Temperatures to melt in

September 2022 - Abu Dhabi, UAE

When thinking about our next holiday destination, we wanted to visit a really warm country but also in an off-peak season. We decided to head to Abu Dhabi as the flights were quite cheap and the weather was looking warm with temperatures of 30 degrees. The issue with booking cheap flights was many for us, as we had to deal with flight cancellations and delays, so our advice would be, never fly with Wizzair :).

As a city, Abu Dhabi is like a small island, it reminded us of Singapore of how it was surrounded by water. The first thing we noticed when leaving the airport was how humid it was, even at night. The temperature was around 35 degrees during the day which wasn’t ideal when walking around but we had plenty of pit-stops inside malls including WTC mall and Marina Mall. One thing we needed, to enter malls and other touristic sights was a green pass entry from an app which is registered with the government, so we had to do a PCR test for this. During the day, the streets were mostly empty due to the extent of the heat, many of the locals came out late afternoon which was quite interesting.

Places to Visit

One of the first things you need to get when looking around Abu Dhabi is a bus card which was roughly £10 with a £5 top up on it which was useful as most trips would cost around 50p. The buses worked similar to TFL where you just need to tap in and out. There is also a free shuttle bus which runs between some of the tourist destinations. An alternative mode of transport would be using Careem (Uber of the country).

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque is a must go to location when in Abu Dhabi, the architecture is breath-taking and an absolutely beautiful view. We reserved tickets online which made it easier for entry on a day. To enter the mosque, you will need to dress appropriately and for men ¾ shorts or trouser is needed. An ideal time to visit is around sunset as you can see the mosque lights being turned on.

Yas Waterworld was something else we were excited about visiting as it’d been many years since I’ve gone to a waterpark. The best part of going during off-peak season was that the waterpark was empty. We also visited Warner Bros Theme Park, which was the first thing on our itinerary to visit when in Abu Dhabi.

We also pre-booked a dessert safari which was an amazing experience and worth the visit. We got to try sandboarding and also go camel riding!! Other places to visit include: Emirates Palace, Heritage Village, Qasr Al Watan (evening light show). If you want a good view of the whole city, Tales of Twins would recommend visiting the Etihad Tower Observation Deck. Fun Fact: One of the scenes from the fast and furious movies was shot there!

Foods to Try

The local cuisine is must-not -miss when travelling, some of the food include shawarma, mixed grill, Manakkish, Luqaimat and the local Mcflurry (brownie flavoured). The prices were reasonable, we would say the restaurant prices were similar to London and local food costed under £5.

Overall, we found our trip to Abu Dhabi an awesome break and a much-needed area of the world to explore. Hopefully, next time to visit Dubai!

Tales Of The Twins