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Liwa Desert, Abu Dhabi (CNN) — When Salam Almazrouei was a boy, he and his friends would play a game in the desert that most would find terrifying.
In the dead of night, though too young to drive in most countries, they would drive into a sea of ​​huge sand dunes stretching from Abu Dhabi to Saudi Arabia and turn off their headlights.
Only the moon lights the way, and then they will race to see who can get home the fastest.
This is clearly a dangerous game. Go the wrong way, break down or get stuck in the soft sand, and you’ll be alone, far from civilization, at the mercy of the rising desert sun that may bring oven-like temperatures during the day.
“But we never got lost,” he said.
For Almazrouei, these seemingly identical dunes, endless as far as the eye can see, are as familiar to city dwellers as the streets. While the occasional wind blows away the surrounding sand, the terrain never loses its familiarity, he said.
This corner of the Liwa Desert, also known as Rub’ al Khali or the Empty Quarter, has been home to the Bedouin family of Almazrouei for generations. While they have now established homes and businesses in towns and cities in Abu Dhabi, the desert is still in their hearts and they return regularly.
And now the 46-year-old wants to share it. Inspired by his extensive travels as a student and engineer, he sought to brainstorm ideas to help people from outside the UAE get involved and enjoy the magic of Liwa.
“Initially, I wanted to set up a camp in California, USA, with 70 Arabian camels,” he said. “But they didn’t allow it out of concerns about foot-and-mouth disease. So we went on to say, ‘Let’s set it up here.'”
engulfed in sand
Liwa Nights features several tents set up on gentle slopes.
Barry Nield/CNN
“Here” is an almost otherworldly beauty. The blanket of smooth sand was gently turned up, as far as the eye could see. At night, it is bathed under a dark sky full of stars. During the day, the sun is shining, blue sky and white clouds.
This is really an unknown place. Travel two hours south and west from central Abu Dhabi, through the small city of Zayed, and then another hour south, until the road is nearly the last mile before being engulfed in sand.
Outside, the tent’s white, sandstorm-battered exterior looks practical. Inside, they offer sheer luxury.
Tear open the velcro-sealed doorway to reveal the air-conditioned interior, lined with plush drapes and draped with traditional rugs, with an elegant lamp hanging from the tent’s high ceiling.
There is a large and comfortable double bed with fine cotton sheets, dressing table, wardrobe, full length mirror, coffee table and chair. The side curtains partially reveal a proper bathroom with flush toilet and shower with luxurious soap.
If you can extract yourself from the emptiness of contemplative vastness and adjust to the dreary silence far from civilization, a good night’s sleep is possible.
“I don’t think of it as a hotel, but an experience,” Almazrouei said. “When you get to your room, you’ll be amazed to find that everything was designed by us. When you’re in your tent, you’re luxurious, but get out and you’re in the desert.”
The tents are equipped with luxurious comforts.
Ministry of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi
For food and entertainment, Almazrouei built a more permanent structure nearby. Designed to look like a traditional Middle Eastern house from the 1800s, it features imported African wood and features a restaurant, bar, indoor and outdoor seating, and a souvenir shop.
On warm nights, illuminated by fairy lights, or a campfire flickering in the breeze, this is the perfect place to gather over a refreshing drink and listen to desert stories. During the day, it’s a meeting place for activities such as camel rides, falconry, or dune rushing 4×4 drives.
The best time to visit is the cooler months from October to March. This place closes when it gets too hot in summer. Temperatures are said to moderate only in late August, when a bright star named Sulhail appears on the southern horizon.
roller coaster
If Almazruy Getting ready for a roller coaster ride on the Liwa Dunes excursion. Using skills honed in moonlit desert races, he’s a laid-back adventurer, his dune buggy going downhill almost vertically, or sideways along ridges, to near breaking point.
He navigated by the color of the sand, the vegetation and the shape of the terrain, heading straight for the Moreb Dunes, a huge sandy slope that towers over a flat plain. Crowds gather here once a year for the multi-day Liwa festival, which includes a 4×4 dune race. This year’s event is scheduled to take place from November 22 to December 4.
On the way back, Almazrouei Park the buggy on the dunes above the Liwa Nights camp. Here, sticking out of the sand, is one of several huge water sacs that are often filled with water to supply the tent. The locally sourced H2O was shipped in because it was too salty.
It’s one of the few signs of the human impact on the surrounding landscape, which Almazrouei is eager to preserve. Before building the camp, he said he hired 60 people to work for two weeks to remove the piles of rubbish people had left on site for the previous Liwa festival.
He is currently installing a series of solar panels with the aim of making it 100% sustainable energy. And, he said, as part of an ongoing planting program, he has installed more than 700 palm trees in the past year to increase shade in the area and encourage wildlife.
He said that while the government officials who worked with him to set up the camp encouraged him to add 10 or 20 tents to the 10 he currently rents out for $750 a night, he prefers to keep it small — apparently not for the make big bucks.
“We wanted to make it real and romantic, and make it a place to stop and rest for a few days,” he said.
American engineer Amy Zhao, who recently worked in Abu Dhabi, was one of those who experienced Almazrouei hospitality at Liwa Nights for a slightly less relaxing ride in a dune buggy.
“I really like it,” she said. “It was an exciting and unique experience. The tents were great.”
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