Dubai

Watersports of all kinds

Water Sports

Dubai Offshore Sailing Club & Dubai International Marine Club

Offer excursions. Sailing is one of the most popular pastimes in Dubai.

Yachts are available in various sizes from 20 - 40 feet, along with an active laser fleet, cadet club and dinghies. Races are held almost every weekend for toppers, lasers, catamarans and cruisers. Those wishing to participate can join as part of the active crew, or merely relax and enjoy the ride.

Scuba Diving

Dubai waters rarely exceed 10 metres in depth close to shore, which makes them ideal for swimmers, snorkellers and novice divers. Underwater visibility is variable ranging from spectacular to poor, especially in the windy season (November to March). As Dubai is a new destination for divers the underwater life is still and undisturbed and fish are not shy.

Levels of diving range from tuition for beginners to exciting for the experienced. Several wreck dives are organised by most of Dubai's clubs and are popular by day or night.

It is estimated that Dubai has over 80 wrecks in the surrounding waters.

The Arabian Gulf harbours extensive coral ecosystems and the Dubai coastline offers fine coral growth. The Dubai corals live on a flat seabed and do not tend to form reef structures reaching the surface. They occur at depths of three to seven metres over an area of several kilometres square. The richest and most accessible corals are found southwest of Jebel Ali. Corals established off Dubai include stag horn, table, boulder, honeycomb, starry and brain corals.

P.A.D.I (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) and B.S.A.C (British Sub Aqua Club) diving instruction is available at all levels. Wetsuits are not required from the month of May through to October as the water is so warm. Three millimetre suits are comfortable for diving the rest of the year.

Some of the most popular dive sites include:

Sheikh Mohammed Barge:

Formerly a working barge that was deliberately sunk on the order of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to create an artificial reef. This provides an excellent wreck dive opportunity with an abundance of large marine life.

Barge Sarraf:

Approximately seven nautical miles off Jumeirah, since it sank in 1985, lies a 42-metre long coastal motor vessel, which is in close proximity to a car barge complete with various vehicles and a tug boat. All these vessels sit upright in 22 metres of water and provide a good opportunity for a limited penetration dive. A multitude of fish can be observed including barracuda, guitar sharks and spotted eagle rays.

Cement Barge:

A 25 metre long barge that sits upright in ten metres of water about ten minutes from Dubai. This is an ideal wreck for newly qualified divers and provides the opportunity to see a wide variety of fish including clownfish, parrotfish and stingrays.

Port Rashid Wrecks:

The final resting place for vessels such as LC Beauty Judy, an 8.5 metre landing craft, a tug boat MV Ant and Nasser a 9.8 metre long motor vessel. These are all situated in about 16 metres of water at the breakwater of Dubai Dry Dock.

MV Dara:

This could be considered one of the most historic wrecks on the West Coast. Dara was sunk by an Omani rebel mine with the loss of 238 lives which at the time was the greatest loss of life at sea during peace times since the Titanic. The ship is 399ft in length and 5,030 tons and lies on her starboard side in 20 metres of water. The dive is classified as an advanced dive due to tidal influences. Having sunk in 1961 the marine life is well established.

Wonderland

A unique amusement and water attraction park. Featuring a variety of water attractions, rides include speed slides, a surf hill and a twister. Visitors can travel down giant slides at exhilarating speeds while sitting on a rubber ring, or slide down the Wave Runner's 35 feet ramp while sitting on a sled. The water mist show is a major highlight, featuring a spectacular "Water Cinema" with films projected on to a thin film of water.

Wild Wadi

Aqua theme park, adjacent to the Jumeirah Beach Hotel, has boosted Dubai?s rapidly expanding tourism infrastructure. The 12 acre park is one of the world?s most advanced water adventure theme parks, offering an amazing array of 24 interconnected themed water rides totalling 1.7 kilometres. Rides include onshore and seawater swimming pools, flume rides, water canons and water streams.

Two new water parks will open in 2008; one at Atlantis, The Palm by Kerzner International and the other as part of Dubailand, Aqua Dunya.

Water Skiing

Dubai offers superb opportunities for water skiing. Facilities and locations are perfect for both beginners and more advanced skiers.

Dubai is a well-established water skiers' destination and the Dubai Watersports Association hosts several competitions throughout the year.

Fishing/Deep Sea Fishing

The warmth and shelter of the Gulf waters attract a wide variety of fish. Some species like the hammour, barracuda, shark and sailfish are all prize catches.

The best fishing period is from October through to April. There are still some catches to be made during the summer months such as sailfish and queenfish.

Both beach and surf fishing are popular all along the coast and barracuda can even be caught from the shore in season. Favourite fishing sites are along the Jumeira Beach front and the creek front in Creekside Park. On Fridays an abra (water taxi) can be hired for the morning and taken out to the mouth of the Dubai Creek.

Tour options range from "Coastline Fishing" up to ten miles from the shore and ?Deep Sea Fishing" ten to 40 miles from shore. Timings range from a two-hour trip to a full ten-hour day trip. Two types of fishing are available; ?bottom fishing? where the boat stops over a reef or wrecks for small and medium fish, and ?trawling? where the boat moves slowly and bait is trailed behind the boat.