I'm a bit embarrassed- our older son is 2,5 and we only found out about the Sharjah Desert Park last weekend! And it's one of the best things you can do with kids during summer!

The Park is located a bit out of town on the road to Fujairah. It's a long drive for those who come from South Dubai like us but the landscape is beautiful and you can always improvise a photo shoot in the desert 😉

It's a complex which hosts the Children's Farm, the Sharjah Natural History Museum, the Islamic Botanical Garden and Arabia's Wildlife Center. There is a single entry fee to all these and you have to pay at the entrance gate in CASH (anyways- never forget to take cash when you go to Sharjah as you can rarely pay by card). We paid 15 dhs per adult and our kids went in for free.

If you had a long drive the Children's farm is a nice first stop. Our two were so hyper they barely wanted to leave it! 😅 It's mainly outdoors though so you may want to hurry... As true city kids they were most impressed by the ducks and the rooster. There are also cows, birds, camels, donkeys, sheep, goats and co. Sadly some of them seemed to really suffer of the heat... on a positive note, it is not allowed to feed them (which is probably better for them!). There is a small indoor area too with a cafe (snacks only) and a main part with toys, books and arts and crafts materials. We had a snack then drove to the Wildlife Center which is just a few meters away but too hot to walk to in August...

The Wildlife Center is all indoors and focuses on animals of the Arabian Peninsula, many of them endangered. It starts with a large variety of snakes, lizards, insects, frogs. As an animal lover I felt sorry for their little terrariums... but it is definitely interesting and older children will have a lot of fun trying to spot them all. If you have younger kids you will have to carry them in this part or they won't be able to see much. Then comes a section with fish and turtles, and then the large indoor aviary which is unlike anything we had seen before. It's a huge hall in which was recreated the wadi environment, there are waterfalls, rocks, plants and many free flying birds. The flamingos are beautiful and a (tame?) myna bird spent ages sitting on my husband's shoulder and didn't want us to leave. You can sit on a bench and admire the air-conditioned scenery 😅 it's very serene, and kinda magical and impressive. There was more to see afterwards but the kids were getting hangry and we ran through the sections with bats and night animals and ended up at the beautiful cafe with views on the outdoor areas where you can eat while watching flamingos and oryxes. A gazelle peeped through the door which was adorable... The menu is not the most healthy so pack a lunch if you don't want your kids to eat burgers and fries but you will not stay hungry either (pics of the menu are attached). On our way out we walked along the outdoor enclosures and saw more animals through the windows- baboons (I didn't even know they used to live here), a cheetah, an Arabian leopard, wolves and co. The kids loved it. I'm not sure how big their enclosures were and I don't like animals in cages but the enclosures weren't tiny either. My 2 year old is still thrilled at the thought of the leopard (he thinks it's a tiger but that's ok lol) and I'm sure we will be going back quite often. It's entertaining but also a great way to educate the kids (and us!) about the local fauna.

I personally don't like zoos much but I know the wildlife center is making big efforts for the conservation of local animal species, in fact there is a breeding center for endangered Arabian wildlife breeds attached to it. Sadly nowadays this seems to be the only way to protect some animal species from extinction... I have also witnessed the center stepping in to rescue animals when they were abused by individuals (how sad is the fact that some animals have to be rescued from being pets!). It is a place which deserves support and to be advertised more. Not to forget it's also a cheap day out- we spent less than 100 dhs for the tickets and lunch.

See you there soon, Dirham Stretchers?! 😉

Find the Desert park on Google maps.
Opening timings: 9-6:30 on weekdays, 2-6:30 PM on Fridays, 11-6:30 on Saturdays

Restaurant inside Arabia's Wildlife Center

Baby changing table in the WC next to the entrance in the Wildlife Center (not next to the restaurant)
Remember to bring cash!