Abu Dhabi, Dubai’s larger neighbor, has made an impressive move to take on Dubai in the luxury tourism game, with the opening of the Desert Island Resort and Spa on Sir Bani Yas, a tiny island just 8km off the southwestern coastline of Abu Dhabi.

Wildlife, Desert Sands

While Dubai is celebrating the opening of its latest over-the-top 1500-room Atlantis Hotel at The Palms - Abu Dhabi has done something more extraordinary. They have turned the desert into a wildlife oasis. Desert Islands is a 64-room luxury resort on 87sq km island, which was formerly the private retreat for the Abu Dhabi’s royal family. The family retains a couple of palaces but the former guest’s quarters have renovated to become the Desert Islands Resort and Spa.

The 18-month renovation by Abu Dhabi’s Tourism and Development and Investment Company saw the guest quarters expanded and upgraded with the addition of luxury villas, a spa, swimming pool and tennis courts.

Sir Bani Yas has been the Sheik’s private project since the 1970’s when he started planting trees: 3.5 million of them, 2 million of which survive, most with individual irrigation. Then the animals came. Sir Bani Yas is now the home of 23 species which include everything from giraffes to a beisa oryx. There are 400 Arabian oryx which are now extinct in the wild. Other species include: Livingston Eland, Indian black buck antelopes and hyrax. Visitors can go on the safari-lite: no dangerous animals here, well except for the scorpians.

Desert Islands want to go green in the environmental sense to. Currently water and power come from the mainland, but the island already boasts Abu Dhabi’s first wind turbine and more are planned. Mangroves are being planted to protect the shore line, another mangrove is planted for every arriving guest. Guests can snorkle and kayak to explore the sparking Gulf waters. Other activities include mountain biking, archery and scuba diving.

After working up that appetite there are no less than five dining choices at Desert Islands Resort. The delicatessen and bakery offers a light daytime options, while the fully-licensed pool bar offers shade and a cool drink. Formal restaurants include the prosaically named All Day Dining Restaurant and the signature Seafood Grill which offers a romantic setting to go with the finest seafood, other meals if you insist.

The new Safaa Spa has a team of 10 Thai therapists trained at Anantara Bangkok. Aromatherapy and other treatments offer a truely relaxing experience in the desert.

This unique experiment is one man’s vision. No accountant would approve this project, which will never pay for itself. There is 21,000km of piping to irrigate the vast tracks of trees and shrubs. Deserts Sands is about a dream: the dream of creating an Arabian showcase for ecotourism and sustainability on a desert island. A very interesting luxury destination.

According to Christof Birkhofer, Managing Director of Engel  & Volkers, a German-based real estate company, the luxury real estate market in Qatar is thriving,. Despite the massive increases in construction material prices and housing rents recently.

Engel & Volkers specialize in luxury real estate world-wide and launched it’s operations in Qatar last week at the opening of the 3rd Qatar International Real Estate and Investment Exhibition (Q-Rex) at the Doha Exhibition Centre.

"The demand for local and international properties is very high. People that are visiting us at our booth are genuinely interested in the properties being showcased at the exhibition,” he said.

 “There is high demand for properties in the Doha real estate market, including rental space in residential and commercial estates, but Qatari buyers are also looking for properties overseas,” Birkhofer told The Peninsula yesterday. Many Quatar nationals are enquiring about luxury property in London, Cyprus, Switzerland and Germany.

"The real estate market in Qatar as in the whole region is booming. Doha, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain are all witnessing a real estate boom and the demand exceed the supply for properties," said Birkhofer.

 The company’s most luxurious properties are being shown at the exhibition - a $42 million residence in Miami, traditional antique castles in Europe and a private island in Seychelles, to mention just a few.

 The luxury properties that Engel & Volkers handle in Quatar sell from as little as $275,000 for a condo in The Pearl Qatar to more than $11 million for villas and penthouses.

 Birkhofer went on to say, "The Doha real estate market is a perfect location for our company. We will provide clients not only access to international properties, but we will also provide a gateway to our large client network."

Engel & Volkers is a leading European luxury real estae company with branches situated in 25 countries around the world, including Florida, South Africa, Majorca, Phuket, and now Doha.

Their Middle Eastern website is here

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