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29 March 2024

Saadiyat Public Beach opens

Published
By Wam

Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC) has opened its first public beach on Saadiyat with multiple facilities and activities designed to suit trendy beachgoers and sun-lounging guests.

BAKE, a beach-specialised operator, has been appointed by TDIC to manage the 400-metre beach stretch, which opens every day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., with lifeguards on duty throughout the day to ensure visitors' safety.

Saadiyat Public Beach, which is located next to the luxurious Park Hyatt Abu Dhabi, comprises a wide range of facilities including lounge chairs, showers and bathrooms, lockers, changing rooms, towels, umbrellas, and ample parking spaces. A snack lounge, a retail outlet selling beachwear and sports equipment, and eco-friendly water sports activities such as windsurfing and sailing, will be introduced gradually as of the third quarter of 2013.

Ahmed Al Fahim, Executive Director of Marketing, Communications, Sales and Leasing at TDIC, stated: "We are excited to open Saadiyat Public Beach, which is designed to facilitate the needs of the island's residents, as well as guests from the wider Abu Dhabi community. The location, which is an ideal retreat from the busy everyday life of the city, is unique to Abu Dhabi in terms of its tranquil beach atmosphere and stunning landscape, while being situated in proximity to Abu Dhabi's city centre."

"It is the perfect destination for visitors who are looking for a serene natural beachfront that is preserved in an eco-friendly environment," he added.

Saadiyat Beach is unique in that it is fringed by a natural dune system, the Dune Protection Zone, which is protected from development by a restriction to build within 60 metres from the seaward edge of the dune system. This is also the case for the Public Beach Access where facilities have been built with this set-back from the beach in mind. Access to the beach through the Dune Protection Zone is made possible over a wooden boardwalk, which prevents damage to the sensitive dune vegetation. Saadiyat Beach is also a natural nesting ground for hawksbill turtles, which come ashore annually between April and July to lay their eggs in burrows under the sand. During nesting and hatching seasons, a specialised team trained to spot turtle tracks and turtle nests patrols the beach on a daily basis.

Saadiyat Public Beach enjoys a prime location near a collection of international five-star resorts, such as the 377-room St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort and the 270-room Park Hyatt Abu Dhabi. The island's top-class sport and leisure facilities - such as the region's first championship beachfront golf course, Saadiyat Beach Golf Club, and the world's first Monte-Carlo Beach Club outside of Monaco, the Monte-Carlo Beach Club, Saadiyat - are making Saadiyat a very appealing residential address.