Choose the right Abu Dhabi desert safari

Abu Dhabi: Desert Safari with Quad Bike, Camel Ride, Sandboarding & BBQ

The most-reviewed Abu Dhabi safari on GetYourGuide and the obvious first choice. An afternoon pickup, a dune drive in a 4x4, sunset on the sand, then a camp evening with camel rides, sandboarding, henna and a barbecue buffet. Check the listing for which shows run on your date.

• Hotel pickup, dune bashing and sunset photo stop
• Camel ride, sandboarding and a short quad bike ride
• BBQ buffet dinner at a desert camp

Abu Dhabi: Morning Desert Safari with Camels, Quad Bike & Sandboarding

The best-selling morning trip: all the action of a safari — dune drive, sandboard, camels, quads — without the dinner and shows, and home in time for lunch. A good fit for cruise days, flight days and anyone who would rather spend the evening in the city.

• Morning pickup and back by early afternoon
• Dune bashing, sandboarding and a camel ride
• Quad bike time, with options on the listing

Abu Dhabi: Evening Desert Safari & Dinner Under the Stars

One of the longest-established evening safaris from Abu Dhabi. The format is the classic one — 4x4 dune drive, sunset, camp activities, buffet dinner and a show under the open sky — at a slightly slower pace than the bestseller.

• A long-running classic with well over a thousand reviews
• Dune drive, camel ride and sandboarding before sunset
• Dinner and entertainment at an open-air camp

From Abu Dhabi: Dune Bashing Desert Safari

A flexible, well-reviewed product built around the 4x4 dune drive, with shorter and longer options on the listing. Read each option carefully: what is included (dinner, activities, pickup point) differs between them.

• The dune drive is the main event
• Several options on the listing — compare them
• Has been used for cruise-terminal pickups; confirm yours

Abu Dhabi: Desert Safari with BBQ, Belly Dance & Tanoura Show

Choose this one if the entertainment matters to you: the listing puts the tanoura (whirling skirt) and belly-dance shows up front. Note that dance shows are normally paused during Ramadan and on certain religious dates — the dinner and desert activities still run.

• Tanoura and belly-dance shows after dinner
• Dune bashing, camel ride and sandboarding
• BBQ buffet with vegetarian dishes

Abu Dhabi: Traditional Desert Camp Experience with Quad Bike

A higher-priced evening safari that bundles a proper quad bike session rather than selling it as an extra at the camp. If you know you want to ride, this usually works out simpler than adding it on the day.

• Quad bike ride built into the price
• Dune drive and camp activities
• Dinner at a traditional-style camp

Abu Dhabi: Evening Desert Tour with Sandboarding, BBQ Dinner & Live Shows

A newer evening safari with an excellent rating. Same ingredients as the bestseller at a similar price — a sensible second choice when your date is sold out, or when its pickup times suit you better.

• Very highly rated by recent guests
• 4x4 dune drive, camel ride and sandboarding
• BBQ dinner and live shows at the camp

Abu Dhabi: Overnight Desert Safari

The evening programme followed by a night in the desert — simple tent or camp bedding rather than a hotel room — then sunrise and breakfast. The reward is the quiet: once the coaches leave, the camp and the sky are yours. Winter nights are cold; bring a warm layer.

• The full evening safari, then a night at the camp
• Stars after the day visitors leave
• Sunrise and breakfast before the drive back

Al Khatim & Al Khazna Desert

Where most Abu Dhabi safaris actually happen

The rolling orange dunes between Abu Dhabi and Al Ain are the working heart of the safari business: close enough for a half-day trip, big enough for a proper dune drive, and dotted with the camps where evening safaris end with dinner.

Al Wathba Fossil Dunes & Salt Lake

Wind-carved sculptures and a salt-crusted lake

A protected field of fossilised dunes — sand hardened over thousands of years and carved by the wind into strange frozen waves — with a short drive on to the man-made Long Salt Lake and its white salt formations. Free, easy and unlike any other desert stop near the city.

Liwa Oasis & Moreeb Dune

The edge of the Empty Quarter

A hundred-kilometre arc of date-palm villages on the northern rim of the Rub’ al Khali, with some of the tallest dunes in the world behind them. Tal Moreeb, a wall of sand around 300 metres high, hosts the hill-climb races of the Liwa festival each winter.

Qasr Al Sarab

A fortress resort in the big dunes

The Anantara desert resort built like an Arabian fort among the towering dunes of the Liwa desert — the most comfortable way to experience the Empty Quarter, with dune drives, camel treks and sunrise walks run from the hotel.

Al Ain Oasis

Shaded palm groves in a UNESCO-listed city

A vast grove of date palms in the centre of Al Ain, still watered by the ancient falaj channel system and part of the city’s UNESCO World Heritage listing. Walk or cycle the shaded lanes for a calm, green contrast to the dunes.

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

The essential city add-on

Abu Dhabi’s white-marble landmark: 82 domes, more than a thousand columns, reflecting pools and a main prayer hall with one of the world’s largest hand-knotted carpets. Entry is free and it pairs perfectly with an evening safari.