Do you play Mahjong in Dubai
My first time playing Mahjong
I learned to play mahjong years ago at Arabian Ranches, at a little clubhouse on the golf course called Birdies, does anyone else remember that place?
My teacher was a fiercely competitive Taiwanese friend, and she taught me combinations of hands with names like Mr Rogers, Running Dragons, and the wonderfully vague Any Damn Thing number 2!
To this day I’m not entirely sure which version she taught me, only that we played both half limit and full limit hands. I later picked up a much simpler Chinese style from a friend here in Dubai,
What's mahjong all about how do I play
Mahjong is a tile-based game where four players compete to build a winning hand by collecting specific sets of tiles.
These sets are typically triplets (three of the same tile) or sequences (three consecutive tiles of the same suit), combined with a final pair to complete the hand. On your turn, you draw a new tile and discard one you don’t need, attempting to “complete” your hand before anyone else.
The game ends when one player declares “Mahjong” by assembling all the required sets and a pair, winning the round.
Why is mahjong suddenly being played all over Dubai
- Lower barrier to entry than say a game like bridge
Bridge has a complex system of bidding conventions that really can’t be picked up without being properly taught over a period of time. Mahjong, by comparison, is far more accessible from the start although a few lessons are a good idea if you’re new to the game.
- It’s social first, competitive second. Sessions are popping up all over the city as much for the company as the game.
- You don’t need a fixed four. With bridge you need your exact table booked. With mahjong it’s much easier to drop into a session, swap seats, or join a table that’s short a player.
You can also play with 3 people if you don’t have a 4th, our absent person we always named Ethel!
- Restaurants have caught on. A growing number now run mahjong afternoons or evenings alongside a menu, so you can play and eat without leaving the table.
How did mahjong evolve
Mahjong’s three main suits all trace back to old Chinese currency. Circles represent coins, bamboo represents strings of coins tied together, and characters represent stacks of ten thousand coins at a time, which is why the character tile carries the number for ten thousand.
The tiles themselves have evolved too, from paper playing cards in mahjong’s earliest days, to hand-carved bone and bamboo sets, to bakelite in the early twentieth century, through to the tougher, more durable resin and plastic tiles used in most sets today.
It’s a tactile game
For all the online mahjong apps and virtual tables, the game in Dubai is still overwhelmingly played the old way, tiles on a table, hands shuffling them into the wall. That shuffling ritual has a name, the twittering of the sparrows, since mahjong itself translates as “the game of the sparrows.” It’s one of the small pleasures regulars talk about, the sound and feel of the tiles is half the appeal.
Taiwanese mahjong has its own quirk too, players hold 16 tiles in hand rather than the 13 most other versions use, giving them more room to build bigger, more complex hands.
Where to learn play and laugh - Mahjong teachers, clubs and classes in Dubai
Dubai’s mahjong scene has grown fast enough that there’s now a teacher or club for almost every style and every kind of player. But how would you know which teacher and style is right for you?
Names like Neha Bali of Mahjong World, Nina Lau of The Mahjong Boutique, Supriya Sharma of ATF Mahjong and More, Sarita of Mahjong Royalty, Radhika Bhandari of Mahjong with MMMs, Hina of Mahjong Paradise, Smita Parikh, and the team behind The Mahjong Network have each built their own following. These are just a some of teachers in Dubai at the moment.
They bring everything from Taiwanese to Chinese to American styles to living rooms, clubhouses and private groups across the city.
Some even arrange retreats and sell Mahjong accessories, as well as organize large scale mahjong parties!
Plenty of sessions now include snacks or a business lunch meal too.
Learn more about the teachers and their style to see what would suit you best
We’ve shared details of some mahjong teachers below, each with their own teaching style and focus. These descriptions have been provided by the teachers themselves and the selection below is indicative of the range and variety of teacher and styles.
There are many more in Dubai. The list here is not formulated with any ranking or recommendation.
Please do your own research and find whichever teacher and style suits you best. If you do connect with a teacher please let them know you found them via Monica from DoinDubai. Thank you.
ATF Mahjongg and More by Supriya Sharma
Founder and CEO of All Things Favourite LLC, Supriya has been playing and teaching mahjong since 2005. Learning originally from a British teacher she then built ATF Mahjongg incorporating her own take on the Western and international game. Original variations are published under the ATF Mahjongg name.
