Perceived Comfort and Micro-Spatial Use in Hybrid Indoor–Outdoor Spaces: A Pilot Study from City Walk, Dubai

Hybrid indoor–outdoor spaces, including arcades, breezeways, semi-covered walkways, terraces, and courtyard-like pockets, can support mobility, perceived comfort, and social life in hot-arid cities. Yet their design is often guided by precedent rather than user evidence. This paper presents a pilot mixed-method study of City Walk, Dubai, examining how users perceive and occupy shaded versus exposed, edge versus center, and quieter versus more active micro-zones within hybrid indoor–outdoor spaces. The study combines structured non-intrusive behavioral observation, fieldnotes, and an intercept survey. It is perception-led and observation-supported, focusing on public-life patterns, perceived comfort, and micro-spatial use rather than measured microclimatic performance. Findings indicate that respondents associated shade continuity, perceived airflow, edge-oriented pause opportunities, glare reduction, and quieter micro-pockets with more usable and comfortable conditions. The contribution lies not in establishing new thermal thresholds but in testing a replicable workflow linking public-life observation, perception data, and spatial exposure mapping at the micro-zone scale. The resulting propositions are presented as case-derived hypotheses for future instrumented, seasonal, and comparative research rather than as design standards for Gulf Cooperation Council cities.