When you talk about water-sports you normally imagine scenes involving 6ft buff Hawaiians surfers, 50ft waves and iconic wave riders like Laird Hamilton or Kelly Slater, one of the places that does not instantly spring to mind is the dazzling cityscape of Dubai and the rest of the United Arab Emirates.
But your instincts would be wrong. Dubai has never, and will never, be known as a big wave capital – in-fact it’s on the Mediterranean and as one surfer described it “UAE is on the Gulf of Arabia, there IS no surf there. Just look at your atlas and anybody with the slightest knowledge of surf/swell mechanics will easily see that this is not an ocean with waves, it's basically a big frickin lake with occasional wind chop.” Yet despite this admission and the clear lack of surf, a quick flight to Dubai and a visit to one of the United Emirates many costal resorts will show you that water sports are well and truly alive and kicking in Arabia.
Dubai is more of a kite surfing, body boarding paradise, rather than a wave riding destination. One of Dubai’s greatest assets for boarding enthusiast is the Wild Wadi Water Park, an artificial park that provides water sports veterans and beginners with a great selection of constant action. The Wipeout and Riptide FlowRiders offer a great day out for boarders and surfers alike “by shooting out more than seven tonnes of water per second in a thin sheet across a moulded foam structure, producing a realistic wave effect ideal for body-boarding, knee-boarding or surfing.”
If you want to get back to basics and have a more naturalistic session, then there are several notable places to visit throughout the UAE. One of the most beautiful and scenic spots to visit is Khorfakkan on the eastern coast. The resort is famed for its sun soaked sandy beaches and the clear blue sea. Khorfakkan offers a huge range of water-sports including waterskiing and windsurfing, but the resort is best known as a great place for snorkelling.
Abu Dhabi is also well known as a hotspot for water activities. The city has several diving centres and offers numerous excursions to wreck, reefs and deep sea dives. As well as the snorkelling and diving, Abu Dhabi offers a selection of jet-skiing and wakeboarding locations, as well as canoeing trips through the coastal lagoons of Umm Al Quwwain and the mangrove-covered islands north of Abu Dhabi and Mussandam.
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