A road trip to Al Mirfa
How is it to cruise in 160km/hr….if you want to experience that, hit on the Abu Dhabi Sila international highway.
“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.” — Helen Keller
Me and Lul (My dearest Wifeyy) set out to from Dubai to Al Mirfa, a port town that is located at 160kms away from the Abu Dhabi city. It was a fun-filled drive.
We planned the trip accordingly that we will go on a week day. We left from Dubai at around 10.45AM to avoid the regular office going traffic.
We had already booked the AL Mirfa Hotel via Booking.com, The only 3-star hotel in AL Mirfa. As it was a weekday (Monday), the hotel had very minimum guest count.
I guess there were these three Arab guys and one more Arab family, that’s all we could spot.
Al Mirfa is a very serene and quiet place. It is located well away from the hustle and bustle of the city life.
Our hotel had a beach front where you could take a stroll and relax by looking at the horizon where the sun kisses the sea. The view from our hotel room was breathtaking.
There was a sense of peace all over and we felt so happy that we were away from the maddening crowd of Dubai.
Let me tell you the trip in detail like how did we start, where did we stop, what did we do and all.
Phase-1 of the Road Trip : Dubai ( Karama to Abu-Dhabi,( Yas Mall) | 115 KM, 1 hr Approx.
We started from Dubai and took our first pit stop at the Emarat petrol station in Jebel-Ali. It is a very convenient Gas-Station while you drive to Abu-Dhabi on the Sheikh Zayed Road.
There is a mini-supermarket adjacent to the petrol station where you could grab all you would want for a trip. Bottle of water, fruit juice, tissues, snacks, you name it they have it. They as well have firewood and fuel for camping.
Next to Emarat Mini shop there is a small food court where you have a McDonalds, Burger-King, Sub-Way and an Arabic Restaurant. There is also a restroom facility which is really well maintained.
After filling the tank to full we headed to Yas Mall. As the roads were good and regular office traffic was less, we could reach Yas Mall by 12.20PM. From the parking we headed straight to the food court to grab our lunch bites.
We located an Indian food chain at the food court and as we had to travel another 150+ KM, we settled down for a vegetarian cuisine (Gosh,I had to use all my negotiation skills to convince Lul for that) to avoid any travel sickness from having non-veg.
We grabbed a plate of Chat, Channa Batura and a glass of fresh juice. Post our lunch we had a stroll in the mall and clicked couple of pictures for our mandatory ( Lulz not mine :P) Instagram updates. Then we headed out to the parking lot to get on the wheels
Phase-2 Yas Mall to AL Mirfa | 160 Km 1hr 28 mins
We headed on to Abu Dhabi from Yas Mall. En route we passed by the Saadiyat Island, the Louvre Museum, then without entering the Abu Dhabi city there is a bypass to the Abu-Dhabi- Ghweifat Highway.
We were guided by the GPS to follow the signs for Abu-Dhabi Sila International road .
That stretch of road was superb as the speed limit there was 140km/hr. So we tested out all possible speed variations in our BMW X5i. It was an ultimate driving experience or what BMW calls it ‘the sheer driving pleasure’.
All we could see was vast stretch of deserts with very little habitat. It was mostly sand on the both sides of the highway. The highway was in its full grandeur with six lanes ( one side) laid perfectly across the desert land.
We could hardly see any passenger cars it was mostly trucks and mini vans that go for intercity trips. Only rest areas were the truck lay by, parking lots and gas stations ( did not spot many though).
It highly recommended to fill your gas full tank from Abu Dhabi before you catch the Sila highway as there is minimal gas stations on the way till at least AL Mirfa. As you enter AL Mirfa town, there is an Adnoc Gas Station there.
From the Abu-Dhabi Sila highway you could see an exit to AL Mirfa. Take that and it leads to a beautiful location with palm trees at the both sides of the road.
As you drive forward you see glimpses of the sea. You can hardly see people around as the it’s a port city and there mainly laborers who work in the port resides at Mirfa.
We could find a co-operative shopping complex and an ADIB (Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank) ATM inside the complex. We withdrew some cash for our next day and filling petrol etc.
Then we headed to our hotel. As you enter the hotel compound you see lot of Swans and Pigeons and also we could spot a peacock too strolling around the garden area and the parking lot. It was a real visual treat for us to see these animals around.
We checked into our room and got out for a stroll immediately, it was almost 4.30 and there it wasn’t too sunny. We went around clicked a lot of pictures. As the sun and the sea met we enjoyed a beautiful sunset and got back to the hotel as it was getting dark.
There was a cozy lobby area were we sat and talked a lot. Then, for the night we explored the Mirfa town a bit, Lul located a Kerala Food Joint where we had our dinner (Kerala Paratta and Chicken curry).
Unlike Dubai, there is no nightlife by 830–9.00 PM it was totally dark and silent. We headed back to hotel after our dinner and then had a glass of beer from the sport bar at the Al Mirfa Hotel.
It was again relaxing ambience with a Pool table, a dart and scrabble. Lul got all excited by seeing the scrabble but was equally sleepy too. Hence we called it a day as we finished our drink and walked to the room for the night.
The scenic beauty of the place is beyond words. The sense of calmness would be always remembered by us. Oh it was such an amazing trip.
Stay tuned for more travelogues!
