You should never miss an opputunity for a safari through the deserts of abu dhabi which is a very popular and an activity which attracts both the locals and tourists alike. Nomads do in fact inhabit parts of the quarter at various times of year. This offroading activity, one of the main highlight of. A desert escape in the empty quarter there is little thats obvious or straightforward about the empty quarter. I would encourage you to book the airport transfer with the resort as public transfer is not.
Desert debutante on location in the empty quarter desert. The empty quarter 2 days in the remote abu dhabi desert. This sand desert at the heart of the arabian peninsula ranks as one. Drive through semi desert on gravel track through woodland to the qamr. Read an article by carl hoffman about the empty quarter desert in abu dhabi in this travel feature from national geographic. Bordering the persian gulf, there is an extension into qatar and, further east, the region covers. His book of the experience, arabian sands, stands as one of the classics of travel literature. Its tempting to call the empty quarter no mans land, but thats not quite correct. Start the evening by admiring the changing scenery as you drive in a 4x4 vehicle from your hotel to the heart of the desert. West with the night, a short walk in the hindu kush, and wilfred.
Located at barely a few hours drive from abu dhabi, this pristine location has a lot to offer to the tourists. The gallery deals with young, emerging and established photographers. The friendliest and most accessible frontier of the. Yes, ive visited several times as a guest of saudiaramco. Today the inhabitants of the empty quarter are members of various local. They were most agreeable birds, all males, two locals and one european. Empty quarter emptyquarter map, weather and photos. Tours from liwa hotel rub alkhali desert tourism l. If you are driving a 4x4 landcruiser then good on you. The journey from dubai into the empty quarter is a lengthy trek.
It stretches across vast swathes of arabia, including the south western corner of oman, saudi arabia, yemen and the united arab emirates. The empty quarter 2 days in the remote abu dhabi desert lipstick. I undertook a crossing of part of this vast desert utilizing a caravan of 3 off road vehicles and it was the toughest driving ive ever encountered. Set in the middle of the rub al khali or empty quarter, the largest uninterrupted sand mass in the world, qasr al sarab desert resort by anantara is isolated from the outside world, yet is less than 200km away from abu dhabi.
Rubalkhali is the expansive desert in the southeastern interior of the arabian peninsula, the largest continuous body of sand in the world understand. Once my first uae trip planned, decided to spend 2 nights in desert, choices between anantara and another one near dubai. The worlds largest uninterrupted sand mass, the rub al khali empty quarter will blow you away with massive expanses of awesome desert and enormous dunes. How to get the most out of abu dhabis huge desert metro. Its about 2 hour drive from abu dhabi, to my surprise it only took 3 hours to dubai on my way back, though from map, the location is deep under abu dhabi. When you approach it from the north, on the e65 highway from abu dhabi, the worlds largest uninterrupted sand mass appears. The empty quarter, or rub al khali in arabic, is the worlds largest sand desert that so intrigued the likes of lawrence of arabia and the explorer wilfred thesiger. Quarter including the mountains of oman, as described in his 1959 book. They flew us to a remote pumping facility that was just being brought online. The best part about this location is that it is connected to the city and yet comes across as a heavenly abode for those who want to enjoy the serenity of a vacation. The friendliest and most accessible frontier of the empty quarter is only a twohour drive from central abu dhabi, to the liwa oasis and the anantara fivestar resort, qasr al sarab. Abu dhabi overnight desert safari overnight safari abu dhabi. Organise an afternoon desert safari, an overnight desert experience, or at the other end of the scale, qasr al sarab provides exceptional comfort and a most welcome retreat for a taste of decadence in the desert. A practical guide to liwa empty quarter guide to liwa.
Empty quarter qasr al sarab desert resort by anantara. Empty quarter desert in abu dhabi 1 minute read by carl hoffman the british explorer was sitting alone on a ridge overlooking the desert in 1947, on one of two epic journeys with the bedouin of. When you hear the absolute silence of the desert during the cool mystic light, it is a real enticing moment. While riding on a 4x4 toyota land cruiser, get the chance to have dune bashing and be. Rub al khali means the empty quarter, and indeed this has become a recognized term for the area, a desert second only in size to the sahara. The rub al khali is the sand desert erg encompassing most of the southern third of the. Most luxury resorts in the emirate of abu dhabi are buried deep in the sandy empty quarter or in the regions remote outer islands, far from the heart of the the lively city. You must allow for the adventure aspect and include dune bashing in your program. The bedouins refer to the empty quarter as the sea of deserts, and.
