Atlantis @The Palm, Dubai
Atlantis @The Palm, Dubai for 2012 new year party
Party description
Sheikh Al Zayed Grand Mosque - Abu Dhabi
Guide : Abdullah
The Dubai Mall
Burj Khalifa
Abu Battuta Mall
Mall of Emirates - Ski Dubai
Jumeriah Beach
Spice Souqs
Brianna: This is a MUST for your trip to Dubai. I loved looking at the loose bins of spices, teas and coffee beans and talking to the shop owners who seemed especially helpful. You can get everything from licorice root to saffron in these shops and they are happy to tell you about everything they have. Make sure to ask one of the shop keepers to show you the different grades of saffron that they sell and don't for to haggle.
Gold Souqs
Irish Village
Global Village
Jabel Hafeet
Karthik:
Jabel Hafeet is a mountain range in the border of Al Ain and Oman. It is no comparison to the mountains in the West and East coast but it definitely is a welcome sight when all you see is desert sand. We started in the morning from Dubai and reached there at noon(stopping multiple times on the way). By the way, don't forget to get a GPS and also don't be surprised to take multiple detours on the way as the roads are constantly evolving/changing around here. The drive is pleasant with 4 lane roads until you get to Al Ain. Once you reach closer to the foothills, there are "brown" road signs with directions to get to Jabel Hafeet. The drive is not too bad from bottom to top with some hairpin bends along the way. There are lot of spots to park on the way to get some pictures or picnic if needed. There are also places to eat close to the top of the mountain. After taking pictures and seeing the top, we descended down to "Mercure Grand Jebel Hafeet Al Ain" for lunch. There were three restaurant(along with bars) within the hotel and lot of options to get lunch. The hotel also had a nice pool with water rides reaching to the tip of the mountains(the water rides were closed).
Mercure Grand : http://www.mercure.com/gb/hotel-3573-mercure-grand-jebel-hafeet-al-ain/index.shtml
Jabel Hafeet is a mountain range in the border of Al Ain and Oman. It is no comparison to the mountains in the West and East coast but it definitely is a welcome sight when all you see is desert sand. We started in the morning from Dubai and reached there at noon(stopping multiple times on the way). By the way, don't forget to get a GPS and also don't be surprised to take multiple detours on the way as the roads are constantly evolving/changing around here. The drive is pleasant with 4 lane roads until you get to Al Ain. Once you reach closer to the foothills, there are "brown" road signs with directions to get to Jabel Hafeet. The drive is not too bad from bottom to top with some hairpin bends along the way. There are lot of spots to park on the way to get some pictures or picnic if needed. There are also places to eat close to the top of the mountain. After taking pictures and seeing the top, we descended down to "Mercure Grand Jebel Hafeet Al Ain" for lunch. There were three restaurant(along with bars) within the hotel and lot of options to get lunch. The hotel also had a nice pool with water rides reaching to the tip of the mountains(the water rides were closed).
Mercure Grand : http://www.mercure.com/gb/hotel-3573-mercure-grand-jebel-hafeet-al-ain/index.shtml
Green Mubazzarah - Hot Springs
Karthik:
The Green Mubazzarah is a big "barbeque" park that Al Ain residents frequent to. This area has the hot springs(water close to 150'F-200'F - really hot) and I am not sure if it originates from an aquifer underneath the mountains. There were lots of people burning up their kababs on charcoal burners and having fun. The hot springs runs all along the park and is like a small stream some 4 ft wide. Be very careful stepping into it as the surfaces are very slippery with lot of algae( we saw two people falling within a span of few minutes and you land really hard). The water was very hot but I managed to have some fun staying in it for sometime just dipping in my feet on and off(it was not conducive for the others). It was have been nice to wear shorts and go but nobody was wearing shorts. The kids were the ones sitting inside and having fun while the adults were "kababing". Another note is that don't be mislead by seeing steam up in the air for an hot spring. Most of them are just "smoke" coming from the grill.
The Green Mubazzarah is a big "barbeque" park that Al Ain residents frequent to. This area has the hot springs(water close to 150'F-200'F - really hot) and I am not sure if it originates from an aquifer underneath the mountains. There were lots of people burning up their kababs on charcoal burners and having fun. The hot springs runs all along the park and is like a small stream some 4 ft wide. Be very careful stepping into it as the surfaces are very slippery with lot of algae( we saw two people falling within a span of few minutes and you land really hard). The water was very hot but I managed to have some fun staying in it for sometime just dipping in my feet on and off(it was not conducive for the others). It was have been nice to wear shorts and go but nobody was wearing shorts. The kids were the ones sitting inside and having fun while the adults were "kababing". Another note is that don't be mislead by seeing steam up in the air for an hot spring. Most of them are just "smoke" coming from the grill.