[123.rishabh]

There is a saying "Roads were made for journeys, not destinations" and what better if the journey is on the wide open roads of UAE.

In the month of October me along with a friend planned a 9 day trip to cover UAE.
Initial days were spent in Abu Dhabi & Dubai followed by a Road Trip Plan from Dubai - Hatta - Ras Al Khaimah - Sharjah - Dubai.

Checked all the driving formalities and came to know that an International Drivers permit is mandatory to drive in UAE
Applied the same online through parivahan website and was a smooth process overall. Had to go to my RTO twice to submit the hard copies of my proofs and to collect the Driving Permit.

Flew down from Delhi to Abu Dhabi


had fun at Yas island (Ferrari world, Yas Water Park & Warner bros world).


We were staying at Rotana in Abu Dhabi and luckily got a room which had a balcony view of the Yas Marina Circuit.
Got a chance to experience the Karting and Supercar Drive experience on the same.
Drove a Top of the line Alfa Romeo Guilia Quadrifoglio (2.9L Twin Turbo with 510 PS & 600 Nm Torque) with active aero package on the North Corkscrew area for 10 minutes.
They had a wide variety of supercars from the Caterham 7 to the Ferrari 458 GT and the Porsche Taycan EV too !
This was followed by a Karting session, It was a 1Km track and had good petrol powered karts with a driving time of around 20 minutes.
We were carrying our GoPro for recording this experience but on reaching the track realized it did not have an SD Card in it








After staying for 3 days in Abu Dhabi & Completing all these experiences, we took a cab to Dubai !
Explored Dubai for a day and then booked our car for the road trip.
The original plan was to use a Dodge Challenger V8 (MY 2015 or above) but the dealer had some transmission problem in the car.
Most of the rental cars had weird mods like big GT wings, decals etc.
We finally got a clean looking Red Ford Mustang Convertible 2.3 Ecoboost with a Shelby body kit.


Started from Dubai to Hatta. The wide open highways are a dream to drive on, but there were speed limits in the range of 80-120 depending on different roads.


Hatta is a place located in the Hajar mountains of UAE which is around 150 Kms from Dubai. The old village of Hatta includes ancient buildings like two prominent military towers, a fort and the Juma mosque, all from the year 1800. There are also some ancestral burial chambers from the Hafit period (before christ era).
The beautiful Hatta dam is a sight worth seeing. When we arrived, there was very less traffic and we were able to take the car on top of the dam area and click some beautiful pictures.






After clicking some pictures and having a good shawarma meal, we headed to our destination for the night: Ras Al Khaimah
Mid way refuel pics




Ras Al Khaimah is the largest city and capital of the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, UAE. It is the sixth-largest city in UAE after Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Al Ain and Ajman. It is around 150 Km away from Hatta.
We booked our stay at Al Hamra Residence. It is a beautiful property which has a golf course on one side and the Persian gulf on the other side.




At night we headed for a drive to Jebel Jias, which is the highest mountain peak of UAE and is a part of the Hajar mountain range.




Next morning we woke up late and headed for some breakfast.


Post breakfast we headed towards some nearby places and spent the day relaxing at Ras Al Khaima.
Next day, we headed back to Dubai Via Sharjah






Reached back to Dubai and called up an old friend who was staying there since a few years.
We planned to catch up at night & he surprised me by getting a Lamborghini Huracan for a night drive
Here are a few pics






We went to Jumeirah for some more good Shawarmas. The CF spoiler and the V10 engine helped to keep them HOT!


Handed over the car to the rental company next morning and boarded our flight back to India.

Parting shot

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[Akshitsi]

It was indeed an awesome experience with the co-passenger @123.rishabh. UAE roads are incredible and very well laid out. Did not face an issue at a single place in the foreign land. Just shows how a little road discipline and behaviour followed by the drivers.