Within the uae, its an amazing opportunity for tourists to pitch their tents. Dune bashing is an outstanding ride in a 4 x 4 in which your vehicle crazily runs over the desert without any speed limits. Hotels near the empty quarter, dubai on tripadvisor. Empty quarter emptyquarter saudi arabia map, weather and photos. The latest middle east and africa hotel construction report by tophotelprojects commissioned by the hotel show dubai 2017 which took place this week has identified the uae as being the busiest country for new build hotels in the middle east and africa. The empty quarter desert in liwa, abu dhabi plus moreeb dune uae road trip our home. Ride the golden sand dunes with a thrilling dune bashing session. Liwa is a beautiful oasis located close to the abu dhabi desert. This view was fostered over millenniums, by the pronatalism of. Nicknamed the empty quarter, it has 650,000 square kilometers of territory almost unexplored, and is one of the most inhospitable places on the planet, where even the bedouins make short trips. Flying into abu dhabi, you cant fail to notice the huge desert to the south of the emirate. While others saw the desert as an empty void and the.
Our desert debutant, hanging out in her abaya and scarf in the empty quarter desert in najran, post sand dune fun. The only gallery in the city devoted exclusively to fine art photography, it celebrates photography from all continents and various media, including documentary, fine art, photojournalism, abstract and street photography. Abu dhabi resort qasr al sarab desert resort by anantara. The new jumeirah al wathba in abu dhabi is making it. Empty quarter emptyquarter is a desert a large area with little or no vegetation due to extreme environmental conditions and has the latitude of 21 and longitude of 51. The abu dhabi section of the rub alkhali was used in location shooting for the. The rub al khali, also known as the empty quarter, isnt just any old desert it happens to be the. Get out into the desert on the edge of the empty quarter to see the sheer expanse of rolling dunes in every direction.
Location and logistics support for film crews and professional photographers. Drive straight no deviating allowed for 150km in the general direction of saudi arabia. This is a tiny fragment of the empty quarter, a sand sea larger than france. Ar rub al khali is an erg that stretches across four countries, covers most of the arabian peninsula, holds half as. Take the e11 through abu dhabi and head for mussafah, then turn left onto the e65 in the direction of hameem. The 10 closest hotels to the empty quarter tripadvisor. Desert explorer tour code auhsaf1 desert adventures tour code auhsaf2 arabian night sunset safari tour code auhsaf3 liwa tours empty quarter tours from liwa hotel. Our next stop will be at mafraq hotel pickup location for abu dhabi passengers. Moreeb dune festival in abu dhabis empty quarter in pictures. Enter the empty quarter, the worlds largest sand desert and notorious for quick sands.
Though abu dhabi afternoon desert safari is always marvelously exciting, overnight desert safari in abu dhabi tour package is the paramount. N including parts of saudi arabia, oman, the united arab. It aims to expand the understanding and appreciation of photography as an artistic medium. The book focuses on the authors travels across the empty quarter of the. Al dhafra desert the worlds largest uninterrupted sand mass, the rub al khali empty quarter will blow you away with massive expanses of awesome desert and enormous dunes. Empty quarter desert in abu dhabi national geographic. There is little thats obvious or straightforward about the empty quarter. This not to be missed experience departs abu dhabi at approximately 15. However, those visitors on a tight schedule may still book our full day trip to. Liwa situated south of abu dhabi emirates is one of the most beautiful deserts in our. Set in the middle of the rub al khali or empty quarter, the largest uninterrupted sand mass in the world, qasr al sarab desert resort by anantara is isolated from the. Stunning moments in the empty quarter of abu dhabis liwa desert.
