Kayaking in Abu Dhabi: Reem Central Park, the Mangroves and a Speedboat Alternative
4 min read
The answer first
If you want to paddle in Abu Dhabi through GetYourGuide, the most-reviewed option in our listings is the Reem Central Park 2-hour guided kayak tour. It costs €37.58 per person and has 4.8 / 5 from 210 reviews. One thing to know straight away: the booking page describes the waterways and greenery of a city park on Al Reem Island, not a mangrove forest. If the mangroves are the reason you want to paddle, read the section below before you book.
What the listed tour gives you
According to the booking page, the tour lasts about 2 hours on the waterways of Reem Central Park, and the park is also the meeting point, so plan your own way there. The guides give a safety briefing and paddling instruction, and the tour is pitched at all levels, beginners included. Guiding is offered in English, French, Arabic, Urdu, Malayalam and Hindi, and a group can be up to 50 people. The page rules out children under 3, pregnant women and people with mobility impairments, and asks you to bring a change of clothes, a towel and a reusable water bottle.
Where the mangroves are
Abu Dhabi’s mangroves are a protected landscape, and you can see them without a tour. The Environment Agency Abu Dhabi describes the Mangrove National Park as lying “just on the edge of the city”, with a winding water channel, dense trees with intricate roots, and birds such as greater flamingos and western reef herons. Viewing is free; for excursions, including kayak tours, the agency points to the Anantara Eastern Mangroves hotel, where private operators run the activities.
A second place is Jubail Mangrove Park on Jubail Island, between Yas Island and Saadiyat Island. Visit Abu Dhabi says it is about 30 minutes from downtown, has a 2 km boardwalk, and that kayaking is the most popular activity, with advance booking through the park’s own website.
Our listings include one kayak tour that names the mangroves: the guided mangrove kayaking tour with hotel pickup. Its description promises a guided paddle through Abu Dhabi’s mangroves, hotel pickup and drop-off and a choice of departure times; the listing gives about 3 hours and €105.47 per person. Which mangrove area it uses is something to check on its booking page, and with very few reviews so far, its 2.0 / 5 tells you little. We could not open that page ourselves, so look there for the age rules and what is included. The trips at Jubail and at the Eastern Mangroves are sold by the park and the operators themselves; their own pages have current prices, age rules and times.
Mangrove Alley by speedboat
If you would rather be fast than paddle, there is the Yas Island self-driving guided speedboat tour. It costs €133.11 per boat for up to two people, has 4.8 / 5 from 1,033 reviews, and takes about 1.5 hours. According to the booking page, you meet at Al Bandar marina, get a safety briefing and then drive your own boat behind an English-speaking guide around Yas Island. The route passes Mangrove Alley, which the operator describes as a 3 km stretch lined with mangroves, and includes a stop for spotting flamingos. The driver must be at least 18, the weight limit is 225 kg per boat in total, and the page rules out children under 3, pregnant women and people with back problems. It is a speedboat tour, not a paddle trip, so it suits a different mood from a kayak.
Which one for whom
| Option | Best for | What the listing says |
|---|---|---|
| Reem Central Park kayak tour | Anyone who wants a guided paddle without planning it | 2 hours, guided, meeting point in the park, not for children under 3 |
| Mangrove kayaking tour with hotel pickup | Paddlers who want the mangroves and a pickup | 3 hours, guided, hotel pickup, very few reviews |
| Yas Island speedboat tour | People who want speed and a look at Mangrove Alley | 1.5 hours, price per boat for up to 2, driver at least 18 |
| Mangrove parks, booked with the operator | Paddlers who want the mangrove forest itself | See the park and operator pages |
Check before booking
- How you get to Reem Central Park, where the kayak tour starts.
- With children: the Reem kayak tour and the speedboat both exclude under-3s; for the mangrove kayak tour and the parks, check the age rules on their own pages.
- Weather: outdoor water trips can be affected, and the booking page explains what happens to your booking.
- For the mangrove parks, whether you must book ahead; Visit Abu Dhabi says to book ahead for Jubail.
Our recommendation
Book the Reem Central Park kayak tour if you want a well-reviewed guided paddle through a city park and are not set on mangroves. If you want the mangroves themselves, compare the mangrove kayaking tour with hotel pickup with the trips the parks sell directly, and if you prefer speed, take the speedboat. For more things on the water, see our boat, kayak and jet ski tours, and for the rest of your days our city and mosque tours.
