By Paul Johnson

OK, well maybe it is a little. There is desert, there are camels, and the locals do wear dish-dashes.  But to say Abu Dhabi is developing as luxury holiday destination is something of an understatement. Gradually, the make-up of the landscape of Abu Dhabi is evolving into a cosmopolitan, dynamic resort. The tourist board have and are investing a huge amount of money to crank up the appeal of this sun drenched capital of the UAE. I visited last year and saw the scaled down model version of the ‘new Abu Dhabi’ which 18 months on has begun to really take shape.

Much of Abu Dhabi’s evolution is focused around the development of Saadiyat Island, a natural island located just 500 metres off the coast of Abu Dhabi which has initially been fully developed almost entirely for the enhancement... More...