Nearly 85 years after the first trek across the empty quarter, a team from oman is preparing to follow in the footsteps of those intrepid adventurers. Moreeb dune festival in abu dhabis empty quarter in. The empty quarter is the only gallery in dubai devoted exclusively to fine art photography and serving a rapidly growing membership of artists and photo enthusiasts. Book now at nusret abu dhabi in abu dhabi, abu dhabi. Its an utterly spectacular area, a true sea of sand, where the facility was just a dot in the middle of ro. I personally got inspired by the english explorer wilfred thesiger who braved the wrath of nomads with the help of rashids and crossed the empty quarter to. Into the empty quarter official hd trailer youtube. From ubar continue to the desert and enjoy an exciting drive through the spectacular fasad sand dunes more than 200 meters in height and located at the outskirts of rub al khali the empty quarter. More than 80 new hotels are expected to open in the uae next year, according to a new report. Abu dhabi night desert safari lets you see the marvellous beauty of the desert with tools and necessities included is perhaps one of the most exciting and fun activities that one may experience. The empty quarter fine art photography gallery in dubai. Participants from across the arabian gulf descend on the liwa desert to take part in races. Its a landscape of everchanging endless dunes made famous by the british explorer wilfred thesiger and his emirati and omani companions in the 1940s and 50s.
Organizing transportation from abu dhabi and northern emirates to al gharbia region organizing desert safaris in the rub al khali empty quarter desert team building events trekking, stargazing, survival, quad biking, treasure hunts, etc. If you look down a lens with the eye of a professional photographer, youll be interested in visiting the empty quarter. The empty quarter desert rub al khali george kourounis. On the outskirts of abu dhabi, the worlds largest sand desert the empty quarter beckons. He became a colonial officer in sudan, working in the desert region of darfur and. This book helped explain as much as is possible, why culture is the way it is here while weaving a very interesting and personal story. Get to know this expansive sand desert travel, desert, empty quarter, rub al khali, abu dhabi, saudi arabia, the sprawling and beautiful. For the traveler who has been everywhere, there exists the empty quarter. Liwa is situated south west of abu dhabi on the edge of the great empty quarter desert the largest of arabia. So leon mccarron and i walked miles across the arabian peninsula, inspired by the spirit of thesigers own expeditions in the rub al khali desert, the empty quarter. Our journey will begin in dubai, cruising along the multilane highway passing by jebel ali free zone and crossing the borders of abu dhabi. More than 80 new hotels set to open in the uae in 2018. As well as camels, and the toyota land cruisers that had taken the wadibashing party for such an exhilarating helterskelter of a ride, the desert spot about ten minutes from the luxury resort that is qasr al sarab desert resort by anantara, deep in the hinterland of abu dhabis empty quarter there were three falcons. There are restaurants, a sparkling outdoor pool, and a full range of desert.
Abu dhabi municipality already has 153 outdoor closedcircuit cctv cameras in the city centre, with 83 at junctions feeding live footage to traffic and police authorities. If after admiring dubai from 124th floor see here you looking for a bit of adventure, to only 45 minutes from the city there are one of the largest desert in the world, the rub al khali. Enjoy the desert of abu dhabi in a comprehensive way with the overnight desert safari abu dhabi. Great experience but at the expensive price tag its not a frequent repeat restaurant. The desert lies mostly in saudi arabia, extending into the surrounding countries of egypt, southern iraq and southern jordan. Abu dhabi overnight desert safari aed 450 per person. I read when i was new to abu dhabi and still overwhelmed with the culture. The rub al khali, also known as the empty quarter, isnt just any old desert it happens to. The rapid expansion of surveillance networks is expected to surpass even dubais systems by 2012. The desert covers some 650,000 km 2 250,000 sq mi the area of long. Qasr al sarab by anantara rises up from flamecoloured dunes like.
Liwa tours empty quarter rub alkhali desert tourism l. Anticipating a memorable, if you are planning your vacation at the desert safari, hold on. Liwa desert situated south west of abu dhabi on the edge of the great empty quarter desert rub al khali. The empty quarter is the largest sand sea on the planet. The empty quarter desert in the arabian peninsula is so vast 650,000 square km, 250,000sq mi that it encompasses 4 countries. More on the luxury hotel in the empty quarter desert. Visiting abu dhabi and missing a safari through the vast desert. For some in the west, the greatest challenge because it is the least visible is to shake off, at last, the view that large and growing numbers of people represent power and prosperity. Arabian sands is a 1959 book by explorer and travel writer wilfred thesiger. Tal moreeb dune highest sand dune in uae in rub al khaii.