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The UAE is deceptive. What looks on the map like a vast empty space, save for a few coastal cities, is actually a landscape of varied terrain, and camping is the best way to really get to know it. Off-roaders, bikers and hikers can pack their gear into their 4x4 on a Thursday afternoon and be pitched up to tackle the great outdoors within a couple of hours, while the less sporty can simply pick a great site, bring food and friends and wind down from the week's stresses surrounded by nature. do expect space, freedom and a true sense of the country's outdoors.

The Liwa desert

There are some epic desert locations around the world and the UAE's slice of the Rub Al Khali is as spectacular as any of them. Anyone seeking a memorable adventure should make a two or three-day trip to experience the beguiling lunar landscape around Liwa. It may take a while to get there (it's 200km southwest of Abu Dhabi), but around Liwa Oasis and Moreeb Hill, these sand mountains are relatively accessible by 4x4. And once you're there surrounded by nothing but sand and sky, you will feel like you're on another planet. These are the sort of dunes that climb and curve like whipped cream on one side and then plunge dramatically on the other. The driving is challenging and as always, travel in a convoy is essential. But head from the road for 15 minutes and you can pretty much pick any spot to have all to yourself (just be sure to make a note of how you got in). At night, get a campfire going and shoot the breeze under clear starry skies.

Directions: You can camp pretty much anywhere in the dunes, so take any road from Liwa oasis into the sand, or to head towards Moreeb Hill take a right at Mezaira'a, and then a left towards Liwa Resthouse, and then another left at the second roundabout. Follow the signs for Tal Mireb (Moreeb Hill).