6 GCC wellness retreats within a three-hour flight of Dubai
Our Habitas Ras Abrouq is situated on the Arabian Gulf at the edge of the UNESCO-protected Al-Reem Biosphere Reserve, and offers a slice of dune-laden, Qatari coastline you need to see to believe. With a wide range of villas draped in raw, rustic look and feel, this is one spot you can go to and completely disconnect from city life. While there, you'll be immersed in nature, exploring the sand with their safari experience, eating at their farm-to-table restaurant and living the best of the Qatari music, art and cultural scene. Of course, wellness is a vital part of the Our Habitas brand, and here you'll find tailor-made experiences.
@habitasrasabrouq Alila Hinu Bay, Oman
Alila Hinu Bay offers the perfect coastal escape just one-hour away from Salalah Airport. Nestled along Oman's pristine coastline, this tranquil resort blends seamlessly with the surrounding natural beauty, offering an experience that emphasizes wellness and relaxation, and the wellness experience here is transformative. Alila Spa offers holistic treatments inspired by traditional Omani healing practices, including massages, facials, and detox therapies, all designed to nurture both body and soul. Guests can enjoy yoga sessions, guided meditation, two saltwater pools, all designed to clear the mind and restore balance. For a truly unique experience, indulge in a private wellness consultation to tailor your stay to your specific needs.
@alilahinubay Zulal Wellness Resort, Qatar
Zulal Wellness Resort by Shiva-Zom in Qatar offers a pioneering approach inspired by traditional Arabic and Islamic medicine. Set on the northern coast of Qatar, this luxurious wellness haven combines a scenic coastal location with a focus on holistic health and sustainable living. The resort's wellness offerings are extensive, with personalised programs that include fitness, nutrition, mental clarity, and holistic therapies. Highlights include the hydrothermal facilities, a herbal sauna, steam room, and a saltwater pool designed to rejuvenate both body and mind. The treatment menu is inspired by Arabic healing practices, with therapies that incorporate indigenous herbs and oils.
@zulalwellnessresort Our Habitas AlUla
Complete with 96 villas dotted across the vast desert landscape, rooms at Habitas AlUla are set between manmade dunes for optimum privacy, and many feature epic mountain views from their private terraces. The best way to get around is on an electric bike, and there's something truly freeing about whizzing through the valley that way (although there's buggies too for those looking to give their legs a rest). From yoga and mindfulness, to date seed body scrubs and herbal aromatherapy, Thuraya focuses on centuries-old practices to help clear the path to self-discovery and awaken focus on both our physical and energetic bodies.
@habitasalula Al Baleed Resort Salalah by Anantara, Oman
Located on the stunning southern coast of Oman, on the lush land of Salalah, Al Baleed Resort Salalah by Anantara is the getaway to Oman, especially in the khareef season – a time travellers from around the world seek out, when the mountain town turns from a desert landscape into a cold, green paradise. The Anantara Spa provides a haven of wellness, featuring a traditional Moroccan hammam, rejuvenating signature treatments, and open-air therapy suites inspired by the natural surroundings. Guests can unwind further with yoga by the shore or explore the tropical flora surrounding the resort's lagoon.
@anantarasalalah Six Senses Zighy Bay, Oman
Six Senses Zighy Bay will transport you into a most perfect harmony of Omani landscape, both the rugged mountains and the shimmering waters. Located just off the UAE border at Dibba, in the Musandam Peninsula, it's been named after a quiet fishing town right next to it, and will push you into an experience that brings that far-flung historic world to life. This is luxury personified, the Omani way. It's perched right at the coast, featuring 82 Omani-style pool villas and a spectacular view of aquamarine expanse – just what you'll need to disconnect from hectic everyday life this summer.
