You can drift off for 40 winks on the sun loungers as the gentle waves from the warm Persian Gulf caress the beach.
Or you can catapult yourself from the peak of the highest mountain in the country at over 150km per hour. It’s your choice. Out here, I’d recommend doing both.
Ras Al Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates, boasting temperatures in the mid-20s from November to February and even hotter thereafter, has been trying to raise its profile for years.
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Boasting some of the most stunning skylines, coastlines, hotels and resorts in the world, the UAE has become a mecca for tourists.
While Dubai and Abu Dhabi draw the eye of the majority of travellers to the country, the Emirates has so much more to offer and getting around here has never been so easy.
An hour away along the motorway from the vast airport in Dubai lies arguably the most unique emirate of the seven that make up the UAE, Ras Al Khaimah.
A regular stop for golfers on the DP World Tour, it is an area not well known to most sun-worshipping visitors to the Middle East.
With a 7,000 year history of art and Arab culture mixed in with beautiful hotels, golf courses and an incredible mountain range, the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah can offer a bit of everything.
The emblem of the region reflects that, with the spike to the left reflecting the tallest mountains in the UAE on the eastern side, the slope in the middle symbolising the sand dunes of the desert and the waves at the end a nod to the region’s historic links to the water and fishing trade in the Persian Gulf.
RAK, as it is known to people in the UAE, has a much more relaxed feel than the more populated emirates and on approach to the city, one building stands out above all others.
The magnificent Hilton Waldorf Astoria Hotel resembles a ship along the coastline at night, sparkling in golden light from top to bottom.
During daylight, the splendour and opulence of the hotel becomes even more evident on the most idyllic of settings, with the pool area rolling down onto the peaceful beach.
Inside it is everything you would expect, boasting palatial decor and luxurious facilities.
You can dine at the Umi Japanese restaurant, Lexington Grill and Bar, Qasr Al Bahar or the Azure Mediterranean cafe-style restaurant. The latter also offers a pool bar where you can swim up and sample the most Instagrammable of cocktails, perched on a stool in the pool itself.
The vast pool area outside has lagoons of all depths and a water playground for the kids – or evergreen adults. Watersports are available on the beach nearby. The hotel spa is only one hundred yards away if all that sounds like too much hard work.
The hot season in the UAE lasts for almost five months, from May 8 to September 28, with an average daily high temperature above 39°C, so getting out of the heat is a good idea at peak times.
Ras Al Khaimah can also offer something cooler - in every way.
Thrill-seekers and sightseers will only need just over an hour from RAK to make their way up towards the Jebel Jais peak – the highest point in the UAE – in the cloud-piercing Hajar mountains.
Temperatures there can be up to 10°C cooler in the mountain range, which is accessed by an impressive new motorway blasted through the spiky mountain range.
Hiring supercars is a popular pastime in the area so your sightseeing on the way up can be at near and close range. Have the camera ready at all times.
When your ears pop and you approach the meandering bends near the summit, you get a glimpse of the various ziplines and activities on offer up near the clouds.
Jebel Jais Flight is the longest zipline in the world, certified by the team at the Guinness World Records, taking a full three minutes at speeds of up to 160km per hour down from the 1680m high peak.
The safety gear and instructions calm the nerves somewhat after you catch a glimpse of the mind-boggling zipline on the way up but it still takes a lot of bravery to step onto the platform near the summit.
Once the crew - and you - are happy with everything, you are released and zoom over deep ravines, canyons and jagged peaks at an incredible speed for 2.83km. You zoom through the sky so fast you can’t hear yourself scream or move a muscle, but it’s an exhilarating once in a lifetime experience that you really shouldn’t shy away from.
The fastest flight section takes you to a nine-tonne glass-bottomed Insta-worthy platform that resembles a hovering bird of prey suspended 80 metres above the ground. From here, your final flight will be the much shorter and relatively sedate 1km zipline that finally takes you to terra firma at the foot of the mountains.
After surviving that, anything is possible and the nearby Jais Sledder is also not to be missed.
Effectively a single-person rollercoaster carved into the mountain range, you travel along a track at speeds of 40km per hour – if you don’t pull the brake – and travel for almost 2km through hairpin curves with a glorious panoramic view of the mountain and coastline beyond.
Thankfully, the area also holds the highest restaurant in the country at 1484 by Puro with the most picturesque balcony dining area you could imagine.
There is even a crazy golf track a few metres below if you want another change of pace.
Back at somewhere near sea level, there are a couple of splendid courses to test golfers of all levels. The Al Hamra Golf Club, about 500 yards from the Waldorf Astoria, hosts the Ras Al Khaimah championship on the DP World Tour each year and is a huge week for the region.
Economic and political stability, as well as a religiously and culturally tolerant population, make the RAK region an ideal place to explore.
Wynn Resorts plans to build a multibillion-dollar development on Ras Al Khaimah’s artificial Al-Marjan Island. The resort, set to open in 2026, will include a ‘luxury’ 1,000-room hotel, a mall, a convention centre and a ‘gaming area’ even though Islam, the religion of the Arabian Peninsula, prohibits gambling.
Most visitors to the UAE get out into the desert at some stage with the dune driving a big hit.
The RAK Sonara Desert Camp is a popular destination and a visit there approaching sundown is one of the highlights of the entire trip.
Accessed by bus, buggy and then horse or camel if you are feeling brave, the camp is an incredible setting in what appears to be the middle of nowhere in the Arabian desert.
Recent rainfall has been a huge plus for the camels and animals in the desert with some very rare grassy areas developing in the sand.
The eco-friendly camp uses solar energy and has a zero-waste policy. Set in the Al Wadi nature reserve, it is also home to numerous wildlife species including the Arabian Oryx, Sand and Arabian Gazelles and the Arabian Red Fox, some of whom made an appearance before the end of the night.
The Sonara Camp offers desert safaris, sandboarding, camel rides and a falcon show.
When the sun goes down as you sip on a cool beer in the desert, the lights come up on the spectacular outdoor dining area in the valley below.
The live acrobatics and a signature fire show keep the jaws on the floor a little longer and the food somehow manages to surpass the quality of everything that preceded it.
It’s the perfect way to wrap up a journey into one of the most unique places in the world.
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