Originally Posted by 123.rishabh

In the month of October me along with a friend planned a 9 day trip to cover UAE.
Initial days were spent in Abu Dhabi & Dubai followed by a Road Trip Plan from Dubai - Hatta - Ras Al Khaimah - Sharjah - Dubai.

[Dr.Car]

Originally Posted by 123.rishabh

There is a saying "Roads were made for journeys, not destinations" and what better if the journey is on the wide open roads of UAE.

What a nice thread!

Can you please tell if we are allowed to drive in UAE with our Indian license or is the IDP mandatory? Also did you face any issue while driving since it's Left hand drive as compared to right hand drive as in India, UK etc.?

[123.rishabh]

Originally Posted by Dr.Car

What a nice thread!

Can you please tell if we are allowed to drive in UAE with our Indian license or is the IDP mandatory? Also did you face any issue while driving since it's Left hand drive as compared to right hand drive as in India, UK etc.?

An IDP is mandatory to drive in the UAE.
As such I have driven a few old LHD cars in India and found it difficult due to the Left Hand Traffic jurisdiction here.
In UAE since they have Right Hand Traffic jurisdiction and LHD cars so it did not take much time to adapt and could drive along easily.
Driving in proper lanes took some time to get used to, and keeping the car in the speed limits was the most difficulty part

[Dr.Car]

Originally Posted by 123.rishabh

An IDP is mandatory to drive in the UAE.
As such I have driven a few old LHD cars in India and found it difficult due to the Left Hand Traffic jurisdiction here.
In UAE since they have Right Hand Traffic jurisdiction and LHD cars so it did not take much time to adapt and could drive along easily.
Driving in proper lanes took some time to get used to, and keeping the car in the speed limits was the most difficulty part

I see! Thanks for the information. As far as speed limit part is concerned, doesn't the Mustang have a Speed Limiter setting like BMW through which you can set a Speed and the car won't go above that even if your try to accelerate?

[kiku007]

Thanks for sharing. When I read threads like these I regret not renting and driving during my short work stint in the UAE.

Originally Posted by 123.rishabh

had fun at Yas island (Ferrari world, Yas Water Park & Warner bros world).
Attachment 2394524

We were staying at Rotana in Abu Dhabi and luckily got a room which had a balcony view of the Yas Marina Circuit.
Got a chance to experience the Karting and Supercar Drive experience on the same.
Drove a Top of the line Alfa Romeo Guilia Quadrifoglio (2.9L Twin Turbo with 510 PS & 600 Nm Torque) with active aero package on the North Corkscrew area for 10 minutes.
They had a wide variety of supercars from the Caterham 7 to the Ferrari 458 GT and the Porsche Taycan EV too !
This was followed by a Karting session, It was a 1Km track and had good petrol powered karts with a driving time of around 20 minutes.

I've heard great things (from people who have a stopover at UAE) about the Yas Marina circuit/Ferrari World. Perhaps I should plan my next trip with that in mind.

[ulag62442]

Great trip! I just dont have the confidence to drive in a foreign country. Like how do you get to know their specific road and traffic signal rules etc? Like there will be a dedicated lane to use to take left turns and you cannot use the other lanes - I would end up missing that for sure because I'm not used to it.

[dipen]

Originally Posted by 123.rishabh

There is a saying "Roads were made for journeys, not destinations" and what better if the journey is on the wide open roads of UAE.

Hi Rishabh
Some questions

Could you please advise a rental company for car -- Mazda 6 (or the Mustang ) or similar or next fun segment ( 3 pax only). Wise to book it from India itself ? Plan could be from next weekend.

What are the best times in the day to visit the below in the current peak summer time ( rather best times to avoid).
- hatta dam
- ras al khaimah
- jebel al jais
- Any reason for skipping jebel Hafeet Al Ain - not fitting in itinerary or not possible worth relatively

If one can do only 3 of above (did maps lookup) which ones would you recommend.

Are there any tickets to any attraction recommended to prebook ( the usual touristy ones)