The United Arab Emirates is a safe and exotic destination in the Middle East where visitors have a great list of contrasting activities available to explore… The Grand Mosque and Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi, the malls of Dubai, a day trip on a traditional dhow, desert oases filled with date palms, night clubs with DJs spinning into the wee hours of the morning, beautiful beaches, dune bashing, camel rides, incredible real estate developments, amazing water parks, a plethora of fine dining establishments, shopping, and hotels that sparkle with gold.
EMIRATES PALACE, ABU DHABI
Welcome to luxury Arabian style! Abu Dhabi’s 7-star equivalent to Dubai’s famous Burj al-Arab is the colossal Emirates Palace. Well named with over 400 rooms and suites, and gold, gold, gold, and more gold - truly, there is an astonishing use of marble, gold, and crystal (over 1000 Swarovski chandeliers!). And as you might think, the Emirates Palace is complete with everything you can imagine, including an Iranian and Russian caviar menu. Enjoy world-class service and amenities, spa, pools, beach, water sports, tennis, multiple restaurants, clubs, bars, shopping, etc. And unlike Burj al-Arab in Dubai, Emirates Palace allows tourists to walk in and look around without a reservation. I suppose its enormous size prevents it from ever getting crowded.
Emirates Palace
West End Corniche, Abu Dhabi
Telephone: +971 2 690 9000
Website: www.emiratespalace.com
Room Rates: 1,720 - 45,000 AED
Limosine Rates:
Maybach, 1200 AED, one way to/from Abu Dhabi airport
Rolls Royce, 1000 AED, one way to/from Abu Dhabi airport
THE GRAND MOSQUE, ABU DHABI
The Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi is easily one of the most amazing and beautiful structures I have ever visited. It is a massive white marble beauty with multiple domes, gorgeous colored marble inlays, and sparkling carved glass windows. The main prayer hall contains a gigantic intricately patterned carpet, thick marble columns, huge crystal chandeliers, and gold gilding everywhere. Anywhere you look, it’s pretty. Even the washrooms are lovely, and everything is immaculate.
It is best to visit the mosque in the morning at 10am when they have a guided tour, which is excellent for having your questions answered and making sure you don’t miss anything. As a woman, you must have your body, head, and neck covered in order to enter, so I came prepared wearing a long skirt, a light cotton long sleeve blouse, and I had a scarf for my head and neck. However, as I found out, they provide all women with black abayas to wear free of charge, and I was happy to don this traditional dress after having been continually intrigued by the local woman wearing what seemed to be an impractical ensemble for the blazing hot weather. It was a pleasant surprise to find that even wearing it over top of the clothes I already had on, it felt wonderfully cool, the material light and airy, and the swish of the skirt as I walked and the draping of the scarf around my head felt feminine and comfortable.
Photography is allowed during the public viewing time, just don’t try to take pictures of the separate small domed building to the side which is where Sheik Zayed lays, and 24hrs a day there is prayer there. Strictly no photography. And once the call to prayer starts, all non-Muslims are quickly but politely asked to leave. The Grand Mosque is also beautiful to see at night when it is lit up, and it is easy to stop by for some nighttime photographs. The guards are friendly.
Side note: Emiratis WILL judge you on how you dress no matter where you are, so it’s best to always dress respectfully and not too revealing. Public displays of affection are also frowned upon by couples both married and not. It’s okay to hold hands though.
DUNE BASHING
Sand. Something the UAE has a lot of, not to mention the rest of the Middle East. For most visitors to this part of the world, such vast landscapes of sand isn’t the norm, and you can take an exciting day trip with a knowledgeable and well-trained driver to experience the thrill of “dune bashing”. You can to also try your hand at sand boarding (the opposite of Ski Dubai), visit a camel farm, ride a camel, and even have dinner in the desert also. We had a private 4x4 with a superb driver who kept me shrieking with joy. Okay, maybe there were a few scared shrieks, when it felt like we were going to roll sideways down the face of a sand dune! And the extra money to have our own vehicle was worth every cent. It was fun from beginning to end, and picturesque too, especially on ....