Heritage Village Abu Dhabi

The Heritage Village sits on the breakwater opposite the city and reconstructs what Abu Dhabi looked like before oil: a walled compound with barasti palm-frond shelters, a mosque, a souk, a falaj channel, goat and camel pens and a small fort. Craftspeople work in the workshops, spinning, weaving, metalworking and blowing glass, and a museum holds objects from the pearling and Bedouin economies. The view back across the water to the towers is the point of the location.

Highlights

• The barasti shelters - palm-frond houses of the kind used before permanent building.
• The craft workshops - spinning, weaving, metal and glass worked on site.
• The skyline view - the modern city seen across the water from the breakwater.
• The small museum - pearling and Bedouin material in the village museum.

When to go

October to April for comfortable walking; the village is open air with limited shade. It closes on Mondays and opens late on Fridays. Mornings are best for the craftspeople.

Before you go

It is a reconstruction and nothing here is original. Craft workshops are not always staffed and can be closed. There is little shade and summer visits are brief.

Nearby

Emirates Palace is south-west, and the Corniche runs beyond it.