Things to do in Fujairah

Fujairah is the only emirate with no coast on the Arabian Gulf. It sits on the far side of the Hajar mountains, on the Gulf of Oman. That changes the water and the weather.

The sea here is deeper and cooler, with coral instead of sandbank. Things to do in Fujairah come down to that water and those mountains. There is no skyline and no metro.

What is on the coast road

• Al Bidya Mosque. The oldest mosque still standing in the country, dated to around 1446, with four uneven domes resting on a single central pillar. It is still in use.
• Fujairah Fort. Carbon dating puts the first build in the early 1500s. It was rebuilt later, then restored and reopened to visitors in 2000.
• Snoopy Island. Off Al Aqah, and the snorkelling everyone means when they say east coast.
• Dibba Rock. Further north, shallow, reachable from the beach and busy with turtles.
• Masafi. The mountain village whose Friday Market trades every day of the week.

Inland the wadis cut back into the mountains, and the hot springs at Ain Al Madhab sit at the mouth of one. The coast road north to Dibba is one of the best drives in the country. Do it in daylight.

What sells from here

Snorkelling at Dibba Rock is the local product. Almost everything else on offer is a transfer or a safari run from somewhere else. That is honest rather than disappointing.

Desert trips leave Fujairah for the Ras Al Khaimah dunes, because the dunes are not here. Airport runs go to Dubai and Sharjah. Fujairah has an airport of its own, and it is small.

Practical

• Weather. The east coast runs a degree or two cooler than Dubai and gets more rain, which here means a handful of days a year. Season is still November to March.
• Getting here. About ninety minutes from Dubai over the mountains, and worth driving in daylight for the road itself.
• The train. Etihad Rail's first passenger route ends here. The run up from the capital takes an hour and three quarters, which beats the drive.
• Diving. Autumn gives the clearest water. Visibility drops when the sea cools and the plankton blooms.
• Taxis. Scarce outside the city, so a car or a driver is close to essential.
• The Friday Market. Carpets, pottery and fruit, and it expects you to bargain.
• Alcohol. Poured in licensed hotels, and the mountain road back is not the place to test it.
• Money. Cards work in hotels and less reliably in the villages, so carry some notes.