Notes of a non-advanced traveler)
I was in the Emirates for the first time, although I had heard a lot about this country, as a rule, the reviews were only good. We flew from Kyiv from the Galopom agency in Europe. Because at the Dubai airport for the first time they decided to order the Marhab service, when you are met with signs and escorted through a huge building (at least the travel agency explained it to us). Nobody met us, the airport is huge, we got lost, the phone numbers that were written in the papers that they gave us at the agency do not answer how to get to the exit, we don’t know, what is written in the cover letter seems so simple, but in reality it’s not clear where to go....in general, we were looking for a meeting party for 2 hours, tired, angry, nervous, in a foreign country with poor English. We found Marhaba's counter, they asked us for our last name, smiled (it seemed mocking to me), or I was just very nervous, and they told us to go straight! And there again, there was nothing and no one, in general, we wandered for another half an hour until we met a guy who spoke Russian, (never in my life I was so happy with Russian speech! ) He directed us to the right place, in general, we spat on such a Marhaba, and went where did he say. The retinal scans went quickly, there were no queues, maybe we were lucky, in general everything is fine, they took away the luggage with which we mentally said goodbye, all the same, I stood in the middle of the hall unattended for more than 2 hours. We bought liquor in the Dutik and champagne went to the exit. There we were met by the staff of the Royal Park, gave all sorts of prospectuses, and put us in a car that took us to Abu Dhabi. All these difficulties relegated to the background the first impressions of this truly magical country....but they were, and there were many of them... as a vulnerable and impressionable person, at first it seemed to me that I had landed on another planet. Quietly cool, there are practically no people (I'm talking about the same long-suffering airport, people....well, who builds like that? ))) Other, absolutely unusual smells, men in starched white clothes...
The road from Dubai to Abu Dhabi took 1.5 hours or a little more....I got lost. I think it’s unnecessary to talk about the roads, they are not like the Kiev ones, there was something to see on the sides, not a desert... in general, the time flew by. The driver in the car had a guide to the Emirates in Russian, very entertaining, all excursions, restaurants, shops, markets, opening hours, etc. I really regretted that I didn’t ask for it myself, I thought that it wasn’t a problem to buy one, or ask at the hotel. It turns out there is a problem! Sold in many languages, but not in Russian. So if you are traveling for the first time or have problems with English, and do not know where to go and go, stock up on such information in advance, or ask the agency for guides in Russian.
In general, tired but satisfied, crawled into the room (Hotel Le Meredian), I open the curtains in the hope of seeing the sea and there....a piece of the roof, well, some communication pipes. Although the agency said... I think it’s not worth continuing further)))
Difficulties with the language lay in wait for us from all sides. We don’t know where to go for dinner, I go down to the reception desk at the hotel, by chance (although nothing happens by chance), I met a Russian lady, she said that a girl, Evgenia, works at the hotel, but she has a day off today. Well, here it is the first good news of the day!
The next day we met with the guide Irina from Royal Park, she brought a printout with the excursion program, talked with Evgenia, complained about the view from the room window, about the lack of a balcony, we were offered another one, better, higher and more expensive, we kindly agreed))) Yes , they took a deposit from us upon check-in, although some tourists from our hotel escaped this fate....apparently we did not inspire confidence in them)
In general, life began to get better))) a room on the fifth floor of the hotel, a view from the balcony to the Arabian Gulf (a little bit of a line, but where without it), when we took things for ironing, we simply perked up, because before that, they couldn’t explain that we couldn’t iron them ourselves with that iron and on that board in the room, because this is basically a parody of an iron and a board. On the floor during the day from 7 to 18 drinks (coffee, tea, mineral water, cola, tonic) and snacks (cakes, croissants, fruits) for free, 19 alcoholic cocktails. Then the refrigerator was closed until the morning. But I was in the room, although we tried not to take it from there)))
A little about food at the hotel, my husband and I are owls, so we safely slept through breakfast, drank coffee and set off to travel. They also didn’t have time for dinner often and thickly, although it was until 23.30, but by that time there was nothing left, it was possible to order dinner in the room for the same money (150 dirhams for two), by the way, you could do the same with breakfast, but we didn't do that. But next time we won’t get attached to hotel food, we don’t like to eat by the hour... there are many places in the city where you can eat, restaurants and fast food chains, everything is delicious and amazing huge portions, I honestly tried to eat everything at least once , but it turned out at best half... the price for one is on average 20-50 dirhams (the exchange rate of the local currency against the dollar is $ 1 - 3.60 dirhams). The food in the hotel is excellent, buffet (however, as always) table, everything is tasty and fresh, they even indulged in a variety of dishes)))
Abu Dhabi was chosen deliberately, I read reviews on the net about this emirate, it is really beautiful, green, well-groomed, there is something to see... and not as cosmopolitan and noisy as Dubai, just right for lovers of a relaxing holiday. Quiet measured life. Although there is also nightlife, we did not look for it and it did not interfere with us.
I advise you to take a tour of Abu Dhabi, very informative and interesting. I also liked the sightseeing tour of Dubai, a very good guide Anna! Special thanks to her for the hard (considering some Russian tourists) work. I really liked the safari, professional and friendly drivers from the locals, super! The excursion to Al Ain simply did not have enough strength, although the reviews are very good, they left it for the next time! In general, excursions are difficult to describe... it must be seen and heard...
A few words about the taxi in Abu Dhabi, there is a normal taxi, and there is an Indian taxi, so I understood two big differences! The Indian one is distinguished by a green blotch on the roof, and arrogant drivers with a broken meter. So my advice is not to even get into it unless you want trouble. The rest of the taxi drivers are sane, they drive Chevrolets. Mercs are a little more expensive. These guys know the road and understand spoken English, and they have different numbers, and the appearance and service culture are different from the Indian taxi.
We went to Dubai on our own, we took a taxi for the whole day through our Royal Park, you can ask at the hotel, but that's what it comes out to. A Dubai taxi is more expensive than in Abu Dhabi, well, public transport is paid there, and in the capital it is free, although few people use it. At rush hour, there is a kilometer queue for a taxi, so how lucky)))
Shopping. There are two large and worthwhile malls in Abu Dhabi, these are Abu Dhabi Mall and Marina Mall, that’s probably almost everything... but you can find a lot of interesting things there))) All sorts of souvenirs, in my opinion, are much cheaper in Dubai malls. You can bargain everywhere, they didn’t bargain only when buying cosmetics and perfumes in the Abu Dhabi Mall, but even there they gave all sorts of gifts a few bags. And so if you know how and you succeed, go for it, reluctantly, but they give a discount))) I did not notice a special and significant difference in prices between Dubai and Abu Dhabi. If we take the difference with Kiev prices - something is cheaper, something is the same, something is more expensive, in general, again, if you take all the purchases together, you will not notice a tangible difference, but the choice....these are not Ukrainian boutiques for you. We arrived right at the beginning of the winter festival, so sales were already starting, especially for budget brands. In Dubai, we visited Ibn Batuta Mall (it seems so), a beautifully designed large store... that's perhaps all its advantages))) I liked the Emirates Mall more, and with an abundance of stamps and Russian sellers, as if they hadn't left anywhere, Russian speech is heard everywhere , which you rarely hear in Abu Dhabi, especially in the store.
When we go to the Emirates for the second time, I think it will be again Abu Dhabi, and most likely it will be the same Le Meredian. Well, we liked it with them))) Only most likely the tour operator will be different...
In general and in general, we really liked everything, there is much more to write... but as they say, it's better to see once! Unique local culture and customs, wonderful country, wonderful people, great service in and out of the hotel. I want to come back again and again. . .
