With the Hajar Mountains rising just behind the city, the Arabian Gulf stretching out from the shore and the desert starting in the south near the farms and ghaf forests of Digdagga, Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) has possibly the best scenery of any emirate. The most northerly emirate, a creek divides the main city into the old town and the newer Al Nakheel district.

The past couple of years have witnessed RAK’s transformation into a prominent weekend destination, and several new resorts have opened for the overworked residents of Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The Tower Links Golf Course (+971 7 227 9939, towerlinks.com) is laid out among the mangroves around the creek and is popular at weekends, as is Al Hamra Golf Club (alhamragolf.com).

Ras Al Khaimah contains several archaeological sites, some dating back all the way to 3000BC. Take the Al Ram road out of the Al Nakheel district and towards the Hajar Mountains to discover some of the area’s history, including the Dhayah Fort, Shimal Archaeological Site and Sheba’s Palace. 

The bare ruins of the Dhayah Fort can be spotted from the road, but you might need a 4WD to access them. Further inland are the Shimal archaeological site and Sheba’s Palace. Both are a little obscure, but worth the difficulty of finding them. Shimal includes a tomb from the Umm An Nar period, roughly 5,000 years ago. Built as a communal burial place, the remains of more than 400 bodies have now been found there. 

Further down the same road is another tomb – this one dates back to the Wadi Suq period (2000BC). Many of the artefacts discovered in these locations can now be found at the National Museum at Ras Al Khaimah, while the Pearl Excursion and Pearl Museum (rakpearls.com) are reminders of Ras Al Khaimah’s more recent heritage and trade.

At the other end of the spectrum, Manar Mall (manarmall.com) is a large shopping and leisure facility, housing a cinema complex, family entertainment centre and dining options overlooking the creek and mangroves; Al Hamra Mall (alhamramall.com) and Safeer Mall (mysafeer.com) are also popular.

The town is quiet, relaxing and a good starting point for exploring the surrounding mountains, visiting the ancient sites of Ghalilah and Shimal, the hot springs at Khatt and the camel racetrack at Digdagga. There are also several chances to get into the mountains north of the city, as well as south of RAK in places like Jebel Yibir – the tallest mountain in the country, where a new track takes you nearly to the top for spectacular views.