Fun things to do in United Arab Emirates

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Never leave United Arab Emirates without experiencing their Desert safari tours. Dubai safari is one of the most famous safari tour activities which is liked by the people of all ages and back grounds. Several tour companies in Dubai offers Desert Safari. The desert was in the area of Al Awir. The 30 minute dune bashing was really fun but it almost kills me laughing my nerves off for the thrill it serve us. We stayed until the sun set and it was lovely out there the colors blend with the sands. We have enjoyed camel rides as well and live belly dance performance at the camp site while enjoying dinner and drinks with friends.

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The historical center of Sharjah: the fort of Al-Hisn, is literally surrounded by modern buildings.
This fort, built in 1822, then abandoned before being restored in 1996, shelters the city's museum. There is a Theater, a museum on traditional public clothes, the Islamic Museum, a Souk, and more! It was pretty cheap to visit just one museum, but you can buy a "Center Pass" that let's you into all museums there. The souk is free, naturally. It was pretty cool. We paid and entred the Islamic Museum. I learned lots about Mecca and the Hajj and stuff.

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Wow... Emirates is a great airline, but flying business class is a real treat. The most obvious features are the huge reclining seat and the giant LCD TV screen with hundreds of movies and TV shows. Even better is the complimentary champagne, followed by the nice three course dinner with smoked shrimp appetizer, a local entree, and a tasty dessert.

Very nice!

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Just a few miles south of Dubai, capital of UAE, is Dubai International Airport. This global hub handles 41 million passengers each year, making this the 12th busiest airport in the world in total passenger numbers, and the 4th busiest airport for international travelers.

The country's first airport began in 1937 as a British flying boat base between India and England. The kingdom constructed the first airfield on this site in 1959. The original runway was packed sand, but by 1965 a newer, longer asphalt runway was completed to handle larger aircraft. Since 1997 the airport has been undergoing a huge, multiphase renovation and expansion that will eventually allow the airport to handle some 75 million passengers annually. Terminal 3 opened in 2008, and is considered the largest building in the world by square feet.

Emirates operates about 60 percent of the flights in and out of Dubai. The airport's busiest routes are to Kuwait, Bahrain, Tehran, Mumbai, Oman, and London.

I landed at the brand new Terminal 3, and after a terribly long walk, I finally found the transfer counter and then another long walk led me to the duty free shops and my gate. I later wandered further down to a cool park-like area with a small pond and waterfalls.

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The capital of the UAE, Abu Dhabi, is also its second largest city with a population of over 850,000 people. As the nation's capital, it is home to the UAE federal government and the royal family. Like some of the other oil rich states of the region, Abu Dhabi has been striving to diversify its economy with investment in financial and tourism sectors.

Abu Dhabi has been settled since around 300 BC by nomadic fishers and herders, but the town itself only dates back to the mid 1700s. Into the 1900s the town survived on the date and pearl trade. Oil was discovered in 1958, and the British left UAE in 1971, as the country began to modernize with its new-found wealth.

Today UAE is one of the wealthiest nations in the world. Abu Dhabi alone controls some nine percent of the world's proven oil reserves, and it is the wealthiest emirate in UAE. The city's GDP of about USD 63,000 per capita far outpaces the UAE's total GDP of USD 49,000.

The United Arab Emirates is located in the northeastern corner of the Arabian Peninsula, and about 65 percent of its territory is covered by the Arabian Desert. The Arabian Desert in turn is part of the Saharo-Arabian Desert, the most extensive arid region in the world.

Many people imagine sand dunes when they think of the Arabian Desert. Although a large part of the desert does consist of sand dunes, the desert also includes mountains and hills, deep valleys (or wadis), flood plains and alluviums, coastal scrub, salt flats, and salt marshes.

And the dunes themselves vary, depending on which part of the desert they are located. Many are white calcareous dunes, but most are red ferrusiliceous dunes, such as those pictured here.

Travelers to the United Arab Emirates can visit the desert, usually with a tour company specializing in off-road adventures or sand-skiing. I visited most of the desert habitats while searching for birds.

Visiting the old souk is a must for a tourist in Dubai. The textile souk is on one side of the creek (Jumaira), while spices and gold are found on the other side (Deira). Take an abra to cross the creek (1 aed).

One of the first things I did on my first visit was to go on a desert safari. We went on a guided tour; this began with a wild drive (the highlight for me was when we crashed :) ), ending with dinner, belly-dancing, shiha, henna and some arabic coffee before we headed back home.