It is the peak of summer in Dubai which the temperature soars to 48 degrees! Many Middle East residents are going away to escape from the heat.
Instead of flying many hours away, I have found a quick getaway to the mountains in neighbor country Oman to beat the heat! It is only 25 degrees in the mountains in Oman. There is a unique 5 star resort; which is also the highest 5 star resort hotel in the Middle East, The Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar.
From Dubai, it takes about 5 hours drive to the resort through Al Ain, Mazyad check point, Ibri and Nizwa. For the climb up to the resort in Jabal Akhdar, you need a 4 X 4 vehicle to go pass the Police checkpoint. If you don't have one, you can park the car at the bottom of the mountain and get a taxi or call the hotel to pick you up.
Here are some photos getting to the resort:
We climbed from 0 to over 2,000 meter in just 30 minutes. The temperature have dropped from 42 degrees to 22 degrees and it even rained at the top of mountain!
Here are some pictures of the surrounding mountains and the hotel exterior.
We were upgraded to 1 bedroom Cliff Pool Villa at check-in which is a very nice gesture of the hotel. Given we chose to visit the Resort and check-in on Saturday (a weekday check-in, instead of the busy Thursday and Friday weekend) may be the chance to get upgraded is better! 😉
Our Villa Host, Eva have arranged a golf buggy taking us to our Villa 9.
There are a lot of nice details in the villa, such as a few nice coffee table book, a set of golden playing card, chess board, a sketch board, blue tooth speaker, coffee making machine, wine cooler and even a binocular!
We visited the Anantara Spa and selected the Anantara Signature Massage as our 1 hour treatment. The Spa manager gave us a tour of the facility which has 2 Jacuzzi pool (one for Man and one for lady), many treatment rooms, a hair salon and a Hammam (Moroccan Bath)
The spa is surrounded by courtyard and trees but with excellent privacy. I found the Spa treatment excellent and the surrounding atmosphere very relaxing. We have 1 male and 1 female messauses from Indonesia.
In the evening, we went to Al Qalaa restaurant which serves Middle East Fusion cuisine. It has a very relaxing and cozy atmosphere with a square water fountain and nice lighting around.
The food is excellent, my steak was cooked exactly to what I've asked (Medium) and my wife enjoyed the fresh seafood mix grill. To my surprise, it isn't very overpriced at all.
Then we were off to the breakfast in Al Maisan Restaurant where it serve buffet breakfast with a fantastic view!
After the breakfast, we further explore the resort ground. We visited the swimming pool and recreation center where there is gym and children's playroom inside.
Diana's Point is named after Princess Diana's visit to Jabal Al Akhdar in 1986, where she stood at the top of mountain and read a book while Prince Charles sketch the surrounding. Diana's Point at the resort boasts insane views from the Saiq Plateau, the country's Green Mountain, which sits 2,000 meters above sea level on the curve of a canyon.
After a fun packed day, we retired to our villa for some private relaxation in our own swimming pool. The pool is huge and I can do a few laps inside easily!
Overall, we have a beyond amazing 5 star stay at the Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar Resort in Oman. I highly recommend to go there and escape from the heat!
Oh, I even made a film to remember the wonderful memory of our stay!