Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort by Anantara

Fit & Season

When this property truly shines.

Best season

October to March: daytime temperatures between 20 and 30 degrees, cool nights, optimal stargazing. From May to September the Empty Quarter is too hot for most guests to engage with activities outside air-conditioned spaces.

Ideal for

Travellers seeking silence that is not synthetic. Couples who want a destination without comparison. Anyone using Dubai as a departure point who needs two or three nights of genuine distance from it.

Personally visited

Partner verified

What stays with you

Mornings begin with a jeep expedition into dunes that surround the property on three sides, some rising above thirty metres. Evenings end at Camp Nujum under a sky so dark it is hard to believe — the Empty Quarter is one of the least light-polluted landscapes on Earth.

• The location is the argument: Rub' al Khali, the largest continuous sand sea on Earth — the resort sits within it, not at its edge.
• Royal Pavilion Villas with walled private pools set between dunes: seclusion that requires no explanation.
• Falconry, camel caravans and dune bashing are not tourist attractions here — in this landscape they carry a cultural context that has existed for centuries.
• Camp Nujum: the temporary Bedouin camp beyond the property offers a night sky that people travel great distances to find — here it is immediately outside the door.