United Arab Emirates Travel Guide

I've visited some of the tallest, and most famous skyscrapers in the world - Willis Tower in Chicago, the twin Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, and the Empire State Building. All are impressive, some beautiful, but none are like the Burj Khalifa. It is a stunning building for sure - a graceful spire with a shimmering surface which blends the...

Yes, we all know the the Bur Juman Mall is a luxe mall and has expensive restaurants too. however, like in any malls, it also have a food court where you can buy budget meals too! so if you are staying in any of the Apartment Hotels in Bur Dubai just a stone's throw away in Bur Juman Center and don't want to cross the street to Al Karama District...

A must see in Abu Dhabi. The world's 8th largest mosque, officially opened in 2007. There are free tours available at 10am, 11am and 5pm except Friday morning (reserved for worshippers), however entry is free and open to everyone (groups less than 8) outside of these times (generally 9am - 10pm). You will need appropriate dress and women can...

One of the most stunning architectural structures in Abu Dhabi, Yas Viceroy Hotel wraps itself like a cocoon around the Formula One race circuit. This race has become quite important in Abu Dhabi and, naturally, the hotel gets fully booked in advance for the event. The hotel was completed in 2009 after the design by the New York architectural firm...

As non-Muslims we could not go inside, but this stunning mosque is located opposite the blue souq. We originally passed it on our way in to Sharjah on the bus. I insisted we walked back to take a closer look, but I thought it was a pretty stunning building.

Buses is the best way to travel around the seven Emirates. They are not expensive and you can travel in them everywhere in the country.

Very good dives can be had from Fujairah. Now that I've been to Oman, I can say that the viz in Fujairah was much better. Masses of fish everywhere.I loved it and the water was very warm (27 to 32 celcius depending on depth in June, with a nasty thermocline!).Diving is much better than on the Gulf side (Dubai). The viz is approx 10 to 20 metres. I...

Masafi is a small town famous for it´s market, a good place to buy carpets from Iran or Pakistan, pottery from the Emirates, and also some fruits and vegetable stalls. The town has a long main street where all the stalls and shops are located and is visited by everybody travelling the road from Dubai to Dibba, the market is open from 8 a.m. to 10...

Jabel Hafeet is a hot springs at the foot of the highest peak in Al Ayn. Man made greenery around the hot springs makes the place even more welcoming. There are many places to sit and soak you feet. Places to make barbecue are also there. A good picnic spot, this attracts a lot of crowd during weekends.

Want a quick border adventure? The town of Wilayat Al-Buraimi is just over the border in Oman. You can drive here from Dubai and actually walk over the border. You could drive, but I was not insured, so I parked the car on the U.A.E. side and walked over the border to see the restored Al Khandaq Fort. Be careful of traffic! The great thing is that...

Driving away from the Gulf, heading east to Khor Fakkan is a trip to be recommended. You travel through a number of the smaller emirates , through mountains until you reach the eastern coast.Khor Fakkan itself is the site of a port which deals with container vessels as well as dhows.Only reachable by boat are several little coves which are ideal...

We were invited for lunch at the Oceanic Hotel which is on the eastern side of the Gulf. The hotel itself caters for all kinds of water sports. It is very popular with Arabs who come for the weekend.The buffet is very good indeed, and the view very nice.Highly recommended. Don't really remember but everything was good.

Jabel Hafeet is a hot springs at the foot of the highest peak in Al Ayn. Man made greenery around the hot springs makes the place even more welcoming. There are many places to sit and soak you feet. Places to make barbecue are also there. A good picnic spot, this attracts a lot of crowd during weekends.

Want a quick border adventure? The town of Wilayat Al-Buraimi is just over the border in Oman. You can drive here from Dubai and actually walk over the border. You could drive, but I was not insured, so I parked the car on the U.A.E. side and walked over the border to see the restored Al Khandaq Fort. Be careful of traffic! The great thing is that...

this is a most didactic museum inside an old castle. The castle itself is already a wonder.In front I used to sleep, for free, and had showers in the mosque nearby.

I'll be quick. Lunch. We've ordered stir-fried hammour with some veggies and stuff and have been waiting for half an hour for the waiter to come back to us to say "Sorry Sir, the fish is unavailable. Would you like to order anything else?". Of course, we didn't. Thank you. We did not try any.

A market, called the Masafi Friday Market or Souq al Juma, as it is known locally, even though it is open seven days a week, is found on the Dubai-Fujairah Road as you approach Masafi. The main items to bargain for are rugs, earthenware, antiques and souvenirs.This is a great place to buy carpets, mats, shrubs (from Afghanis and Pakistanis). Masafi...

Masafi is a village located on the edge of the Hajar Mountains in Fujairah. It developed along the old unpaved road which ran from Fujairah to Dubai via Sharjah. The village is actually divided in to two parts with the larger section belonging to the emirate of Fujairah and the smaller belonging to the emirate of Ras al Khaimah.The name "Masafi" is...

While the sheer quantity of sand is impressive, I don't think a lot of people truly appreciate the variety of shapes, colors and textures. Every color is influences by the mineral content. Reds are from iron, whites and pale tones are influenced by chalk, greens are influence by copper, etc.But I challenge you to identify the different shapes of...

It also goes by alternative spellings of Tal vs. Tel, and also Moreeb, Morib, Mureb, Mireb, or any phonetically similar alternative. But I'll use Tal Mireb since that's what the street signs have posted.The tallest sand dune, translated from the Arabic "Scary Mountain" into English as Tal Mireb is near the center of the Liwa belt, a stone's throw...

There are about six forts along the 100km/60mi belt line of Liwa. None of them are well marked with signs on the roads, so you must have patience and know how to read a map. I went to maybe four of them. They are all almost exactly the same. Honestly if my photos were not labeled chronologically I doubt I would be able to tell the difference. So...