Al Ain Tour from Abu Dhabi

This was a good tour & the driver was professional. The mini van had a recorded audio tour which played as we drove. This was helpful and interesting. The fort at Al Ain was my highlight, the other stops were interesting.

Good way to see a little bit about a number of places. Time spent in each is less than 30 minutes, with approx 2-hr drive there and +2-hr back. The locations are such that sufficient is seen within those 30 minutes anyway, just don't dawdle. The Guide is a recording that you listen to on the way from one location to the next. It's fine, although if you're like me, you're distracted by the sights while in the van/bus and only half-listening and the ability to ask questions is limited. The driver and associate who accompany on the travel are helpful, but not traditional "Tour Guides". That's not a complaint, just setting expectations.

We got to see all the mentioned locations. Lunch was delicious. Very interesting tips during the guide. Great way to spend a day out of crowds.

Pick up fine and guide and driver very pleasant. 2.5 hours journey to Al Ain. Arrived at the outskirts of the city and the driver and guide got completely lost. There was no sat nav in the vehicle but one of the passages used his phone. Driver and guide refused his help and said they knew where they were going. After 45 minutes we found the museum but then were pushed for time and the guide rushednus through. The rest of the trip was ok but the guide could not cope with questions not on the script! The highlight was the view from the mountain. On the way back I was concerned that the driver was tired and could see in the rear view mirror his eyes would close, he would then take a sip of Red Bull and shake himself awake. Then he got a phone call, and was very upset and angry. The guide tried to comfort him. It turns out he was fired. After this he did not care about soles limits and just went for it. Unfortunately on the out skirts of Abu Dhabi he got lost again. We were picked up at 08.30 and returned to our hotel at 19.30. The driver and guide had come over from Dubai so their day started 04.00 and ended at 00.00. All in all I am just happy to be alive.

The trip was very interesting, the place is unique, but the guide did not know that om Monday all museums were closed in Al Ain. We obtained a substitution of the visits to the museums with a visit to the Camel Market and an excurtion un the top of Jebel Hafeet. At the end, maybe we obtained more than we expected. The lunch, however, wasn't as tipical as we thought.

I really enjoyed this tour. it is especially economical when you consider the pick up and return to About Dhabi. I especially loved the National Museum of the UAE. Our guide has a nice run of historical information that enhanced the trip. It is a steal for the price if you like history.

The tour started late no apology and missed out half of what was offered in the tour description Al Ain National Museum, camel race track and the livestock market, mountain hot springs. The driver and guide did not seem to know where the Oasis was and we got lost on route. When we arrived they did not know where to go and park and we did not drive up to the main visitors entrance, but ended up through a workers side entrance for a few minutes walk amongst worker houses, which ended in a dead end. Back in Abu Dhabi and not part of the tour, we were given a poor view photo stop by the side of the road of the Emirates Palace and taken round for a distance sea view. The guide then took us into what he described as an Art Gallery, but the plain building we went into was actually a shop and the real reason for this extra tour diversion. The shop then tried to sell us carpets, jewellery and other clothing. We did not want to buy anything and this underhand tour diversion was not asked for and not appreciated. There are more grumbles, but this should be enough to advise you it was an amateur tour and not value for money.

Malgré quelques inquiétudes sur l'absence de confirmation de prise en charge à l'hôtel, tout s'est déroulé merveilleusement bien. Notre chauffeur JAMAL et notre guide RAM ont été parfaits. On a regretté que le guide prévu parlant français ne soit pas là... Mais RAM a su se faire comprendre et nous faire découvrir la région avec compétence et disponibilité. Le programme a été très complet et nous avons passé une très agréable journée. Félicitations. La découverte du marché aux chameaux a été très surprenante.

Das war wirklich ein spannender und kurzweiliger Tag mit interessanten, professionellen Informationen durch einen sehr erfahrenen und gut vorbereiteten Führer. So hatten wir uns einen Ausflug in die Wüste vorgestellt, wenn auch nach einer knapp zweistündigen Fahrt die Ernüchterung beim Eintreffen in der Wüstenstadt Al Ain eintrat. Wir dachten an eine kleine unscheinbare grüne Oase mit dörflichem Charakter! Beeindruckend stellten wir aber dann fest, dass es sich dabei um ein altes, bekanntes Handelszentrum mit starker politischer Ausprägung handelte und von einer großstädtischen Infrastruktur gekennzeichnet war. Doch zuerst fuhren wir am frühen Morgen auf den höchsten Berg der Vereinigten Arabischen Emiraten nahe der omanischen Grenze und hatten dort einen wundervollen und einmaligen Ausblick auf die weite Wüste, auf die vielen Dattelfelder und auf AL Ain selbst. Das war grandios und sehr beeindruckend! Danach konnten wir auf einem Kamel- und Ziegenmarkt beobachten, wie nach alter Tradition gehandelt und Tiere verkauft werden. Die Besuche des Nationalmuseums, des Palace Museums und Al Ain Oasis mit den alten Bewässerungsanlagen und dem Dattelanbau waren mehr als informativ und gaben uns tiefere Einblicke in die Kultur, Lebensweise und Tradition. Ein gutes Mittagessen in einem Hotel rundeten das Tagesprogramm ab. Übrigens waren wir sehr überrascht von der sicheren Fahrweise, die uns bei dieser weiten Fahrtstrecke sehr beruhigte.