Handpicked experience · Dubai
Dubai, UAEInstant Confirmation
Six to seven hours east into the Hajar mountains: the turquoise reservoir at Hatta Dam, a reconstructed mountain village, and air several degrees cooler than the coast.
A piece of Dubai cut off from the rest of the emirate
Reservoir water the colour of mineral turquoise
A mountain settlement rebuilt from how it stood
Pools fed by rainfall rather than piped in
Roughly three of those hours spent on the road
Hatta lies about ninety minutes east of the city, and the road climbs steadily into the Hajar mountains. The temperature drops as you go — noticeably, not marginally — which is most of the reason people make the trip between November and March.
One oddity worth knowing: Hatta is a Dubai exclave, physically separated from the rest of the emirate by other territory.
The reservoir water is a startling turquoise held between bare brown rock. The colour is mineral rather than a trick of the light, and it does not photograph as improbably as it looks in person. Kayaks and pedalos work the water, arranged on site.
The heritage village is a reconstructed mountain settlement with watchtowers and mud-brick houses, and it is quiet in a way the dam is not. Rock pools sit in the wadi bed nearby, holding water for much of the year.
Six to seven hours in practice, despite the name.
Open it to pick a date and work out the price.
What the fare covers, and what to budget for separately.
The practical detail, and the answers people actually ask for.
It runs six to seven hours including roughly ninety minutes of driving each way, so rather longer than the name suggests.
The main route now stays within the UAE, so it is not required as it once was. Carrying photo identification remains sensible.
Kayaks and pedalos operate on the reservoir. They are arranged and settled on site rather than through this booking.
Yes, and noticeably. Hatta sits higher and among mountains, and the difference is most pronounced between November and March.