Dubai and Abu Dhabi may steal the limelight, but there’s a little corner of the UAE that deserves a bit more attention.
What Ajman – the smallest of the seven emirates – lacks in glitz and glamour, it more than makes up for in charm and friendliness.
You get the same lovely beaches, the same calm blue Persian Gulf waters and the same delectable winter sunshine… with a slightly less hefty price tag.
The capital – also Ajman – is just 30 minutes (traffic permitting) from Dubai airport… a hop, skip and a jump through Sharjah and you find yourself in the “old town” centered around Ajman Fort, which houses the fascinating national museum.
Here you can explore the region’s pearl-diving industry and learn about the history of Arabian horses, as well as the people and the evolution of their culture. There is also an original example of a barjeel – a wind tower with an innovative ancient air-conditioning system.
Despite its name, the surrounding Heritage District is relatively new, and showcases the best of Ajman, with lovely perfume shops, jewellery stores and restaurants.
My boyfriend James and I had a delicious seafood and rice dish at friendly, traditional restaurant Liwara Al Sha’abi, and finished off the meal with some sweet tea, sticky sesame dough balls and caramelly dates. Low key, friendly, delicious.
Just a stone’s throw (but a world) away is the quite bonkers Viking restaurant. The medieval theme starts at the front door and extends to the wood-and-stone decor, as well as the entertainment… at various intervals throughout your meal, musicians in leather, horned helmets and animal skins drum their way to the little stage to sing a folk song “from ancient times”, accompanied by bagpipes, drums and a woman juggling fire.
It’s mad, but loads of fun. None of this detracts from the food – the emphasis here is on mighty slabs of meat (King Ragnar’s Royal Tomahawk, anyone?). We plumped for the less insane wagyu beef short ribs and the wagyu ribeye – both melted in the mouth. You even get a choice of very butch knives with which to carve your beast. There are also fish and vegetarian dishes, all served by waiters “in character”. We had no room for dessert, but the ones delivered to the table next to us looked gorgeous.
The really hungry can tuck into multi-course menus with daunting names like The Feast and The Nordic Challenge. Quite an experience all round.
Souq Saleh, opposite the museum, houses beautiful boutique shops filled with extravagantly embroidered wedding dresses and hand-tooled leather goods.
Savvy shoppers should head to the nearby Gold Souq – prices are around 20 per cent cheaper than in Dubai, and artisans work on site if you want your baubles customised.
The area abounds with skilled tailors who can make anything your heart desires. Mall trawlers will love the sprawling City Centre Ajman, which has a host of local and international brands, and food from KFC to posh Indian dining. The Marina has a raft of restaurants and leisure facilities, as well as watersports for the energetic.
There are a number of seaside hotels on the Corniche, all along the same stretch of lovely sandy beach and millpond-calm sea.
The Fairmont has huge, fabulous rooms and a groovy shisha lounge. The pool’s swim-up bar, which is open from 11am, is rather popular.
Next door, The Ajman Saray has a stunning pool, luxurious spa and the Bab Al Bahr Beach Bar & Grill which serves mouthwatering burrata and heirloom tomato salad, grilled salmon, slow-cooked beef short rib, and chocolate melting pudding on a shady terrace looking over the Gulf.
The Ajman Hotel has gorgeous rooms, a perfect 430-yard stretch of private beach, and an exquisite Indian restaurant. We enjoyed lamb chops with pomegranates, delicately spiced fat juicy prawns, and succulent tandoori chicken kebabs at renowned Bukhara. People travel here from all over the UAE, such is its reputation.
If you really want to push the boat out you can stay at a super-luxurious villa with private garden leading on to your own section of white sand and blue sea at the Oberoi Beach Resort, further up the coast at Al Zorah.
This magnificent resort, complete with an 18-hole golf course designed by Jack Nicklaus, is right on the edge of the Al Zorah Natural Reserve, a beautiful mangrove-fringed lagoon which leads to more of those beautiful beaches where the creek hits the sea.
The best way to explore this wildlife haven is a guided kayak tour with the friendly folk at Quest for Adventure. There are almost 60 bird species in this area, including a flamboyance of resident flamingos.
As we paddled back towards the setting sun, we marvelled at this lovely oasis so close to the hustle and bustle of the region’s skyscraper-filled cities.
While the main part of Ajman is on the coast, it has two small exclaves inland – Manama and Masfout.
We spent a lovely day in the latter, which is about 75 miles inland from the capital, on the border with Oman, reached by a recently upgraded highway cutting through the desert towards the Hajar mountains with their popular hiking trails.
The town of Masfout nestles amid these mountains, and we scrambled to the top of a hill to little Al Boma Fort for views across the palm-strewn valleys.
The new Masfout Museum in the old castle has been beautifully curated by the locals and is well worth a visit. There are ambitious plans to develop this area for tourism, drawing visitors from all over to take in the fresh mountain air.
We enjoyed a picnic lunch of lamb with yogurt and rice, tabbouleh and fattoush salad under the trees on a subsistence farm before heading back to the coast.
So if glitzy Dubai isn’t your cup of Arabic tea, then laidback Ajman is the perfect place for some winter sun.
Book the holiday
Value Added Travel offers five nights on all-inclusive at the Fairmont Ajman hotel from £879 per person, with Emirates flights from Stansted or Gatwick between July 22-August 31; regional departures also available. Find out more at valueaddedtravel.com/ajman.
You can also get more information at ajman.travel.
