Out Of Abu Dhabi

If you have a car and a sense of adventure, it’s well worthwhile exploring the places outside Abu Dhabi city. To the east is Al Ain, while west is the Al Gharbia region, home to the hundreds of kilometres of rarely visited coastline, the Desert Islands, and the spectacular area of Liwa, right on the…

Ajman

Ajman is the smallest of the seven emirates, its centre being about 10 kilometres from Sharjah, although the two towns merge along the beachfront. Ajman also has two inland enclaves, one at Masfut on the edge of the Hajar Mountains and one at Manama between Sharjah and Fujairah. Ajman was historically known for having one…

Dubai

Dubai is the second largest emirate and the most important of the northern emirates. With limited natural resources, it has founded its wealth on trade. Originally a small fishing settlement based around a creek, Dubai was taken over by a branch of the Bani Yas tribe from the Liwa Oasis in around 1830. The Maktoum…

Dubai

Hatta is a small town in the Hajar Mountains about 100 kilometres from Dubai city and 10 kilometres from the UAE-Oman border. Hatta is still within the UAE though, in an enclave of Dubai emirate, and it is home to the oldest fort in the emirate, which was built in 1790. There are also several…

East Coast

Even if you’re only in the UAE for a short time, a trip to the east coast is worth the effort. The coast and the desert and mountains inland provide plenty of opportunities for sampling the great outdoors, from camping and off-road driving to snorkelling and scuba diving. The diving off the east coast is…

Ras Al Khaimah

Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) is the most northerly of the seven emirates, but thanks to the new Emirates Road extension you can make the trip from Dubai in less than an hour. With the majestic Hajar Mountains rising just behind the city, the Arabian Gulf stretching out from the shore as well as the desert…

Sharjah

Before Dubai’s rise to prominence as a trading and tourism hotspot, its neighbour, Sharjah, was one of the wealthiest towns in the region, with settlers earning their livelihood from fishing, pearling and trade. Sharjah is the only emirate with coastline on both the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. The highway, which links the…

Umm Al Quwain

Umm Al Quwain is the second smallest of the emirates, and has the smallest population. Nestled on the coast between Ajman and Ras Al Khaimah, it’s a quiet place where not much has changed over the years. The main industries are still fishing and date cultivation. The emirate has six forts and a few old…