Dhow Harbour — Attraction in Abu Dhabi

There's something fascinating about sitting by the harbour side watching the dhows slip off to sea. At any time of day, there's work going on as fishers mend their nets, pile up lobster pots, hang out colourful sarongs to dry, unload fish and congregate for communal chats. As you survey the resting dhows strung together five abreast, you can almost forget Abu Dhabi's modern backdrop as its ancient past as a fishing village is revealed.

The harbor is the one place you can watch the traditional dhows return from sea, and sunset is the best time to do this. A number of dinner dhow cruises depart from here, and there are a couple of restaurants at Al Dhafra. You will also find fish, fruit, and carpet markets here in the area known as the Al Meena Souks. Next to the harbor is the Iranian Souk, where mostly Iranian handicrafts, household goods, and potted plants are sold. The U.A.E. developed as a merchant nation, and trade with Iran has long been one of its principal economic activities. This Iranian market is an authentic if not very charming look into the traditional way of doing business here. Note that photography is not allowed anywhere inside the port area. It's easy to get lost driving here, so I'd recommend...

At the fish market, you will find all kinds of fresh fish. You can choose the fish you like and take it home or have it cleaned at a nominal price of around 10 dirhams per kilo. The fish here is very fresh, but make sure to check it yourself as some vendors try to sell what they have.

You can buy the fish and take it to the restaurant of your choice. Honestly, they are all pretty good. I tried Gandofli, and it was excellent, although I didn't like their stews.

The Alexandrian (Aleskandrani) restaurant is also amazing. The staff there are so friendly everywhere, to be honest, not particularly one restaurant over the other

There are many nice restaurants like Al-Shader and Bab Al-Bahr.

The most important thing if you decide to eat in the restaurant is to decide whether you select what u need from the menu or if u will buy the fish from the market and get it grilled in the restaurant

I prefer the second option to buy the fish and give it to the restaurant it is better i terms of the fish freshness and the prices . But if you do so, then they will charge you around 25aed for the table (pls...

A great place to spend the evening by the creekside nice ambience some good restaurants are also available. If you have a family or even a single person can go there, watch the sunset or even the sunrise peacefully or must go places and famous among the people who are staying there. Busier in the evening also. the only downside of this area is the lack of not enough chairs or seatings or even small cafes which are accessible to the common public. Yes there are some high-end restaurants but for the common people who come there and want to sit there for some time they don't want to spend that much on their coffee or a tea. So small vendors are not there. So if you are planning to go there and if you're not in the mood to have a large amount of food then you can carry your own and sit there if you get a place. Like I said, seating...