Dubai Desert Safari: Camel Ride, Live Shows & BBQ Dinner

4.94

(33 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

I’ll be honest — I was nervous about the dune bashing part. Our driver, Khalid, just grinned and told us to hold tight as the 4x4 started climbing those red dunes outside Dubai. I could hear my own laugh bouncing around the car (maybe a little scream too), and sand kept rattling against the windows. The sun was sliding down fast — that kind of orange-pink you only get in the desert — and when we stopped for photos, it was so quiet I could actually hear my own breath. I didn’t expect that.

At the camp, everything smelled like grilled meat and sweet shisha smoke. There were carpets on the sand and lanterns flickering everywhere. A woman named Samira handed me tiny cups of Arabic coffee (I spilled a bit on my shirt — she just smiled) and then showed us where to try henna painting. My camel looked bored but patient; his name was Majnoon, which apparently means “crazy” in Arabic. He wasn’t crazy at all, just slow and gentle as we plodded along under that weirdly huge sky.

The evening got louder after that — drums started up for the belly dance show, then this guy spun around forever in a tanoura skirt until everyone clapped. The fire show was wild; I could feel the heat from where I sat cross-legged with my plate of BBQ rice and bread. At one point I caught myself just staring at the stars above the tents, thinking how far away Dubai felt now even though it’s only an hour or so by car. Funny how quickly you can forget city noise out here.