A unique desert hotel set amid the rolling dunes of central Sharjah, Al Badayer Retreat is a Bedouin-inspired caravanserai with 21st-century luxuries.
BY CATHERINE MAZY
PHOTOGRAPHY BY JULIET DUNNE
It takes under an hour to drive to a different world and a different time. On the E44, the cities of Sharjah and Dubai slip into the rear-view mirror as the desert unfolds ahead. An Arab castle appears on the horizon in the same chili-pepper tones as the Al Badayer Desert sands—Al Badayer Retreat.
The hotel is laid out in a circle covering 24,000 square metres, with a mosque, two restaurants, the reception area and the palace-like rooms on one side, an amphitheatre near the central plaza, and 10 “tents” fanning out in a crescent on the other side. It is airy and spacious, with electric buggies waiting to transport guests, but they aren’t necessary—everything is within a few minutes’ walk through the 200-plus palm trees.
Al Badayer is one of a trio of eco-retreats that make up the exclusive Sharjah Collection by Mysk—Al Faya Retreat in Mleiha and Kingfisher Retreat in Kalba are the other two—brought to life by the Sharjah Investment and Development Authority and managed by Mysk to drive environmentally responsible tourism in the emirate. They offer an antidote to the glittering resorts that have come to define luxury travel in the region.
Al Badayer Retreat offers a window to the region’s unique heritage and introduces guests to the Emirati way of life. It is a refuge, a settlement, offering sanctuary from the unyielding desert terrain from which modern nation states have grown and an opportunity to be at one with nature. Al Badayer Retreat is rooted in this land. It is at once a reflection of the past and a 21st-century oasis. Modern travellers increasingly seek to escape from the manufactured in search of the authentic, pursuing slower, more mindful travel, and this peaceful desert retreat offers that.
The rooms are streamlined yet have every necessity and luxury. A king-size bed, a sitting area. The furniture is sleek and modern, with subtle geometric designs that indicate it’s custom-made for this Bedouin-inspired palace. The geometric theme continues in the lattice screens shading the windows. The colour palette complements that of the surrounding desert. Such details elevate the design from modern international anonymity and install a bold sense of place, without going overboard into cliché.
Traditional touches continue across the grounds. A falaj, or irrigation channel, burbles along a winding path. The palm trees are still young—the hotel opened last autumn. Pergolas cast striped shade over walkways and various nooks arranged for sitting. The water and palm trees make Al Badayer a true oasis, attracting many birds, whose singing is the only break in the serenity.
The furniture is sleek and modern, with subtle geometric designs that indicate it's custom-made for this Bedouin-inspired palace. Such details offer a bold sense of place.
The quietude is thanks in part to the scale of the retreat. It’s both intimate and expansive. There are only 21 rooms, plus 10 tents, three of which have two bedrooms apiece for families. Al Badayer is called a glamping site, but it’s more glamorous than camping. The tents have concrete walls, the better to cool, or even to keep warm on winter nights—temperatures can drop as low as 10 degrees Celsius in the desert. But the conical white tent roofs preserve the illusion of the caravanserai. The tents, actually, are a world of their own, on the edge of the retreat, each with its private pool and shaded seating outside. The pools face the area’s biggest dune, known as Big Red, offering privacy.
Next to the open-air amphitheatre, Al Bury Tower offers panoramic views. Built as a watchtower, at its centre is a circular staircase where fresh air rushes through, similar to a barjeel, or wind tower, a traditional architectural feature that worked to cool buildings. The view is constant, yet changing with the light of different times of the day. The top of the tower can be reserved for a special dinner—marriage proposals and anniversaries are popular. Such a magical setting is perfect, too, for weddings in the amphitheatre and flexible reception rooms with catering from the retreat’s restaurants.
Al Badayer has two. Nizwa, a pan-Asian restaurant, seats 58 and is popular with locals who drive out for dinner and stargazing. The dining room continues the elegant mix of contemporary design with traditional accents. The ceiling features a cut-out exposing dark beams—a nod to traditional mangrove beams—and traditional lanterns hang. Arches and a feature wall of niches are stylized modern interpretations of Arab architecture.
For travellers seeking to escape the manufactured in search of the authentic, the retreat offers a window to the region's unique heritage and the Emirati way of life.
Nizwa’s dishes span the continent as the Silk Road once did. Shrimp machboos, a traditional Emirati dish, features locally sourced tiger prawns, rice and tomato, aromatic with cinnamon, cardamom, saffron and other spices. Al Madam, the more casual all-day-dining restaurant that seats 88, offers a buffet as well as dishes à la carte. Guests can order 24 hours a day.
It’s hard to decide how to spend time at Al Badayer, because there is a wealth of choices. Sand boarding, 4×4 trips, camel tours, quad biking, nature safaris, horseback riding, hiking, dune bashing. The hotel can arrange for anything—horses, camels, dune buggies, bikes, guides—as well as picnics when you’ll be out all day, as with the camel tours that go deep into the desert. There’s also a gym and an indoor pool. Since the tents have individual pools, the indoor pool, with its deep blue tiles and evocative arches, is used by guests in the rooms, with times set aside for ladies only.
A popular outing is a dawn hike to the top of Big Red for sunrise. It’s only a few minutes’ walk from the hotel, but it’s steep. Breakfast awaits, spread on a carpet. Local mangoes, dates and sweet melons. Labneh and cheeses. Fresh croissants. Shakshuka. Your preferred milk—Al Badayer stocks them all, from whole to skimmed to almond or oat or even camel. Surely legions of voyagers have woken to similar breakfasts and nearly the same timeless view since the era of the caravanserai.
From the dune’s crest, one can survey the red sea of sand, undulating and rippling to the horizon. A falcon hangs in the air, hunting for breakfast. The view is well worth the hike. The shadows sharpen as the sun makes its appearance, burnishing the crimson sand with a golden glow.
In the evening, a bonfire awaits, with stargazing. Staff in their cream-coloured uniforms literally roll out red carpets—plush Arabian ones—and set up low majlis cushions around the fire pit. Guests can roast corn on the cob and marshmallows over the flames. Outdoor movies also are shown, the big screen erected against a background of undulating dunes.
Al Badayer Retreat lives up to its name—it is a retreat from the bustle of city life, whether for adventure, nature or time travel to the days of the Bedouin caravanserais.
