Dubai: Camel Desert Safari & Emirati Dinner

You ride out as the desert cools, then eat under stars at a Bedouin camp

You're picked up from your hotel and driven to the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve, where you ride a camel for 45 minutes across the dunes while watching a falconry show at sunset. At the torch-lit Bedouin camp, you get henna tattoos, watch bread and coffee being made, and sit down to a 4-course Emirati dinner with live entertainment. The driver returns you to your hotel by late evening, and hotel pickup and drop-off are included in the price.

Step-by-step itinerary

Desert safari with dinner and entertainment

• Pick-up from Dubai hotels
• Arrive at Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve
• Receive Adventure Pack and wear traditional headscarf
• Ride camel through desert dunes
• Watch sunset falcon show
• Arrive at torch-lit Bedouin camp
• Enjoy henna tattoos and live bread making
• Experience Arabic coffee making and camel rides
• Relax with aromatic shisha pipes
• Dine on 4-course Emirati banquet
• Watch cultural drumming and Yola performances
• Return to hotel

The experience

You step into an air-conditioned minivan between 2 and 4:30pm from your Dubai hotel, and within an hour you're at the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve pulling on a traditional Sheila headscarf. The staff hands you an Adventure Pack, and then you're walking toward the camels: two guests per animal, and the handlers know what they're doing. The 45-minute ride out across the dunes is slower than you'd think, which is the point. You're watching the light change, watching the sand shift under the camel's feet, and the whole thing has this rhythm that makes you stop checking your phone.

As you're riding, a falconry demonstration happens right there in the sand: a handler releases a trained falcon and it circles and dives while you're still mounted, which is the kind of detail that sticks with you. Then the camp appears, torch-lit and low-slung against the dunes, and you climb down stiff-legged and genuinely thirsty. The next few hours are a loose string of things: someone's drawing henna on your hands while someone else is making bread over an open flame, and there's Arabic coffee being poured, and if you want it there's shisha. It doesn't feel rushed or choreographed. It feels like you've walked into someone's evening in the desert, except there's also a 4-course dinner waiting.

Dinner is soup, salad, an appetizer, a main course, and dessert, all served Bedouin-style with water and juice included. While you're eating, there's live drumming and traditional Yola dancing, not a performance you watch from a distance, but something happening around you. By 9:30 or 11:30pm depending on the season, you're back in the minivan heading to your hotel, sand still in your shoes, henna still fading on your hands. The whole thing is 7 hours door-to-door, and it moves at a pace that lets you actually absorb it instead of ticking boxes.

What’s included

• Hotel pickup and drop-off in an air-conditioned minivan.
• a 45- to 60-minute camel desert safari with two guests per camel.
• a sunset falconry demonstration.
• entry to the torch-lit Bedouin camp.
• traditional henna tattoos, live bread-making, Arabic coffee preparation, and shisha pipes.
• a 4-course Emirati dinner with water and juice.
• and live entertainment including drumming and traditional Yola dancing.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDeparts at 14:30

Book up to3h before

AgesAdult (12 and older) · Child (5 to 11 years) · Under 5: can't be included in the booking

GroupUp to 20 · max 9 per booking

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund.

Prices and times updated today

Good to know

Easy physical levelNot for pregnant travelersNot for back problems

Operated by Platinum Heritage Dubai

Is this one for you?Book this if you want the main desert experience (camel ride, sunset, Bedouin camp, and dinner) without arranging transport or timing it yourself. The fixed pickup window and 7-hour structure fit the whole arc into one evening.

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Top questions

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (5 to 11 years). Under 5: they can't be included in the booking.

What happens if it rains?

It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund. Free cancellation up to 24 h before the start.

What time does the camel desert safari start?

Hotel pickup runs between 2:00pm and 4:30pm, depending on your location in Dubai. You arrive at the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve shortly after.

How long is the camel ride?

The camel ride lasts 45 minutes across the desert dunes. Two guests ride per camel.

What's included in the dinner?

A 4-course Emirati banquet with soup, salad, appetizer, main course, and dessert. Water and juice are included. Soft drinks and alcohol are not.

Is the falconry show included?

Yes. A sunset falcon demonstration happens during the camel ride in the dunes.

What activities happen at the Bedouin camp?

Henna tattoos, live bread-making, Arabic coffee preparation, shisha pipes, camel rides, and traditional Emirati entertainment including drumming and Yola dancing.

When do you return to your hotel?

Return time is between 9:30pm and 11:30pm, depending on the season and sunset time.

What's the weight limit for the camel ride?

Maximum weight is 150kg (about 330 lbs) per person.

Should I bring anything?

Closed shoes are recommended. During winter evenings, bring a light jacket as the desert cools after sunset.

Is this tour in English?

The camel ride is conducted in English. The camp activities and entertainment are multilingual-friendly.