IKnowNothing

Anyone been there recently?

Thinking of a quick weekend in September.

Any comments on chalets (2 bedroom) -v- the "Hotel" rooms?

jam25mack

TBH I went a few years ago and as much as I had a good time it was more to do with the group than the resort. Personally I think its over priced compared with other E Coast options.

DXBtoDOH

It's like going back in time - the UAE circa 1990s.

Food is utter crap so bring your own and have a bbq.

Snoopy island right off the beach is the best snorkelling in the UAE.

Laid back and fun. I'm sure it's overpriced relative to the other east coast options but sometimes it's nice not staying in a fancy UAE hotel.

iggle

You are wrong.

jam25mack

In that case I'd go camping and save the cash....

IKnowNothing

That's one of the appeals, the bbqs in the chalets - ideal for the kids too.

archie159

We stayed there in the spring (and did a PADi diving course at the same time). It was a lot cheaper than the other hotels over there (about half the price, even with various "special deals" on offer at the hotels). The chalets were fine for a family, and we BBQd each evening. Breakfast was so-so - but is not included in the rate, so no need to take it if you bring your own supplies (there is a fridge in the chalets). If you're used to staying a places such as Emirates Palace you'll find it very rough around the edges, but if you are more used to typical British hotels then you'll feel at home. As already said, snorkelling is good there, and the children enjoyed the beach. Its perfectly fine. There is another thread on this forum about the same place, with various tips about where to eat etc.

Irishbeekeeper

We went last year. Got a 2 bed type on the first floor of this chalet, over by the right side, I dont remember what they were called but I do remember enjoying the quietness of it all since the ground floor chalets had too much going on for my taste.
The rooms were ok, slightly cramped but the living room was nice and huge with a decent kitchen and the balcony was also large and great view.
The sand was not clean. There were dark blue old oil clots (previous oil spills in that area) in the sand and that made everything stick. So bottle caps, cigarrettes etc. I mean not rampant but still NOT children friendly. I did tell the management that they needed a huge cleanup of the area but he just waggled his head and smiled at me. Maybe they have cleaned it up since then, I dont know. Would rather go to RAK where the beaches are much much cleaner.

archie159

The sand was clean in the spring this year. Conversely, we went diving up in Mussandam in May, and though most places were fine, one area of sea was hideous with oil clots. According to the diving crew, there is a big problem down the entire east coast (Oman and UAE) with ships cleaning their tanks illegally. Though coastguard try to catch them, it is like cat-and-mouse. So, wherever you go there is always a risk that you'll find oil spills.

IKnowNothing

Thanks for all the help, the people I'm going with live in RAK, so not ideal for them.

iggle

You don't have friends outside of me. So who you kidding.

Inselaffen

did my second open water dive at snoopy. was a really good dive. plenty to see and a nice long dive due to the shallow depths.

IKnowNothing

Snorkelling OK too?

DXBtoDOH

It's not the Maldives but there's plenty of colourful fish. People have even seen turtles (though not me).

As a FYI you won't see much fish until you're fairly close to the island. It's a decent 10 minute swim out to it and I once overheard some silly bint whinge about how she swam 2/3rds of way and didn't see any fish and gave up and returned to the beach and how it was all a very disappointing and overrated experience. I soon straightened her out

Also be careful about where you step. There's some thorny starfish type with more spikes than a pikey's hair (I forget what they're called) that's fairly common and can be poisonous if you step on it. Easy to avoid. Don't touch!

jam25mack

There used to be loads of turtles over there, normally directly over the raspberry coral.