Destination Golf Global (Spring 2019) * | Page 20

Press Group selfie, Abu Dhabi Golf Club an oasis, just a fast 150 km away, coupled with two of the world’s major airlines, Etihad and Emirates, offering direct flights from just about anywhere, and that there are local partners providing 7 night, 5 round packages for around USD 1,000.00, make for a powerfully attractive scenario.” So there are three, but there is one more which can’t be ignored despite the fact that it is a bit of a trek through the desert and some jaw dropping sand dunes to the town of Al Ain, an inland oasis full of palm groves and natural springs. The Al Ain Equestrian Shooting and Golf Club is simply a blast. Which brings me back to my first impressions of Abu Dhabi. Al Ain was our first stop. Arriving late, we spent a too short session on the perfectly maintained tee at the massive practice range, I am not kidding, the conditioning of the thing felt like they were closed for months just waiting for our little group to appear. Next, we moved over to the lighted Par three course for a fun 9 hole round on turf so lush that my travelling partner, Zenta Thomas (Destination Golf representative in Asia), who wasn’t playing, took off her shoes for the entire round and luxuriated in the sensuous softness while experiencing at one point, the sound of evening prayers from the nearby mosque. We were all quite affected by the thought of playing a game of the modern world 20 Destination Golf .TRAVEL amidst the timeless sounds of the prayers. Our next day, it was out to the regulation course for a solid round on a pretty terrific, as in “pretty and terrific” course that confirmed its status as well worth the drive and a night’s stay. I have to say; the hospitality of the staff was outstanding. Gavin Chappell does a fantastic job of personalizing the experience including live scoring to your home club, so friends can track your round. The special treatment wasn’t just because there were a few golf writers in our group. I spoke to several people from different groups unrelated to our visit, who had exactly the same experience. We were more than a little curious about the camel racing facility and shooting center on the grounds but alas, readers of this article who visit with a little more time on there hands can explore that activity themselves. I would have liked to have stayed a little longer at this venue as the place has lots to see and do aside from camel sprints. They include white water rafting (seriously) surfing (they make perfect 3 meter+ waves!) Bronze Age tombs in an Archaeological Park and a well-regarded car museum. This literal outlier was a very pleasant surprise and we highly recommend a couple of nights here as part of any itinerary to the region. So now that we have established Abu Dhabi’s golf chops, here is the rest of the story. The place is splendid! Back