Home/About
Why this site exists
A private site about driving in the Emirates, written by one person who has spent a great many years covering these roads slowly and taking notes.
This site is run by a private individual, not a company. There is no registered business behind it, no staff, no office beyond a desk in Al Bateen and no arrangement with any dealer, importer, rental firm or event organiser. That independence is the whole point. Nothing is recommended here because somebody benefits from the recommendation, and nothing is left out because it would be awkward to mention.
The route notes come from driving the roads repeatedly, in different seasons and at different times of day, in ordinary comfortable cars rather than anything exotic. Where a note says the surface changes or the light becomes difficult, that is because it did, on a particular afternoon, in a car much like yours. Where it says a stretch is dull, that is also from experience, and saying so seems more useful than pretending otherwise.
The writing is aimed squarely at drivers past fifty, which shapes everything. It assumes you have driven for decades and do not need the basics explained. It also assumes that your back has an opinion about seat shape, that you would rather stop twice than once, that glare bothers you more than it used to, and that arriving rested matters more than arriving quickly. Those are not weaknesses to be worked around; they are simply the conditions of a good drive.
The services exist because readers kept asking for the same three things: a route written for their particular car and passengers, an honest look at whether a car would cope with a summer trip, and a calm second opinion while assessing a car to buy. They are priced plainly, arranged directly, and entirely optional. The whole of the written material on this site is free to read and will stay that way.
What you get here
A note that says a road is scenic is worth nothing. A note that says the junction is easy to miss when the sun is low, that the last reliable fuel is forty kilometres back, and that the viewpoint faces west so the light is best at the end of the day, is worth the drive.
Every timing on this site assumes proper stops and an unhurried pace, because that is how these drives should be done. If a plan only works by pressing on through the middle of the day without a break, it is a bad plan and it will not be recommended here.
No advertising, no sponsored mentions, no commission from anybody, and no relationship with any seller. The cost of that is a smaller site with fewer pages. The benefit is that you can take what is written at face value, which seems the better trade.
A short note about the trip you have in mind, who is coming, what you drive and roughly when, is enough to start with. The reply will be a plain answer about whether the route suits the season and the car, not a sales pitch.
Write to the Abu Dhabi desk