@sixsenseszighybay
Images: Socials
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Gulf Connections: The hills are alive with the sound of Arabic
Set in the Austrian Alps, the resort town of Zell Am See could have been plucked from The Sound of Music. Against a backdrop of snow-capped mountains, picturesque traditional buildings lead down to the clear blue waters of Lake Zell. In winter it attracts skiers from all over the world. In summer, bringing in the visitors needs a different approach. And that's when, more than 20 years ago, the Zell Am See tourist board hit upon a brilliant idea. Placing adverts in GCC countries, from Kuwait to Oman, the region soon began attracting Arab visitors in their tens of thousands, anxious to escape the punishing heat of an Arabian Gulf summer for the cool of the Alps. Rainy attraction The campaign succeeded beyond anyone's wildest dreams. Even cloudy weather and rain was an additional attraction. In 2006, the head of the local tourist board, Hans Wallner, speculated that 'for Arab tourists, I guess that water in various kinds – frozen as snow at the Kitzsteinhorn glacier and the high-quality water in Lake Zell are the main attractions'. By then, Arab visitors to the area represented about 10 per cent of the total − about 80,000 tourists. Two years later, it was 15 per cent and by 2013, over a third. They also spent, on average, €490 a day, compared with €160 a day by European tourists. Before the pandemic hit in 2020, it was estimated around 350,000 visitors from GCC countries were visiting Zell Am See during July and August. Post-covid anecdotal evidence suggests the area is as busy as ever. Arab Muslim visitors enjoy walking trails, boat trips and the chance to experience real snow by taking the mountain lifts, and local businesses have been quick to respond to their needs. Hotels cleared out the mini bar to offer alcohol-free rooms, while restaurants such as Ali Baba, Shiraz and Al Khalij offer Arab menus that are halal. Several shops also began offering products that appealed directly to Arab tastes. The Aydin Supermarket sells sweet treats like dates, halva and mamoul, along with spices, hummus and 'a wide selection of halal food'. More than a dozen stores and grocers in the town and in neighbouring Kaprun now cater for tourists from the Middle East. 'Tourism apartheid' Success also brings problems, though. Far-right political movements began to stir again in Austria, prompted in part by refugees from Iraq and Syria's civil wars. There were mutterings that Zell Am See was losing its Austrian character amid the huge number of Arab visitors. In 2014, the regional authorities, including the police and tourist board, issued a well-intentioned but heavy-handed booklet intended to help Middle East tourists better integrate with Austrian culture. Visitors were asked not eat meals on the floor, not haggle in shops and make sure their children wore car seatbelts. Most controversial it attempted to address women's clothing, saying: ' In our culture, we are accustomed to looking into the smiling face of the person opposite us in order to gain a first impression and build mutual trust. "It would be a great pleasure for us if you could join us in celebrating the uniquely joyful Austrian mentality and show your colourful scarves and dress and, in this way, show us your smile.' Described by one newspaper as 'tourism apartheid', it was withdrawn after only a few weeks, with officials admitting "unfortunately, certain passages led to misunderstandings'. More seriously, in 2017, the country passed a law banning full face coverings such as the burqa and niqab in public places. Aimed at conservative Muslim women, the law could not single them out specifically to avoid discrimination. Enforcement soon descended into chaos. Fines or warnings were issued to costumed mascots including a man dressed as shark promoting an electronics store, skiers and cyclists with scarves wrapped around their faces as protection against pollution. For Zell Am See and its Arab visitors the implications of the new law were potentially more serious. Fortunately for all, it appears the resort is quietly ignoring the rules; pragmatism outweighing politics. As Monika Oberschneider, who works in a sports shop renting snow boots to ill-prepared Gulf visitors, told an Austrian TV station last year: 'Every guest who comes pays our wages.'
