Opting to visit Abu Dhabi as a day trip from Dubai was not a good choice. Abu Dhabi is a city worthy of its own visit of days, maybe weeks. With only a day including the two hour travel time each way, we had to do an express visit.
It was enough time to fall in love with the capital city of the United Arab Emirates and add it the list of places I want to return.
Our first stop was the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque – the largest mosque in the Emirates (and one of the world’s largest with capacity for 40,000 worshipers). Like most active religious destinations, it is a place of respect. There is a dress code. Men cannot wear shorts. Women are directed to a changing room and provided with a traditional robe (abaya) and headscarf (shayla) if needed.
Next stop – the seven-star Emirates Palace Hotel.
Then on to a bit of culture at Heritage Village:
And finally, we went to one of the oldest restaurants in the city for a traditional Emirati dinner. Most of the food was really delicious, but we loved the adventure.
Nearby at the fishing port were up to 100 wooden fishing boats, all rafted up one next to the other. The crew would walk from one to the next to get out to where they wanted to be. :
More Abu Dhabi facts:
- Prior to oil and tourism, the economy was based around pearl diving, fishing and date palms.
- Abu Dhabi means “Father of the Gazelle” in Arabic.
- Abu Dhabi is the largest of the seven Emirates, as well as the capital city of the UAE.
- The population of the Abu Dhabi emirate is 1.6 million including 80% expats.
- Arabic is the official language.
- Islam is the official religion.
Here’s why driving to Abu Dhabi was not our best plan:
When we were planning this trip we agreed we would not drive in the Middle East. After a few taxi rides that took us out of the way to increase the fare and a bit of looking around for tours only to find them shockingly overpriced, we decided to rent a car yesterday, just for the day trip to Abu Dhabi from Dubai, where we were staying.
Here’s what we discovered:
- Most streets on the map don’t have names, and the few that do are in Arabic.
- The roads seem quite random in their placement, and often have very long entrance and exit ramps, that turn you around.
- Did you ever see National Lampoon’s European Vacation with Chevy Chase? Remember the scene where he drives in circles around the round-a-bout and can’t get off . . . that is the scene that popped into my head as we tried to find the entrance to the mosque. Eventually, a heavily armed, yet friendly guard gave us directions.
- Speed limits are very high, as is the accident rate. Fortunately, we had no issues.
All photos on this page © Rhonda Albom 2012
Have you been to Abu Dhabi? Did you drive there?
Travel Counter: We are in week 5 of our 250-day overseas adventure.
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Mary Lancaster
May 31, 2018 at 5:23 pmVery well writing with many unique tips. You explore the Abu Dhabi in a different way, I enjoyed a lot to read your article, Really its such a wonderful place and luxurious also. That’s why its attraction for any traveler. The view of Grand mosque is outstanding. You just explore all the highlights places of this places. All of your information and tips will help all the traveler for the best traveling experience in Abu Dhabi. Thanks for your wonderful article.
Heidi19
May 5, 2012 at 2:25 pmHi Rhonda! i’m happy to see you guys are having great time. I wish i can visit Abu Dhabi one of these days. Thanks for the photos!
Rhonda
May 8, 2012 at 1:42 amAbu Dhabi was pretty amazing. Thanks for commenting Heidi.
Born27
May 2, 2012 at 4:29 pmThat place is very precious. No doubt!
Rhonda
May 5, 2012 at 12:34 amPrecious is a nice word.
Tony Payne
May 2, 2012 at 3:52 amAnother amazing day. I wonder when you get to day 100 if you will remember it all clearly or will things just become a blur? I know that happened to us after just 6 weeks. Great that you are documenting it as you go 🙂
Rhonda
May 5, 2012 at 12:33 amIt’s already getting blurry, but just glad I have the blog 🙂 Plus the girls are journaling each night.
Maryden25
May 1, 2012 at 7:01 pmA friend of mine is currently working in Abu Dhabi. I’ve seen his photos of different hotels and buildings! Very beautiful. especially at night when all the lights are up. You can really appreciate the true beauty of the place. I’m glad to know that you enjoyed your visit there. I am planning to have a vacation even for a week too!
Rhonda
May 2, 2012 at 12:17 amYou will love Abu Dhabi – at least I did. If you get a chance, there was a restaurant right on the water near the fish market (it is on the tourist maps) that is one of the oldest restaurants in Abu Dhabi – it serves traditional Emirates food and was really good and quite cheap. I can’t remember the name. There is a buffet right across the “road” which looked very posh, but it had the same owners. I recommend the restaurant.
Nilo
May 1, 2012 at 6:17 amYou look very vibrant in those pictures. How’s the temperature when you went there? I think it’s pretty hot but it’s great.
-Nilo
Rhonda
May 2, 2012 at 12:14 amThanks Nilo 🙂
It is HOT, and even hotter when you have to cover your shoulders, knees and head. I think our hottest day so far was about 38 (about 100F), but it felt really HOT with the dessert sun.
Aysha
May 1, 2012 at 12:45 amTime does fly! I am so glad to see you guys are having fun so far.
Rhonda
May 2, 2012 at 12:12 amWe are loving it, although our days are getting shorter, as we sleep later and go to bed earlier.
Joyce
April 30, 2012 at 3:18 pmAnd to think. You chose Abu Dhabi over Memphis. What’s wrong with you?
Rhonda
May 2, 2012 at 12:11 amSorry 🙁