On my second visit to the Emirates, this was the number one excursion we wanted to take, the decision was unanimous! In the first meeting with the guide from the travel agency we bought tickets for the excursion Jeep safari.
The programme of the excursion was not clearly announced to us (and we did not ask), they said, there will be this, there will be that….
After the jeep safari excursion I would single out three main stages:
- jeep safari in the desert;
- camel riding;
- dinner (local cuisine) with a show programme.
The excursion was scheduled in the afternoon, probably because of the heat. At about 14-00 we were picked up from the hotel (picked up, by the way, by our driver in a jeep, on which we then went on safari with him). There were six passengers in total, besides us from another hotel.
After we collected all the participants of the excursion, we went to the desert… of course, through a shop (as it usually happens), where we could buy souvenirs and hats, as in the desert the sun bakes strongly and there is a lot of dust. Already near this shop several jeeps – participants of the excursion – gathered. Of course, we were given more than enough time for shopping…. Of course, souvenirs there are expensive; several people bought arafatkas (arafatka is the national Arabian men’s headdress, but on safari it is quite suitable for women). Our driver was a little upset that not all bought, as he has his own interest in this case))) but we had foresight to take with us big shawls like pareos, which turned out to be no worse than local headdresses, well, except that not in the national style…
After that, everyone settled in their jeeps, and we were taken to the desert. Along the way, other jeeps joined our excursion from different directions – almost all the vehicles were Toyota Land Cruisers.
We drove deep into the desert on desert roads and tracks – the route of the tour.
Our experienced drivers drove, overtaking each other, moving from barchan to barchan, making easy turns…. Then there was a stop for photos and apparently as a general gathering.
We got out of the jeep, took off our slippers…. It was so pleasant to walk barefoot on the sand, though in some places the sand was hot, it burned our feet. Photos on the background of the desert turned out cool))
Of course, our safari took place in the vicinity of Dubai…. The desert is real, but not completely wild and deserted; in some places there was vegetation, some local wildlife.
Desert views are beautiful… one can look for a long time.
After we took a lot of photos, admired the desert beauties, the command to get into jeeps was sounded. And then it started!…. The jeeps began to descend from a steep barchan, but before driving off, hovered their front wheels in the air….
Apparently, this is when the real safari began! Several dozens of jeeps raced across the desert one after another, overtaking and cutting in front of each other, making steep turns on the dunes, skidding on the corners… waves of sand flew through the jeep body, the sun “went” up and down (like on an aeroplane when turning). And all this under beautiful Arabic music))) words cannot describe (video). And it was necessary to take photos and make videos…. We coped with this task too)))
In some places it was really scary, because we read somewhere that sometimes jeeps turn over on jeep-safari excursions. We got away with it. Our ace driver, Ibrahim, I think his name was, did his job perfectly.
I don’t know how long these desert races lasted, we didn’t time them…. Didn’t have time for that.
After stopping again – for a rest, to take a photo… And oops… another surprise! The girl-guide, from whom we bought the tickets, didn’t say anything about camels. It turned out that we would still be taken on camels!….. Some participants of the excursion refused from such extreme (I don’t know why, maybe jeep safari was not easy or they were just afraid).
We, of course, couldn’t refuse… a camel ride in the desert… cool! As it turned out afterwards, I chose the tallest camel (the first in the caravan!), I didn’t think about it at the time. Both of us climbed on it from the third time, it was not so easy.
The camels are double-humped, it is comfortable to sit, there is a handle to hold on to. All camels have something like muzzles on their faces, probably due to their bad habit of spitting.
Sitting comfortably… and then the camel started to stand up: front legs put on his knees, stood on his hind legs first…. it felt like flying forwards….. That’s where it got scary! And it was so high! A camel is not a horse … and it’s not that comfortable to ride.
Our caravan made only a short round trip…. but all we could think about was that it would be over soon… and we would be back on the ground.
In general, probably, to ride through the desert on a camel – this action is no less extreme than the safari itself in a jeep …. At least it seemed so to us. Although it was the first time…
After the camels we were invited to a fenced area where a dinner with a show programme was waiting for us soon. There were also many stalls selling drinks and much more…. Our Ibrahim said that everything there would be free, but no way!…to get the drinks for free, oh how we had to haggle!!!! Only coffee and dates were self-service.
The conditions for dinner, you could say, camping: we sat on cushions right on the sand. Food in tents – a kind of buffet in the Arabian style.
Here, in this beautiful place, when we had a little rest, so to say, moved away from extreme activities, our guides-drivers began to offer us to buy photos that their photographer took (when riding camels)…. at unbelievably fabulous prices))) I don’t remember the figures, each photo was a dollar or so.
Our photos were no worse than those taken by their photographer, and some were even better…. we didn’t buy anything, once again upsetting our Ibrahim. And those who bought photos, they got some special treatment, more attention…. (
Dinner was already at sunset, about 19-00. It gets dark very quickly after 7pm in those latitudes, so we finished our meal in the dark. In the menu Arabian cuisine – three kinds of kebab-barbecue, different side dishes, Arabic flatbread and local sweets.
The first number of the show programme was a fakir – we liked it very much)
Then there were dancing numbers…. After everything was over, we got into our jeeps again and went home. We arrived at the hotel probably closer to ten o’clock in the evening…. tired, but satisfied and happy))
The cost of the whole excursion is 60 dollars – strangely enough, it was the cheapest excursion out of three, on which we were; it was the last excursion – the coolest!!!
