Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi is the capital of calm. Begin with the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, its 82 white domes and its hand-knotted carpet, then Qasr Al Watan, the cultural landmark within the Presidential Palace compound, open to visitors since March 2019, with its gilded halls, library and rare manuscripts.

Give Saadiyat Island time. Its cultural district has no equal in the region: Louvre Abu Dhabi under its 180 m dome, the Zayed National Museum with steel wings drawn from a falcon's feathers, the Natural History Museum, teamLab Phenomena, and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, scheduled to open on 11 December 2026. Along the island's natural beach of about 9 km stand the St. Regis, the Park Hyatt and Jumeirah.

For families, Yas Island holds four parks: Ferrari World, Yas Waterworld, Warner Bros. World and SeaWorld Abu Dhabi. For stillness, the Liwa sands run south to the edge of the Empty Quarter, where Moreeb Dune rises some 300 m.

Abu Dhabi is about an hour and a half from Dubai by car: a day within your journey, or a stay of its own.