Sir Bani Yas Stables offers a number of exciting equestrian experiences, including their Stables Tour, where you will learn about their beautiful horses and explore the stables.
How To Book
This Stables Tour is offered to guests when you book into one of Anantara’s 3 resorts on Sir Bani Yas Island; Desert Islands Resort, Al Sahel Resort or Al Yamm Resort.
For bookings and reservations, you can contact the activities centre on +971 (0) 2 801 5266 or via activitiesdirs@anantara.com.
When To Go
Anantara’s resorts on Sir Bani Yas Island are only open during the cooler months in the UAE, so best to contact the resort for opening dates in advance.
Once the island is open for hotel bookings, check with the Desert Islands Resort & Spa Activities Desk for the exact Stables Tour timings, as this may change.
Costs Involved
Adults: AED125 per person
Children (2-11 years old): AED65 per person
Children (under 2 years): Free
How To Get There
Sir Bani Yas Island is 250km away from Abu Dhabi and is approximately a 3 hours’ drive from downtown Abu Dhabi.
Dubai is 350km away and is approximately a 4 hours’ drive, depending upon where you are leaving from in Dubai.
Once you reach Jebel Dhanna Jetty on the mainland, you will be transferred by Anantara’s complimentary boat service to the island, which takes approximately 20 minutes.
Their boat service operates 4-5 times daily and must be booked at least 24 hours in advance through Anantara Sir Bani Island Resorts.
Tips For Your Visit
Best to book this activity prior to your arrival on Sir Bani Yas Island, as land-based activities are popular on this island.
Anantara will provide you with complimentary water for each person on this tour, so you won’t need to bring your own water.
Best to check with Anantara the best times to do this Stables Tour (with the horses inside the stables), as the horses will go for their daily walk in the late afternoon.
Tom tried to follow the horses after they left the stables, but we were told that they would come only back to the stables later that evening.
Once the horses had left the stables, Tom made the most out of being outside and splashed around in the puddles!
What To Expect
To reach Sir Bani Yas Stables from the pick-up point at Desert Islands Resort, it will take approximately 10 minutes and this Stables Tour will take around 1.5 hours.
You will be driven to Sir Bani Yas Stables and back in one of Anantara’s 4WDs.
There are currently 14 horses living in these stables, with most of them being ex-endurance or ex-polo horses from a number of countries including Australia, the UAE, France and Argentina.
There are also 3 Shetland Ponies at these stables; 2 spend most of their days roaming outside and the third pony spends most of their time inside the stables.
You are able to feed both the horses and Shetland Ponies throughout this Stables Tour.
Staff from Al Jiyad Stables look after all of these horses and ponies full time all year-round.
As part of this tour, you or your children can also ride one of the friendly horses at these stables.
Tom enjoyed riding ‘Windy’, a beautiful white horse from the UAE.
After your Stables tour has finished, you will drive past the area the horses roam free for a great photo opportunity!
What's Unique
We haven’t stayed at a resort in the UAE to date, where you can book into a dedicated Stables Tour experience.
The Verdict
As long as you time your visit to spend as much time with the horses and Shetland Ponies whilst these animals are at the stables, it’s a great few hours spent on Sir Bani Yas Island!
We loved how interactive this experience was from the feeding of the horses and ponies to the horse riding, making this Stables Tour lots of fun for the whole family!
Sounds like fun? Don’t just take our word for it, experience it for yourself.
Be inspired to start or add to your very own bucket lists.
You can also click here for more unique bucket list ideas in the UAE!
Above prices & information correct as of December 2021.
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