A luxury stay in Abu Dhabi’s ‘Empty Quarter’

Although we were short on time in Abu Dhabi, JJ and I couldn’t miss the opportunity to go on our first ever desert safari. Where better for this experience than an oasis in the largest uninterrupted sand desert in the world?

ARRIVAL + CHECK-IN

We booked a taxi from the Hilton Abu Dhabi (now Radisson Blu) where we’d stayed the previous night. The taxi cost AED450 which wasn’t bad for a 2-hour drive and was about half the cost of the resort transfer that I’d arranged for the return journey.

The approach road to Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort winds for approximately 12km through golden sand dunes. In the distance, you see this fairy-tale-looking giant fortress, complete with turrets and faux battlements. The setting looks like a something out of a fantasy movie, which of course it is! Star Wars fans might know Rub’ al Khali (The Empty Quarter) as one of the filming locations from ‘The Force Awakens’.

As soon as we checked in we just knew that 24 hours wouldn’t be enough. After welcome drinks and dates, we were driven to our Deluxe Terrace Room, the view was absolutely out of this world.

Enjoying the view from our terrace

Although the desert resort is quite large (205 rooms, villas and suites), we felt that both our room and terrace were extremely private and quiet. We never heard any neighbours during our stay.

I only took one picture inside our room so I’ll try to set the scene. As you can see from the below there’s a king-sized bed dressed in fine linen and Arabian themed décor. At the end of the bed was a TV, DVD player and Nespresso machine. Out of the window was an uninterrupted panorama of the desert valley.

Behind where I stood to take this pic was the spacious bathroom. As you walk in, on the right-hand side was a double sink, on the left were separate rain-shower and toilet cubicles. If you looked straight ahead there was a huge bathtub (which I unfortunately didn’t have time to try out). The bathroom was stocked with Elemis toiletries and there was a soap menu – that’s a first for me!

Deluxe Terrace Room

SUNSET ACTIVITY

After an hour of relaxation on our terrace, we headed down to the main reception to join our camel trekking group. Eight of us were driven in four-wheel-drives out into the desert for about an hour’s ride.

Beautiful ever-changing desert colours

Once we’d said goodbye to the camels, we sat on top of a dune sipping mint tea, eating dates and watching the stunning sunset.

Liwa Desert at sunset

DINNER

When we got back to the desert resort, JJ and I had about an hour to shower and change before our dinner reservation. I’d locked in our activities and made restaurant booking well in advance of our stay as we only had 24 hours to fit in as much as possible. The restaurant we chose for dinner was Al Falaj and luckily the weather conditions were good as it’s an outdoor bedouin camp-style setting.

The food was Arabic mezze followed by a BBQ which was all extremely delicious – especially the grilled lamb and tiger prawns. During the meal, movie footage was projected onto a nearby dune and live music was played on a qanun which added to the ambience. You could even pet a camel or a falcon if you wanted!

Qasr Al Sarab’s general manager Axel Bethke was present at dinner and came to chat with us, as well as all of the other diners. This was a lovely personal touch that showed commitment to delivering the best possible experience and service to resort guests.

SUNRISE ACTIVITY + DEPARTURE

The following morning we were up before sunrise for our second desert activity – a falconry and Saluki dog show. We were lucky enough to have this experience all to ourselves and learnt some interesting facts about the animals. For example, before aircon existed, falcons could only be used for hunting in the winter months as they wouldn’t survive harsh UAE summers. Also, the Saluki is thought to be the oldest breed of domesticated hunting dog, with origins dating back to 2000BC.

Daybreak

Saluki chasing a lure

Eventually, JJ and I dragged ourselves away from our new animal friends to enjoy a sumptuous buffet at Al Waha. Naturally, the array of breakfast options were both vast and mouth-watering. To burn off some of the calories just consumed we spent some time playing in the nearby sand dunes. From a distance, we could really get a full picture of the scale of the resort.

Qasr Al Sarab from the house dune

I’d booked a resort transfer back to Abu Dhabi, you can read more about what we got up to in the city here. After check out we were shown to our transport – a Lincoln Navigator. I suddenly understood why the return journey was so pricey at AED850 one way. We felt like total gangsters rolling up to our Abu Dhabi hotel in a luxury SUV.

+  Rate inclusions: Advance purchase 20% off room, with breakfast and falconry experience for 2 through mrandmrssmith.com

+  Extra expenses: Transfers, sunset camel trekking and dinner at Al Falaj

So was this extravagance worth it for just one day?….ABSOLUTELY. What an experience! If you’re happy packing in the activities, you can see and do a lot in only 24 hours at Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort. I Can’t recommend this place highly enough, the operation is seamless and the service is impeccable. The accolades and $$$ are completely justified.

More posts from this trip:

2 Days in Abu Dhabi City – What to See + Do

8 Days in Rwanda – Primate Tracking

7 Days on Unguja Island – Exploring Zanzibar, Tanzania

UAE + Africa – 3 Week Packing List

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