The UAE’s most popular nature reserve named the Arabian Wildlife Park, claiming to have over 13,000 animals is located on Sir Bani Yas Island. The Arabian Wildlife park made it possible for the rehabilitation as well as the breeding of indigenous species. A visit to the park is a must for those interested in wildlife and the marvels of nature.
History
The Arabian Wildlife Park is a vast nature reserve situated on Sir Bani Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, offering a haven for wildlife. The island is named as a tribute to the Sir Bani Yas tribe, the most prominent Arab coalition in the history of UAE.
In 1971, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan became the ruler of Abu Dhabi, and after that the first president of the country. He announced Sir Bani Yas to be the perfect island retreat. In 1977 he passed a law forbidding hunting and started his ‘Greening of the Desert’ initiative. It was his endeavours that made it possible to create a wildlife sanctuary on the island and begin the first island breeding programmes. Initially, the move began with a few Arabian oryx, whose number has now reached more than 450, saving the species from becoming endangered.
The beautiful Arabian wildlife park covers 1400 hectares, which is almost half the island.
Things to See at Arabian Wildlife Park
The Arabian Wildlife park has helped in preserving and maintaining the indigenous flora and fauna of the area. It has prevented species like the Sand Gazelles and the Arabian Oryx from getting extinct. Along with them, a variety of other interesting animals can be seen like cheetahs, Arabian Rock Hyraxes, ostriches, Striped Hyenas and so on.
You can take the Nature & Wildlife Drives of the park, in vehicles owned by the park, with an accompaniment of expert staff. This guided tour on a 4×4 covers a vast area in each trip.
Or you can simply hike through the savannahs or view the mangroves riding on a kayak.
There is also an option of a 3-hour tour.
How to Reach here from Dubai and Abu Dhabi
The Al Gharbia region of the UAE is where Sir Bani Yas Island is situated, 250km from Abu Dhabi, in the south-west of it. To visit this place one has to go by car and then take a boat. The boat is available at Jebel Dhanna, the mainland near Sharjah. There is an option of water taxis for foot passengers or landing crafts for vehicles. The destination can be reached directly by boat having docks at Sir Bani Yas’s Royal Bay Moorings, or small aircraft that can land on the island’s little runway.
The island is 370 km southwest of Dubai. It takes 45 min to reach Jebel Dhanna Jetty by car from Dubai.
There is yet another option – you can avail a luxury eight-day itinerary by Lightfoot Travel which will take tourists around the GCC in a private aircraft, going over Salalah, Muscat and Jabal Akhdar in Oman, stopping at Sir Bani Yas Island for 2 nights.
If you like this place then don’t miss visiting Dubai Dolphin show.
Entry Timing and Fees
Following are the timings for the park’s visiting hours:
- Sun-Mon. 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM
- Wed – Thu. 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM
- Fri. 2:00 PM – 6:00 PM
- Sat. 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM.
The fees for adults is AED 15, for children over 12 years, it is AED 5.
Entry is free for kids below the age of 12.
Map Address
