrangeas, lisianthus, Misty gypsophila, hyacinths and peonies. Eleven white French roses suit anyone who'd rather not send red.
Ecuadorian stems tend to run long, from seventy centimetres to a metre, because the farms sit high in the Andes at 2,800 to 3,000 metres. Hydrangea and Misty Bouquet — a mixed option with no roses in it — sits well among the mixed bouquets built the same way.
Chocolate, a cake or a card: what travels with the roses
Chocolate and sweets are a safe pairing for a Valentine's gift in Abu Dhabi. Alcohol and anything containing pork are best left out where the recipient is Emirati or Muslim, so a box of chocolates does the job a bottle can't. A cream cake such as Cake "Love" shouldn't sit in the warmth for more than two hours, which is worth remembering when you pick a delivery slot.
The card that comes with the flowers is free and carries whatever words you choose, signed or left anonymous. Gifts here are often set aside and opened later, once the giver has left. A small box from the gifts to go with bouquets selection sits comfortably next to either a box or a hand-tied bunch.
Valentine's flower delivery in Abu Dhabi: a set count, booked early
Eleven stems is the ready-made count for the day. Ask for a different number and the florist builds the bouquet from scratch, sending a photo and the price for approval before payment is taken. Flowers are bought only once an order is paid for, and the photo sent before the courier leaves shows the exact count and shade, with time to ask for a change before it goes out.
On 14 February itself orders run far higher than on an ordinary day, delivery slots are wider than usual, and nobody promises a delivery to the minute. Booking a few days ahead leaves more of those slots open, and orders for a set date and time slot are accepted in every one of the city's delivery zones. No street address is needed: the recipient's phone number is enough.
Start with red roses for the set count, flowers in boxes for a restaurant table or a desk, and a small extra from the gift selection if the roses shouldn't arrive alone.