Discover United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates is a federation of seven emirates along the southern shore of the Gulf, formed in 1971 and dominated in size by Abu Dhabi, which covers around seven eighths of the territory and is the capital. Dubai, much smaller and with far less oil, is the commercial and aviation centre. The other five — Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah — are compact, and Fujairah is the only one facing the Gulf of Oman rather than the Gulf itself.

The land is mostly desert, running south into the northern edge of the Empty Quarter, with the Hajar mountains rising sharply in the east towards the Omani border and a coastline of shallow water, sandbanks and mangrove. Al Ain, inland at the foot of Jebel Hafeet, is the green counterpoint: oases, date gardens and the old falaj channels that made settlement possible.

Distances are short and the roads are fast, so the country works well as a single trip: Abu Dhabi and Dubai are ninety minutes apart, the east coast under two hours, and the dunes begin within forty minutes of either city. Around nine in ten residents are foreign nationals, which makes it one of the most internationally mixed places to travel anywhere, and the reason a single street can offer Keralan, Filipino, Iranian and Lebanese cooking within a few doors of each other.