karabrittan

My family and I are moving to Abu Dhabi at the beginning of July, im keen to know if the expat club 'the club' is worth joining, it is very expensive to join, we have been and it is nice but just want some personal feedback from anyone who is a member. We are also going to be living in Mangrove One compound near Khaliffa park, my husband will work for ADIA and my daughter will go to Repton school on Reem Island. If anyone has any connections with any of the above and would like to connect with me would be great to network a little before we arrive. Also if anyone is on there way to Abu Dhabi from UK to live I'd love to connect with you too....thank you so much and I really hope to meet some of you lovely people before we arrive.

PS we are coming from Doha...I hope its better!!

Kara

archie159

"The Club" (and it's not an expat club - plenty of Emiratis are members) is great for families, and is a lot, lot cheaper than any of the hotel beach clubs. There is masses going on. It can get a bit Butlins-like on a Friday afternoon, and some of the facilities are a little tired, but as it is non-profit making, and owns the land on which it sits, its running costs, and thus membership fees, are very low for UAE standards. You can't join without going along for a visit, so you might as well do that, find out what activities etc they offer, and make up your mind at that point.

We have friends who live in Mangrove One, and also work for ADIA (though their children go to Brighton). If you PM me with a bit more information about yourselves, I'll pass it on and see if they are willing to get in touch.

busybee2

the club is "very" cheap to join it used to be only a few... now all the hotels have clubs and they can want 65k for a couple a year!

auh is more to do than doha but very same same

soukie

BB have you lived in Doha??!

Karabrittan, you will love AD if you are relocating from Doha! It's very different to Doha - much easier to get around and the mentality is different too. Wait until you get here and then take your time to check out the clubs. You will be fine at Mangrove. Good luck

busybee2

soukie

soukie

??

busybee2

what

shiraz1

Mangrove One still have a "No Arabs" policy?
Both for residents and staff.

Newbie72

Hi Kara

We're moving to AD from the UK in August. Haven't decided where to live yet, but have secured places for the little ones at Raha International.

I'd be interested to hear from anyone about where to live that isn't too long a commute to school and has a good community feel. Budget would be up to 250k for a 4 bed (or 3 bed with a study/family room that could be used for guests).

We were also thinking of joining the Club. I'm coming over house hunting in a few weeks and will see if I can go for a visit.

busybee2

go for something in kca 250 is an extremely high budget. the club its a bit of a journey from kca tho. look maybe at raha beach too. most landlords/agents will not allow you to look too far in advance ie 3 weeks is usual, they will not show you anything... but of course you can get an idea... also ramadan is soon acoming and everything slows down

Rubydo

Hi Kara

As most people have said the club is a brill place to be a member, it may look expensive to start with what with the joining fee and then the annual fee but once you become a member then it will only be the annual fee you pay each year, it also depends when you join, for example if you were to join in July when you arrive you will only pay until dec, then you will pay again in jan for the whole year. There is so much to do there for adults and kids, always has something going on each day and night. As mentioned the other beach clubs are probably more classy but very expensive and the food and drinks will also be expensive. At the club the food and drink are very reasonable and in summer (when you arrive) they usually have offers too, so a pint could cost just 10dirhams!! Less than England ha.

With regards to where you are placed with housing it is a brill location, I live next door in bloom gardens and a lot of employees of ADIA also live here ( not myself or partner though) so maybe we will get to know each other too

The school your daughter has a place at will fantastic and not too bad to get to from mangrove one.

Sorry abut the war and peace. Hope this info helps, message if you need anything.

Laura x