Monday/Tuesday November 26 & 27
At last, time to depart for our big trip - our Etihad chauffeur picked us up at 7:45pm and we took off on time at about 10:00PM on Etihad to Abu Dhabi in First Class, compliments of an American Airlines frequent flyer award. We arrived some 15 hours later at 5:30am on Nov 27. Our pre-booked Etihad chauffeur whisked us off to Dubai - we arrived, in double quick time, at our hotel, the Jumeirah Emirates Towers (henceforth referred to as JET) around 7:00am. Unfortunately we were not able to check-in immediately so we spent the next few hours at the pool trying to get some sleep. Finally at 10:00am we got into our room. The room (the lowest category) was fantastic - very large with a bit of an outlook. We unpacked which took forever since we had brought heaps of clothes for the trip.
Around mid-day we set out looking for some lunch - we found that the JET was really a business hotel in the CBD, not in the tourist area, which was probably not the best choice but we got a good deal. We finally had a very nice lunch in one of the many restaurants in the hotel and attached shopping arcade.
We spent the rest of the day resting, showering etc and finished off with happy hour at the JET Vu Bar on the 51st floor followed by a couple of bar snacks in one of the lobby area bars for dinner - then off to bed for an early night. These arrivals days are always a bit of lost cause - you just need to tough it out.
Wednesday Nov 28
We woke up really early so decided to go for an early breakfast before the business rush - so at 6:30am we were one of the first in the breakfast restaurant. Breakfast was at least a 9 out of 10 - lots of fresh fruit and berries …
We took the 9am hotel shuttle to the Jumeirah Beach Hotel (JBH), where as guests of the JET, we received complimentary access to the JBH's beach and associated facilities. We had a nice morning walking along the beach walk and lazing at the beach in a very temperate climate - high 20's C with sea breezes. After at light lunch at one of the JBH's beach side restaurants we took a taxi back to our hotel, the JET, for showers before heading off to the Dubai Mall and our pre-booked visit to Burj Kalifa, the world's tallest building. Even with a pre-booked ticket for a specific time there was still a lot of queueing - we made it to the top along with throngs of other tourists - all in all very impressive. After returning to sea-level we had fives'es at The Address Hotel overlooking the famous dancing fountains in the pools in the area around the Dubai Mall and the Burj Kalifa. At 6pm just after dark every half the fountains "dance" to music - very impressive but albeit a short show (5 minutes). We had planned to have a light meal at the hotel's outside restaurant but found that after 6pm the menu changed to Asian snacks which did not really appeal. So we headed back to the JET and had bar snacks at one of the lobby bars and crashed out early.
Thursday Nov 29
We both had a very restless night - "day 2 jet lag" - nevertheless we had an early brekkie then took the metro (elevated train) out to the Dubai Creek area to walk along the creek-side park - alas it was not really set for walking so the whole morning was a bit of a "fog-dam". We then took the metro all the way to the Dubai Marina area (a very long trip in a very crowded metro). The Marina is amazing with the number of high rise buildings, many still under construction. By the time we got our bearings and found a place for a late (2pm) lunch we were totally exhausted. Fortunately it was another very nice day - sunny, hazy and not too warm/hot for walking - thank goodness as I'm sure we walked at least 20 k's.
After lunch we took a taxi from the marina to the Mall of the Emirates, famous for it's indoor ski slope. It was quite amazing - the mall was extremely busy but then this seems to be true of everywhere in Dubai particularly the malls and beach areas and other tourist hot spots.
Finally back at the hotel we had a short rest and showers, before having dinner at one of the hotel's restaurants, Ivy, which to our surprise was excellent.
Friday Nov 30
A remarkable day - thunder showers most of the day so we cancelled our planned boat trip and booked one of the famous "Friday Champagne Brunches" at the rooftop restaurant at the JBH. It was a total blow out; when we returned to our hotel we just crashed out for the night.
Saturday Dec 1
We started the day a bit slow after our brunch blowout but headed out to Jebel Ali (which seemed almost half way to Abu Dhabi) for the 10am scenic flight we had booked and pre-paid. Upon returning to the JET we quickly grabbed the hotel shuttle back to the JBH so we could go for lunch at the Al Muntaha restaurant at the top of the Burj al Arab - another blow out - price-wise anyway. Back at our hotel, we had a quite late afternoon followed by a very light diner and early to bed.
Sunday Dec 2
A beautiful clear and sunny day - mid-20s. We checked out of the JET and set out in our hire car just before 9am for the Qasr al Sarab Desert Resort some 350 k's away. It was a very easy drive with little traffic probably due to it being the UAE National Day and a pubic holiday. We arrived in time for lunch at the pool side restaurant then settled into our beautiful suite before heading out for a dune walk - see photos.
After showers and five'es on our lovely terrace we had dinner at the 'all day dining' restaurant which is buffet style only; however, main courses are made to order if you wish. I had sushi for entree then we both had a feed of freshly cooked (BBQ'ed) giant prawns which were fantastic followed by an excellent selection of French cheeses and wonderful desserts.
Monday Dec 3
Another wonderful day - mid to high 20's with a light cooling breeze; however mornings and evenings were quite cool. We had a leisurely breakfast before having a walk around the resort then spent the morning at the pool. After a late lunch at the pool side restaurant we lazed about before our 4pm dune bashing tour - this was a 10 out of 10 - totally exhilarating.
We had an excellent dinner at the fine dining restaurant which wasn't too expensive if you avoided the waygu steaks.
Tuesday Dec 4
Last full day at the Qasr - we took it pretty easy ambling around the resort and pool, eating and drinking. We finished off with another excellent dinner at their fine dining restaurant - black cod for me and duck breast for Dieter.