On my previous blog, I already featured Abu Dhabi and of course, the saga continues because the next thing I am going to show you is a very nice place that you should not miss. I am talking about the famous “Emirates Palace” that will give you the feeling of how it is to be in a palace, but take note, it will not just be a feeling, you can actually try to live like a king and a queen in the middle of this very desert.
So we will tackle facts first and understand this palace, why did UAE created this big and wonderful place and what is in it that you will be interested.
Emirates Palace is a luxury hotel in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. It was created with the aim of showcasing Arabian culture. It offers luxury hospitality. It is located on 1.3 km of private beach. 85 hectares of lawns and gardens surround the hotel, as well 114 domes that are 80 meters high. It contains 394 residences. The Corniche runs from here all the way north. John Elliot RIBA, the former Senior Vice President at Wimberly, Allison, Tong and Goo, (WATG) an international architectural firm with a specialisation in Luxury Hotels, was the primary designer of the building. It opened in March 2005 but certain restaurants and facilities did not open until 2006. The Government of Abu Dhabi both own and built the building. Kempinski handles the management of the building. The costs to build the hotel were 1.9 billion GBP or 11.02 billion AED or about 3 billion USD. The Emirates Palace is the second most expensive hotel ever built, only surpassed by Marina Bay Sands in Singapore. The hotel also had higher construction costs compared to the Burj Al Arab in neighbouring Dubai. <source: Wikipedia>
A lot of people who heard this huge palace wanted to come and visit because the palace itself is very beautiful and who would never want to see a palace in Middle East? I guess most people would want to see something that is very unusual. According to many, the color gold things that you will be seeing on the walls as part of the art of the palace are real. So isn’t it amazing?
There are restaurants and coffee shops inside the palace and few stores. The Emirates Palace is a hotel itself so you can actually come here, spend a night or two while enjoying the rest of Abu Dhabi. You can also just visit the place for sightseeing, dining or even just having a coffee. For more information click here.
Please call the phone number of the Emirates Palace for reservations or if you want to know more about it. But one good tip if you don’t want to call is to go there and when the guard asks where will you go then just say you will have a coffee or you will dine inside. For the list of bars, restaurants and coffee shops click here.
Now, how are you going to go to Emirates Palace?
- If you have a private or rental car, then all you need to do is to drive all the way to Abu Dhabi using google maps or the waze. Just type in your search engine Emirates Palace Abu Dhabi and you are good to go. And like on my previous blogs, I prefer to use the waze because for some reasons, it works well compared to google maps.
- For public transport: A. You can use a cab to go Al Ghubaiba Bus Station or if you want to use the metro, you need to go to Al Ghubaiba Metro Station and from there you need to go out of the metro station and from the metro you need to walk towards the bus station located behind the Emarat Petrol Station. You need to go to Abu Dhabi Bus Stand which is opposite of the ticketing booth. There is no sign, so if you feel like lost, then just ask the people from the ticketing booth or any security, they know where it is. Please take note that there will be a queue for every Abu Dhabi bus that will cater passengers and usually female and families especially with children are the priority. There is a separate line for men if you are going alone. Inside the bus the male passengers are obliged to sit on the back part of the bus if going alone but if you are a married couple, a family with children, or female passenger, you have seats located in the front part of the bus. This is mandated by the law and this is something that all of the passengers should follow. There will be RTA officers and police officers who will check each bus before it leaves to make sure the safety of everybody. Please carry an identification card with you all the time when you are a tourist including your tourist visa if you have one because some of the police officers might check it if they want to know something. B. You can take a cab or a metro and go to IBN Battuta Metro Station, from the metro station, you need to walk towards the area going to the IBN Battuta Mall, then you will see a bus station that is just in front of the metro station and from there you can ride a bus going to Abu Dhabi.
From the Abu Dhabi Bus Station, you need to go to the bus stop and ride a cab and tell the taxi driver you will go to the emirates palace. Most of the taxi drivers knew this place because it is a very popular tourist destination so it should not be a problem. I prefer using a cab because Abu Dhabi is not as progressive as Dubai, there are no subway stations, they only have buses and taxi. So it is easier if you ride a cab rather than riding a bus because Abu Dhabi has a different card being used in their buses. You need to purchase a Hafilat Card in the bus station if you wish to use the bus.
The fare going to Abu Dhabi is 25aed for one trip. If you don’t have a Nol Card and you are in Al Ghubaiba Metro Station, you can bus a one way ticket in the ticketing office. If you are going to use a Nol Card make sure that you have enough balance to pay the trip. Please remember that you only need to top up once and that is when you go inside the bus, please don’t top out anymore when you reach Abu Dhabi because it will deduct another 25aed on your Nol Card balance.
Please make sure to top up your Nol Card for a two-way trip if you wish to use it going back to Dubai because you cannot top it up in Abu Dhabi anymore, but f you don’t have enough balance, you can buy a one way ticket inside the Abu Dhabi Bus Terminal. Proceed to the counter that has a Dubai sign. Ensure that before you ride the bus to ask the driver which way the bus will go. The bus has two routes, the IBN Battuta and Al Ghubaiba Bus Station. Please keep the other half of the ticket as always because this is valid proof that you are an official passenger of the bus whenever there will be a checking.
This place is something that you should jot down on your list that will make you experience the life in UAE. A journey that is very nice and I promise, seeing the place is worth it.