Introduction One of the first initiators in promoting tourism on a big way, Sharjah has been somehow United Arab Emirates with Arabian Gulf Coast in the west and Gulf of Oman and Indian Ocean in the east. It is a major business destination, which is efficiently linked by air, road, and sea. The city has most colourful history out of all the Emirates in the country and over a period of time many new attractions have been added to increase the tourist value of it.

In Sharjah, good spots to unwind in are the lagoon-side Hotel Holiday International (which plays host to international cricketers and features a large sports TV screen in the lobby), and sister resorts Marbella and the simple yet stylish Lou' Lou'a (with a private beach). The Marbella Resort has a pleasant green coconut-grove setting, also on Khalid Lagoon, with 50 villas. All three are ideal for families and at affordable prices (about US$78 up). I sampled the seaside Sharjah Carlton (no relative of the Singapore Carlton) where my hot water turned out to be hot brown sludge. I ran the sludge for several long minutes finally mixing it with clean cold water to arrive at a light beige compromise of clarity and colour, if not temperature. By my second day the water was actually clean - and hot. Staff were super but I'm not sure I would return.

One of the best Dubai escapes is the one-and-a-half-hour drive through desert and dunes to the brown, razor-sharp mountains at the Oman border that enfold the quaint town of Hatta. A spring-fed rock pool is a 30-minute drive from here but be warned it can be seriously littered festival time. The Hatta Fort Hotel is a splendid green retreat, an attractive poor man's Jumeirah, minus the beach, the gold, the marble and entrance fees. You will not be charged to use the toilet here. The resort has two bars and two restaurants. The 50-room resort offers a swimming pool, three cross-country golf courses, mini-golf, archery, skeet and clay pigeon shooting and floodlit tennis courts.

But back to the sand. Midway to Hatta, go off-road for a 4WD stomach-in-the-mouth dune run in a Toyota Landcruiser. Mad Englishmen (but no dogs) are out in the midday sun careening about "wadi-bashing" at downward angles more vertiginous than the earnings graph of a Hongkong investment fund. Cars skeeter down slopes and then up soaring, rippling knife-edges and over the top. A wadi, strictly speaking is a riverbed, though the term "wadi bashing" now covers most cross-country 4WD. Petrol is cheaper than boiled water so tank up and head on out if self-drive takes your fancy. Per person dune-run charges with an alfresco dinner thrown in are around Dh250. I rode with DJ (real name, Nabil, mobile: 755-9440) an aspiring Paris-Dakar rally driver who managed to drive, field phone calls and offer sage advice without skipping a beat.

If you're a South Asian foodie, check out the biryani at Pak Ghazi, Bank Street, Sharjah (Indian food is across the main road at Rolla Square). Or Saravana Bhavan and Vastanta Bhavan (for South Indian in Dubai). Al Fawar in Sharjah has excellent Lebanese (which is also abundant in Dubai's Al Nasser Square).

Emirates airline is a great way to enjoy a Dubai stopover. Their A330-200s have pleasant service and comfy seats (2-4-2 in economy) with PTV and a nose-wheel camera for gripping take-offs and landings. There is also a downward camera. Stewardesses speak Chinese, Russian, Hindi, Bengali, Arabic and Thai, and it is reassuring to get headphones with ear cushions already attached so you don't have to fumble with them for hours. Travellers receive three stickers which they can affix to their headrest - "do not disturb", "wake for meal" and, thoughtfully, "wake for duty-free". The inflight payphone costs US$5 per minute and a fax facility is available. It's a pity their Skywards frequent flier programme does not link with THAI, Cathay Pacific or Singapore Airlines though SriLankan is a partner. Cathay Pacific flies to Dubai via Bahrain. Get some sand between your toes.