tales
Dive in to the winter-sun season in Dubai with a stay at one of the emirate’s best-known resorts, reports Natalie Marsh
DESTINATIONS DUBAI | WINTER SUN
w
e have four types of shark here: whitetip
reef sharks, blacktip reef sharks, bowmouth sharks and giant guitar sharks,” says our snorkelling instructor without hesitation, as if he were reeling off the most normal information in the world. Some of us exchange nervous glances as we turn our attention to the huge aquarium. Inside are thousands of marine animals and we are about to join them. We’re at Atlantis The Palm in Dubai, on Gold Medal’s Ultimate Atlantis Showcase fam trip, which took place prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. The 11-million-litre aquarium sits in the centre of the hotel, its marine life visible to all. We don our life jackets and snorkelling gear, and lower ourselves into the water. As I put my head under, I’m greeted by a whole new world. Schools of shimmering silver fish dart around, beautiful rays glide gracefully between them, and soon I spot a shark zigzagging its way through the water.
Snorkelling in the Ambassador Lagoon is not the only option for getting close to some of the 65,000 marine animals here at Atlantis The Palm. Visitors can also pull on a helmet and walk along the bottom of the tank on an AquaTrek safari, or certified scuba divers can dive with an instructor. But if your clients don’t fancy sharing the same water as the sharks, back on dry land the Lost Chambers Aquarium is where visitors can learn about and look at the variety of marine life from the other side of the glass. The hotel also offers an insightful behind-the-scenes Fish Tales tour, which allows guests to visit the feeding room and the fish hospital, and learn about the shark and ray breeding programmes. “It’s really important when we have people here that our programmes highlight why [endangered animals] are in trouble and what the person can do to help,” explains Kelly Timmins, director of conservation, education and corporate social responsibility for the hotel.
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travelweekly.co.uk 3 SEPTEMBER 2020 29
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