Beginners and experienced players, competitive and social players – are all welcome. She offers private tuition and regular group classes. She also runs courses for aspiring teachers, alongside clinics and tournaments.
Sessions run through the ATF Café app, which handles clinic bookings, weekly video tutorials and has a built-in score calculator. A live ScoreBoard enables tracking scores during clinics and tournaments. Supriya has also published a book on mahjong.
Private & group tuition, teacher courses, plus clinics & tournaments.
+971505533287
Mahjong World by Neha Bali
Neha’s Mahjong journey began over 15 years ago, when her aunt in India introduced her to the game. What started as a hobby soon became a passion for her, and before long, she was teaching others to play.
With decades of experience as an educator, Neha makes Mahjong simple, engaging and fun, helping players build skill and confidence.
She teaches Taiwanese, Asian, Indian & American Mahjong through group, private and online classes. Neha also hosts guided play, tournaments, competitions, social and corporate events.
Learn. Play. Connect. Welcome to Mahjong World.
📍 Group, private & online sessions, plus events
📱 0561 532 275
The Mahjong Boutique by Nina Lau
Founder Nina Lau, of mixed Chinese heritage and raised mostly in Hong Kong, specialises in teaching Taiwanese mahjong. The Mahjong Boutique teaches seniors, adults and kids across Dubai. Nina also has experience conducting mahjong events for corporates and private parties on a large scale.
The Boutique has been featured in Khaleej Times, on Radio City 101.6, and on Zee TV Middle East. It also runs a free community initiative bringing seniors together to play twice a month, supported by volunteers.
Beyond teaching, The Mahjong Boutique is a one-stop shop for all things mahjong, also offering mahjong products and corporate gifts.
📍 Lessons, private, social & corporate events
📱 +971 58 534 2236
🔗 themahjongboutique.com @themahjongboutique themahjongboutique88@gmail.com
Mahjong Royalty by Sarita Nankani
Mahjong Royalty is a Dubai-based luxury mahjong brand created to bring together the joy of playing, learning and connecting through mahjong. Sarita teaches Taiwanese mahjong, from beginner classes through to strategy, scoring and advanced masterclasses.
Rather than asking students to memorise combinations, Sarita’s approach helps every concept settle naturally. Students often say that once she explains something, it stays with them, leaving them seeing the game from a whole new perspective.
Whether someone is picking up mahjong tiles for the first time or already plays regularly, classes are interactive, enjoyable and built around those moments when the game suddenly clicks.
Mahjong Royalty also offers a range of premium mahjong sets and accessories, with customised sets and mats available on request.
📍 Classes for beginners through advanced levels.
📱 056 189 0869
Where to shop all things Mahjong in Dubai
We are compiling a resource for where you can buy everything you need for mahjong including tile sets, mahjong mats, rulers or racks and tables.
See our WHERE TO BUY MAHJONG SETS IN DUBAI article here.
If you’d like your brand with contact details to be included in this article get in touch with us via the link below.
Yalla Mahjong by Caresha Boll
Founding Feature
Founder Caresha Boll’s love of mahjong began while living in Singapore and then China from 2007, where the game is woven into everyday life and always played around good company. Almost twenty years later, she has brought that passion home to Dubai as a brand of her own, designing sets where the craftsmanship matches the beauty of the ritual around them.
Yalla Mahjong’s debut set, the Dubai Pearl Opus, is a limited edition of only 100 sets telling the story of the region via its tiles in a soft palette of pastel pinks, blues and warm, desert sand colours.
Specially curated heritage tiles honour symbols and landmarks that define Dubai and the UAE today: the falcon for strength and vision, the camel for endurance and desert life, and a native desert flower for warmth and hospitality.
These heritage tiles are used as blanks or wild tiles that can denote anything required.
Each set is designed in Dubai, with tiles engraved and hand-painted as opposed to printed. A full set has 160 hand-finished tiles, enough to play every version of the game, American, Taiwanese, Western and Japanese included.
The offering also includes striking tortoise shell acrylic racks that double as rulers and a premium neoprene mat, soft and grippy underhand that’s easy to wipe clean after tiles have been shuffled across it by many hands, time and again.
All of these can be bought separately.
Please check the website for the complete offering. Use this link and code MONICA for 10% off your first purchase
Online shop, and by appointment to see and handle a set in person
+971 56 329 0847
yallamahjong.com | email: letsgo@yallamahjong.com
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