Cove Rotana Resort

Top choice in Ras Al Khaimah


Like a mirage of a Mediterranean village, this mega-resort's rooms and villas cascade down to a lagoon and a 600m stretch of white sand. Rooms, with brick-dome ceilings, are on the small side but have balconies for kicking back after a long, hot day. Bag a deluxe or premium room if you want to soak up those all-important water views.

This place is all about sun-and-sea holidays, and if leaving the resort after a day of slothing by the pool or on the beach seems too much stress, everything you need is at your fingertips: modern-Med restaurant Basilico for a meal, Breeze bar for panoramic sea views while smoking shisha on the terrace and Breakers beach bar for sandy-toed beers while the sun goes down.

It's about 8km south of central RAK, off Hwy E11.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Ras Al Khaimah attractions

1. National Museum of Ras Al Khaimah

5.27 MILES

This museum occupies a 19th-century fort – the residence of the Qawassim rulers until 1964. Behind the ornate wooden doors of its salons are a hodgepodge…

2. Mohammed Bin Salim Mosque

5.71 MILES

This modest mosque dating to the late 19th century has recently been painstakingly restored using the traditional building method of plaster layered over…

3. Jazira Al Hamra Fishing Village

6.17 MILES

With roots in the 16th century, this abandoned town is one of the oldest and best-preserved coastal villages in the UAE. Its people subsisted mostly on…

4. Dhayah Fort

15.14 MILES

It's well worth climbing the zigzagging staircase (you'll need sturdy shoes – this is not flip-flops territory) to this twin-towered hilltop fortress to…

5. Jebel Jais Viewing Deck Park

20.41 MILES

As observation decks go, it doesn't get much posher than this. Opened in early 2018, the landscaped and manicured viewing terraces here at 1250m have…

6. Umm Al Quwain Museum

22.47 MILES

Various rooms in this heavily restored 1768 fort have been decked out to demonstrate traditional furnishings and Emirati culture, though the diorama…

7. Tombstones

22.68 MILES

A set of ancient inscribed gravestones marks the junction between Rawdah Bowl and the Omani portion of Wadi Bih. Fashioned either from luminous yellow…

8. Jebel Jais

22.91 MILES

The highest peak in the UAE at 1934m, Jebel Jais is even occasionally dusted with snow. A switchback road snakes up the mountainside delivering vistas of…