kevlittle21

Hello,

Im due to relocate out to the middle east, and dubai itself, at the end of october, i have been provided with a 2 bed furnished apartment at the gardens, jebel ali in with my package, could anyone offer any advice / details / about the gardens in general?

Do they have a gym (weight lifting and cardio equipment)? is this generally a nice area to settle into middle eastern life? i have looked at the mall online and this looks really impressive.

Are the pool's at the gardens used by many? are they clean and nice to use?

Any general info would be great as this appears quite limited online.

Im also a big newcastle united fan, are there any suggestions on good pubs to watch newcastle play in particular? maybe a supporters club?

Many thanks in advance & kind regards
kev little

Jim Smith

I have lived in a 2 bed flat in The Gardens for 8 years and we love it! It must have the most trees and greenery of just about anywhere in Dubai. Of course that may not be your opinion! The swimming pool near me doesn't seem to be used as much as you would expect. However it appears very clean and a couple of guys are there at 06.00 each day cleaning the pool itself! I don't believe there are any free gyms, but a big fitness first in Ibn Battuta mall and also a smallish one at Jebel Ali Club both of which you have to pay to use!

kevlittle21

Cheers for the quick reply mate, appreciated.

Any idea on costs of the fitness first? guess i could look online for info on that.

From the limited info / pics of the gardens online, it does look spot on to be honest, do you use many of the facilities provided? in your opinion?

Cheers again

Spugsy

It's not cheap for the gym,. about £70 a month, it's a good gym though, big and just last month been fully done out so top gear in there.

Ibn Buttuta Mall is pretty good, shops aren;t all that but 13 screen cinema, loads of pick n mix places, booze shop hidden away in there - it'll do the job. Plus the Marina where loads of boozers are is less than 15 mins away in a cab.

Oh and there's a quality kebab shop nearby as well.

kevlittle21

Kebab shop? like home from home, champion.

Are there any other gym's close by? Il be working in the jebel ali free zone, somewhere enroute perhaps?

Iv sent fitness first an email enquiring about costs.

A mate lives in the marina area, so he will show me around that part of town, which will be a massive help.

But i need a gym or il be like a house end in 6 month, especially with this kebab house close by.

Cheers for the reply mate, appreciated

Spugsy

All gyms are expensive mate, fitness first are good (well for a gym), you can use the other ones around as well, AED 400 a month which is cracking onto £80 a month to be honest.

Aye kebabs are quality at that place.

do you play footy?

auzdafluff

Spugsy's right. The one I used, up until it cooled down enough to get a bike and ride it around the marina, was AED 700 a month (£125 a month) so count FF as a good price.

There are even some that try to charge AED 900 a month!

mentalist

You seem to have landed on your feet but just double check that they are putting you up at The Gardens rather than Discovery Gardens just down the road.

kevlittle21

Cheers for all the replies, appreciated.

Spuggsy, aye mate i enjoy a kick about like, iv never played at a decent level, but know how to play, if i can get a little fitness back i still love it. Are there any games going out there?

I think Fitness First will do fine then, as its on my door step and appears to be reasonably priced in comparison.

And try and limit myself to one kebab a week eh? haha.

Cheers again all

kittycat1

this board is turning into Geordie expats!

Aye... Champion... Wayhay the toon man/pet or whatever it is you geordie lads say! We shall soon need a translation page for us simple southerners!

Anyway welcome littlekev

Spugsy

I play 3 times a week and sure I can get you into our Friday afternoon footy games mate, I still play and in all honesty I'm nothing more than average (with the twice yearly wondergoals!)

Spugsy

Cor Cat you should taste the kebabs doon our way!

kevlittle21

aye mate that'd be sound, 11 or 5 a side? out-door i assume, the heat will kill me at first haha, but id be well up for a knock about bud

is it a team or just a group of friends against friends? either way mate it'd be great to get involved.

i know how to play and understand football a little better than i can play, if mt feet and legs could do what my brain tells them to do, id be decent, haha.

thanks again mate, very much appreciated

jebelaligardener

Jebel Ali Club has a gym, swimming pool and tennis courts. Membership is fairly cheap from what I remember, but the gym is quite small esp compared to Fitness First.

Football is shown in the bar so good chance you will get to see the matches there (I am Toon Army supporter aswell) The prices in the bar are fairly cheap.

With regard to the apartments, depending on what building number you are in, some have no problems, others have damp (buildings 128 and 129 are the ones I know of). The biggest problem I had wasn't in the apartment - it was getting in and out of The Gardens if it rained (not that it happens very often). They have a drainage problem - so the roads in and around The Gardens and Ibn Battuta become flooded.

Blue Cat

Hello from another Geordie, South Shields to be exact