What's On
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6 GCC wellness retreats within a three-hour flight of Dubai
The residents will attest – Dubai never sleeps. While that means that the city is always pulsating with vibrant, lively energy, creating opportunities for everyone, it also means that slowing down is perhaps a little out of reach. Everyone needs a moment to step back, slow down, disconnect and recharge, and summer is the perfect time for that. These GCC wellness retreats located just a short three-hour flight (or less) away will give you just what you need to relax and rejuvenate. Our Habitas Ras Abrouq, Qatar Our Habitas Ras Abrouq is situated on the Arabian Gulf at the edge of the UNESCO-protected Al-Reem Biosphere Reserve, and offers a slice of dune-laden, Qatari coastline you need to see to believe. With a wide range of villas draped in raw, rustic look and feel, this is one spot you can go to and completely disconnect from city life. While there, you'll be immersed in nature, exploring the sand with their safari experience, eating at their farm-to-table restaurant and living the best of the Qatari music, art and cultural scene. Of course, wellness is a vital part of the Our Habitas brand, and here you'll find tailor-made experiences. @habitasrasabrouq Alila Hinu Bay, Oman Alila Hinu Bay offers the perfect coastal escape just one-hour away from Salalah Airport. Nestled along Oman's pristine coastline, this tranquil resort blends seamlessly with the surrounding natural beauty, offering an experience that emphasizes wellness and relaxation, and the wellness experience here is transformative. Alila Spa offers holistic treatments inspired by traditional Omani healing practices, including massages, facials, and detox therapies, all designed to nurture both body and soul. Guests can enjoy yoga sessions, guided meditation, two saltwater pools, all designed to clear the mind and restore balance. For a truly unique experience, indulge in a private wellness consultation to tailor your stay to your specific needs. @alilahinubay Zulal Wellness Resort, Qatar Zulal Wellness Resort by Shiva-Zom in Qatar offers a pioneering approach inspired by traditional Arabic and Islamic medicine. Set on the northern coast of Qatar, this luxurious wellness haven combines a scenic coastal location with a focus on holistic health and sustainable living. The resort's wellness offerings are extensive, with personalised programs that include fitness, nutrition, mental clarity, and holistic therapies. Highlights include the hydrothermal facilities, a herbal sauna, steam room, and a saltwater pool designed to rejuvenate both body and mind. The treatment menu is inspired by Arabic healing practices, with therapies that incorporate indigenous herbs and oils. @zulalwellnessresort Our Habitas AlUla Complete with 96 villas dotted across the vast desert landscape, rooms at Habitas AlUla are set between manmade dunes for optimum privacy, and many feature epic mountain views from their private terraces. The best way to get around is on an electric bike, and there's something truly freeing about whizzing through the valley that way (although there's buggies too for those looking to give their legs a rest). From yoga and mindfulness, to date seed body scrubs and herbal aromatherapy, Thuraya focuses on centuries-old practices to help clear the path to self-discovery and awaken focus on both our physical and energetic bodies. @habitasalula Al Baleed Resort Salalah by Anantara, Oman Located on the stunning southern coast of Oman, on the lush land of Salalah, Al Baleed Resort Salalah by Anantara is the getaway to Oman, especially in the khareef season – a time travellers from around the world seek out, when the mountain town turns from a desert landscape into a cold, green paradise. The Anantara Spa provides a haven of wellness, featuring a traditional Moroccan hammam, rejuvenating signature treatments, and open-air therapy suites inspired by the natural surroundings. Guests can unwind further with yoga by the shore or explore the tropical flora surrounding the resort's lagoon. @anantarasalalah Six Senses Zighy Bay, Oman Six Senses Zighy Bay will transport you into a most perfect harmony of Omani landscape, both the rugged mountains and the shimmering waters. Located just off the UAE border at Dibba, in the Musandam Peninsula, it's been named after a quiet fishing town right next to it, and will push you into an experience that brings that far-flung historic world to life. This is luxury personified, the Omani way. It's perched right at the coast, featuring 82 Omani-style pool villas and a spectacular view of aquamarine expanse – just what you'll need to disconnect from hectic everyday life this summer. @sixsenseszighybay Images: Socials > Sign up for FREE to get exclusive updates that you are interested in
What's On
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