Evening Desert Safari in Dubai with Arabian Adventures Experience

Experiencing the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve with Arabian Adventures was a buffet of adventure in the Dubai desert

PLEASE, LEARN FROM MY MISTAKE! If you do this event, BOOK THE PRIVATE VEHICLE OPTION. The private shuttle to the desert was excruciatingly bad and uncomfortable in the shared passenger experience. Have you ever been forced to spend time in cramped SUV with a person listening to a song on their phone WITHOUT headphones? I didn’t know levels of social hell existed like this off the internet.

This human being played “Careless Whisper” by George Michael.

Loudly, ON REPEAT. THE WHOLE RIDE TO THE DESERT.

The saxophone solo still makes me shutter. Who does that?! Seriously! And the driver didn’t tell him to curb his enthusiasm for the sake of the sanity of other riders.

On top of that, I had to endure an excruciatingly annoying social faux pas – that angered me on on principle, dealing with another tour member in the SUV. Which, left me rather intensely angry during the start of the experience.

Unfortunately, because of my angered emotional state over the principle of the matter, I could not get out of my own way to enjoy the experience as much as I wish I could have. If I get angry over the principle of something, it totally clouds my emotional state and I cannot discharge the energy unless the situation is rectified.

As such while at the sand activities, I swiftly contacted the Arabian Adventures team via WhatsApp. After, the driver and I had a conversation about the issue and I said – directly, my piece in the matter. The situation was fixed on the ride back to Dubai.

So, if you value your sanity and will fight to the ground over principle,  BOOK THE PRIVATE VEHICLE OPTION. That being said….

Pick Up

The pick up from the hotel was easy. After a nice time at the Mall of the Emirates, we returned to the Andaz Dubai The Palm and picked up by a driver from Arabian Adventures. The driver picked up a few more people, until the SUV was rather uncomfortably full. The ride then continued as mentioned above.

The highlight of the drive out to the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve was that our driver stopped by the Al Marmoom Dubai Camel Race Track, next to Al Marmoom Heritage Village and the Al Lisaili area. I will admit, it was SO COOL to see a camel caravan and learn about camel racing.

4×4 Dune Drive Across the Desert Dunes

You are in the SUV as it drives over sand dunes.

That’s it.

Sandboarding Lesson

It’s like snow tubing. Except, instead of in Park City in Utah, I was on a sand dune in Dubai.

You get on a board that’s similar to a snow tubing board and go “Wheeee!” down a sand dune.

It was much too short of a time here, as our driver was late to the caravan assembly point. But, to feel my feet in the sand dunes, as I stood the closest to Oman I’d ever imagined being in my life? That was an illuminating experience of wonder.

Sunset over the Sand Dunes

This was – to put it plainly, magic. There is a certain energy that sweeps over the area as the sun sets.

It’s incredible.

Camel Ride

You ride on the back of a camel, in a small circle.

This was short, less than 3 minutes, I would say. You can hand your phone over to your driver and they’ll take your photo, for free.

This was fun – and I also learned that camels are temperamental and, like ostriches, are very open to expressing their IDGAF feelings.

BBQ Buffet Dinner + Bedouin Performance

This was so, beautifully dreamlike. I truly felt like I was remembering a past life, through memories, a few times during this experience.

The food was delicious, the vibe was incredible and the surreal nature of the situation was exquisite.  The dancing was vibrant and beautiful. Watching the dancers perform was entrancing.

Overall

Overall, what started off as a WTF situation turned into a pleasant experience. If I could do it again, I would absolutely book the private driver experience over the shared driver experience.

I enjoyed the small sample of the experience of the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve. However, if I could redesign my experience in Duabi, I would book the Andaz Dubai for the city experience, an additional few days at the Al Maha, a Luxury Collection Desert Resort & Spa, Dubai property and arrange a desert experience in the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve from there vs from Duabi.

Or, I would book the Overnight Desert Safari.

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