Sir Bani Yas Island | A Memorable Family Staycation

📍 About Our Trip

Some trips are planned for adventure.

Some are planned for relaxation.

And then there are trips planned as a surprise for someone you love.

Our trip to Sir Bani Yas Island was exactly that. I planned this as a surprise birthday trip for my wife, and looking back, it remains one of our most memorable family getaways in the UAE.

We wanted to get away from the usual city routine and spend some quiet time together, surrounded by nature.

Sir Bani Yas turned out to be the perfect place.

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🚗 From Abu Dhabi to the Island

We drove from Abu Dhabi towards Jebel Dhanna, which takes roughly two and a half hours.

From there, the adventure changed from road to sea.

We reached the ferry point at:

📍 24.214240, 52.590436

We took the car ferry towards Sir Bani Yas Island, with the crossing taking around 30–45 minutes.

For me, the ferry ride itself was part of the excitement.

After driving for a couple of hours, suddenly the road disappears and your vehicle is sitting on a ferry in the middle of the Arabian Gulf.

That transition from road trip to island escape makes the journey feel special.

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🚢 The Ferry Experience

If you're travelling with your own vehicle, remember that the vehicle needs to go on the ferry.

Once the ferry starts moving, you can step out, enjoy the sea breeze and watch the mainland slowly disappear.

It's a small journey, but it gives you that feeling that you're actually leaving everyday life behind.

And that's exactly what we wanted.

🏝️ Arriving at Sir Bani Yas

Once we reached the island, we had another short journey before reaching our resort.

A bus takes guests from the arrival point to their respective properties, and our transfer took roughly 20–30 minutes.

By the time we reached the resort, the busy city feeling was completely gone.

We were surrounded by greenery, open space and wildlife.

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🦌 Al Sahel Villa Resort

We stayed at Al Sahel Villas, and this was probably the biggest highlight of the trip for our family.

The villas are surrounded by wildlife, and you don't necessarily have to go looking for animals.

Sometimes they come to you.

We could see Arabian Oryx and peacocks around the villas, which was especially exciting for the kids.

Watching wildlife from the comfort of your own villa gives the whole stay a completely different feeling.

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🦚 A Little Piece of Africa in the UAE

The surroundings almost made me forget that we were still in the UAE.

The open landscape, animals moving around the villas and the overall atmosphere created a feeling of being somewhere much farther away.

The dining experience added to it.

You could sit down for a meal while birds and animals were moving around outside.

It's not just dinner. It's dinner with nature happening around you.

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🛁 The Villa Experience

One of the things we really enjoyed was the outdoor bathtub area attached to the villa.

You could sit outside and watch the surroundings while birds and Oryx moved around.

There was also a small pool area that worked well for young children.

Of course, with children around water, we kept a close eye on them.

For us, the villa wasn't just somewhere to sleep.

It became part of the experience.