Destination of the Week: UAE's adrenaline charged adventures

Those of you who’ve spent the UAE summer cooped up inside malls or holed up at the movies can now embrace their wild side with some adventurous activities to get the adrenaline pumping.

In case you have any doubt, Emirates 24|7 puts on its thinking cap offering you the option of being Sherlock Holmes for a day to racing down some white water rapids in Al Ain City.

Nothing is lacking in this weekend thrill ride.

White water rafting

This is certainly one for the ‘Only in UAE’ listings, which promises a white water rafting experience nestled in the foothills of the Jebel Hafeet mountain in Al Ain.

The Wadi Adventure theme park offers three levels of manmade white water rapids constructed through channels with the aide of an underground conveyer belt, as your raft braves the frothy waters to offer you a thrill of a lifetime.

If you are feeling even more adventurous, your guide will also allow you to leap out of the raft to brave the last set of rapids floating bareback on the waves.

The adventure also allows you to brave the rapids in a kayak, with optional classes if you are a novice. Call: 03 781 8422

Sharjah Paintball and Shooting

Crouching behind a London taxi cab as you launch your own covert attack armed with a rifle and 150 paint pellets is just what the doctor’s ordered for those looking for an adrenaline charged adventure.

The Sharjah Paintball Park can accommodate up to 150 players in one session in the outdoor fields, complete with trenches, bunkers, bridges and more.

Those who still find the UAE heat too intense can opt for the indoor facilities, complete with a London city street and a bank heist to brave out as champions.

HintHunt

The world-known live escape game HintHunt has now made its way to Dubai at the Times Square Center.

For those of you haven’t followed the adventures in London, Paris, Cape Town and its original headquarters in Hungary, the puzzling game sees each participating team hatch an escape plan from a locked room in less than 60 minutes by solving mysterious hints and puzzles.

The concept of the game stems from crime scene investigations and detective stories like those of Sherlock Holmes.

It offers an interactive exciting scene, where the set up makes you feel you are in a real detective office from the 1940s, and the counting down clock adds to the thrill.

Feeding King Croc

For those of you who haven’t oohed and aahed enough at the mighty King Croc and his girlfriend Missy at the Dubai Aquarium and Underwater Zoo, now have the chance to actually experience the large water mammals from inside their holding pen.

Added earlier this month, the new VIP package will allow guests a door into the inner sanctuary that is home to King Croc during his feeding time.

Naturally, guests will be accompanied by authorised personnel and wear a security harness before entering King Croc’s domain, mainly to ensure they don’t become feed with the chicken he is served daily; patrons will also be able to feed Rainbow Lorikee birds and watch King Croc from as close as they can get.

The VIP package will also grant a ‘fast-lane access’, along with a guided tour of Dubai Aquarium’s 270-degree glass walkthrough tunnel for face-to-face encounters with the marvels of the aquatic world.

This will be followed by a Glass-Bottom Boat Ride over the aquarium that has 10 million litres of water for spectacular views of the myriad species from the vantage point of a specially de boat. 

Nature enthusiasts can then enjoy a behind-the-scenes tour of Underwater Zoo and also take part in fish feeding sessions.

The Haunted of Wild Wadi

This limited time only adventure runs until November 8 where the Wild Wadi Waterpark will gain a supernatural resident in the form of a Djinn, set to appear from the shadows to spook guests out of her former village.

Wild Wadi’s latest resident could be a poltergeist, supernatural being or an apparition and is thought to be behind a number of mysterious incidents that recently spooked people at the waterpark.

The ‘Haunted Heights’ is the UAE’s first ever haunted house in a waterpark that invites guests on a walkthrough journey through a crooked old house, by touching and feeling their way through its dark quarters.

Parents with little ones can take part in some ‘Trick or Treating’ fun as an alternative, with free candies being given away every day.

Throughout the Halloween period, parents can pick up a Trick or Treat bucket while their children visit different themed houses to collect Halloween sweets.

[Image via Shutterstock]

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