introducing
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Ras Al Khaimah – The tourism bug bites –
H
aving seen the success of fellow emirates Dubai and
Abu Dhabi, the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah is making its move to become a genuine regional player when it comes to attracting the attention of holidaymakers, says Karl Cushing
WHAT TO EXPECT The northernmost of the seven United Arab Emirates, RAK, as it’s affectionately known, has an estimated population of around 250,000, spread over two separate landmasses and some Dubai-style manmade islands. From a slow start tourism is starting to boom and a clutch of classy hotels has opened in the last 10 years including two Banyan Trees, a Waldorf Astoria, the Cove Rotana, and all manner of Hiltons. Current development is focused largely on those offshore islands, home to properties such as the Marjan (marjanislandresort. com), while all-inclusive options include Rixos Bab Al Bahr (
babalbahr.rixos.com). Compared to some fellow emirates, and particularly Sharjah, RAK is fairly liberal and alcohol is readily available in tourist sites such as hotels. Car hire is easy, as is getting around
by taxi, and prices are notably cheaper than in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
ACTIVITIES RAK is no Dubai, and is more of a ‘fl y and fl op’ destination. That said, alongside boat rides, snorkelling, fi shing trips and waterskiing visitors can fl y microlites and powered parachutes at Jazirah Aviation, take a Seawings small plane sightseeing tour or play golf at Al Hamra and Tower Links. DMCs such as Arabian Incentive (
arabianincentive.com) also offer UAE staples such as desert jeep safaris and desert camps Historic sights include Shimal ruins, Dhayah
fort and the National Museum, while scenic spots number the desert and Hajjar mountains. For the little ones, suggest Iceland water
park (
icelandwaterpark.com) and the Fun City (
funcity.ae) and Jungle Bungle (
lafeergroup.com/ junglebungle.asp) amusement parks in Manar Mall and Safeer Mall respectively, with Saqr Park offering some greenery respite.
WHICH CLIENT? With its surfeit of swanky hotels and spas you could easily pitch RAK as a standalone resort holiday option. In practice, however, most UK travellers will tack a short stay onto a wider UAE break. Indeed, RAK makes a perfect foil to the glitz of the bigger emirates when sold as part of a twin- or multi-centre break. Also sell it to frequent UAE visitors who’ve
‘done’ Abu Dhabi and Dubai and are looking for new experiences or to holidaymakers who fancy a relaxing add on. It’s also worth suggesting as a handy resort stay add-on for diving trips in Oman's neighbouring Musandam peninsular. •
sellingtravel.co.uk
“Ras Al Khaimah is ideal for a winter sun break. However, avoid the summer months
betwen May and September as daytime temperatures can get as high as 45C”
The details
Time Zone: GMT+4 Visas: Free UAE visa on arrival.
mofa.gov.ae Capital city: Ras Al Khaimah Language: Arabic; English is widely spoken. Currency: £1 = 6.2 Emirati Dirham (AED). See:
rasalkhaimahtourism.com Book It: Kuoni (01306 744447, agents.
kuoni.co.uk) has three nights at the fi ve-star Banyan Tree Al Wadi, in an Al Rimal deluxe pool villa, with breakfast. From £1,116pp for a December 12 2014 departure, including fl ights with British Airways from Heathrow.
Other Operators:
premierholidays.co.uk vhols4agents.co.uk westernorientl.com destinology.co.uk Getting There: RAK has an international airport but the easiest way to get there is to fl y to Dubai on an airline such as British Airways or Emirates and make the 45-minute transfer by road. Abu Dhabi airport is about a two-and-a- half hour drive.
Airlines serving the UAE include:
omanair.com batraveltrade.com etihad.com emirates.com qatarairways.com
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