Al Ain, United Arab Emirates: Self-Guided Walking Tour

The best things to do in Al Ain include exploring historic forts, walking through palm-filled oasis landscapes, visiting museums and discovering the city’s mosques, stadiums and wildlife. Known for its strong connection to oasis life and Emirati history, Al Ain offers a quieter cultural experience than the UAE’s larger coastal cities. Neywo has a free audio guide for Al Ain with 19 narrated places, available in 11 languages.

What to See in Al Ain

Al Ain National Museum

Housed in the historic Sultan bin Zayed Fort, Al Ain National Museum is the oldest museum in the United Arab Emirates. Established in 1969, it explores the archaeology, history and traditional culture of the Al Ain region.

Its ethnographic section follows human life in the area from more than 8,000 years ago to the discovery of oil, including photographs from the 1960s. The archaeological section contains artefacts from several periods, with the oldest dating back roughly 7,500 years.

Qasr Al Muwaiji

Qasr Al Muwaiji is one of the most important historic landmarks in the Eastern Region of Abu Dhabi. The fort is known as the birthplace of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, former Ruler of Abu Dhabi and second President of the UAE. Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan was also based here while serving as the Ruler’s Representative of the Eastern Region.

Built in the early twentieth century, the fort has a simple square layout, prominent corner towers and a grand entrance gate.

Al Ain Sheikh Zayed Palace Museum

The Al Ain Sheikh Zayed Palace Museum, also known as the Al Ain Palace Museum, dates from 1937 and opened to the public as a museum in 2001. Sheikh Zayed instructed that the palace and its private living quarters should preserve a clear reflection of the country’s culture before the major changes that followed the discovery of oil.

It is a useful stop for understanding the domestic and cultural setting of the ruling family during that period.

Al Ain Oasis

Al Ain Oasis remains one of the clearest places to experience the city’s relationship with water and agriculture. Its shaded paths and traditional irrigation system show how palm plantations and settlements were supported across generations.

The oasis also explains the character of Al Ain itself: a green, peaceful landscape shaped by water within the wider desert environment of the UAE.

Sheikh Sultan Bin Zayed Fort

Built in 1907, Sheikh Sultan Bin Zayed Fort served as the seat of power for the ruler of the Eastern Region before he became ruler of Abu Dhabi between 1922 and 1926. The square fort measures about 30 metres on each side and has a single entrance on its southern side.

Its gateway includes square and round openings, thought to have been used for arrows and rifles. A wooden plaque above the door carries two lines of Nabati poetry connected with the building of the fort.

Al-Murabba Fort and Police Museum

Al-Murabba Fort was built in 1948 on the orders of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. Its name refers to its rectangular layout. The building stood near Sultan Fort, the main street, the bus station and the market area.

Originally constructed as the headquarters of Al Ain’s police force and security administration, the fort has since become a historical landmark. Beside it, the Al Murabba Police Museum presents equipment and personal effects from different police forces in the UAE, with information about the history of each item.

Al-Jahili Fort

One of Al Ain’s largest and best-known forts, Al-Jahili Fort was built in 1891 by Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, also known as Zayed the First. Its original purpose was to defend the city and protect the date-palm farms beside Al-Jahili Oasis.

The fort later became a base for the Trucial Oman Scouts in 1955. Its entrance includes a carved poem honouring Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, while the eastern annex was once used as a helicopter landing pad.

Rumailah

Rumailah is an archaeological site where evidence of settlement spans thousands of years. The site includes a thick-walled coral and adobe fort, believed to date from the early twentieth century, built over a mound with remains from the late Umm Al Nar period and an Iron Age II community dating from around 1,100 to 500 BCE.

Its unusual nine-sided outer wall sets it apart from the rectangular, square and circular fortifications found elsewhere in the region. Triangular ornaments run along the top of the wall, which also includes openings with a defensive purpose.

Al Ain Zoo

Set in the foothills of Jebel Hafeet, Al Ain Zoo covers about 400 hectares and was founded in 1968 by Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. It is home to more than 4,000 animals, including mammals, birds and reptiles.

The collection has a strong focus on Arabian antelopes and other herbivores. Visitors may see oryx, eland, gazelle and lechwe, as well as rarer animals such as the white lion and Nubian giraffe. The enclosures are designed to resemble natural habitats, making the setting feel more immersive than a conventional zoo.

Sheikha Salama Mosque

Sheikha Salama Mosque is named after Sheikha Salama, the mother of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. Originally built in 1981 in the centre of Al Ain, it was completely rebuilt in 2011 in a different architectural style.

The mosque covers 17,500 square metres and can accommodate up to 5,000 worshippers. Its facilities include a main indoor prayer hall, an outdoor courtyard with retractable canopies and a dedicated prayer hall for women.

Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Mosque

Also known as the Al Ain Grand Mosque or Sheikh Khalifa Mosque, this is the largest mosque in Al Ain and one of the largest in the United Arab Emirates. It opened to the public on 12 April 2021.

Its four tall minarets are visible across the city, while the large dome features Quranic inscriptions and verses.

Al Ain Classic Car Museum

Near Jebel Hafeet, the Al Ain Classic Car Museum presents more than 40 classic cars. The collection began in 2009 with vehicles belonging to members of the Abu Dhabi Classic Cars Club, displayed under a traditional Arabian tent.

It later moved into a 2,000-square-metre building and then to the Ain Al Faydah complex. Alongside the vehicles, booklets provide technical information about the cars.

Places of Worship and Sport

Al Ain also has a diverse collection of religious and sporting landmarks. St. Mary’s Catholic Church is one of the oldest Catholic parishes in the UAE and one of only five Catholic churches in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. St. Dionysius Orthodox Church is the largest Indian Orthodox church in the Arab region and the first church dedicated to Saint Geevarghese Dionysius of Vattasseril.

For football supporters, Hazza bin Zayed Stadium is the home ground of Al-Ain FC and holds just under 23,000 spectators. It has hosted the FIFA Club World Cups, the AFC Asian Cup and other major matches. Sheikh Khalifa International Stadium, also known as Khalifa bin Zayed Stadium, is another home ground of Al Ain Football Club. With a capacity of around 14,000, it has hosted matches from the 1996 AFC Asian Cup and the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship.

Explore Al Ain with a Free Audio Guide

Neywo’s Al Ain audio guide includes one self-guided walking tour: “Al Ain: Forts, Palms and the Birth of a Nation.” The walk covers 5.26 km, takes 113 minutes and has 7 narrated stops.

The route includes Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Mosque, Al-Jahili Fort, the Al Ain Sheikh Zayed Palace Museum, Al Ain Oasis, Sheikh Sultan Bin Zayed Fort, Al Ain National Museum and Al-Murabba Fort. The app tells the story of each place as you reach it, at your own pace, with no group and no schedule. Download Neywo and explore Al Ain with a free audio guide in the language you prefer.

For more UAE travel ideas, continue to United Arab Emirates, or compare Al Ain with Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah.