Falconry

Try the desert’s oldest sport
Talk of the town: The UAE spends nearly AED 1,000,000 every year on the conservation of wild falcons.

No sport is as revered in the Middle East as falconry, the art of training birds of prey to hunt. It can take months to get the basics, and years to master. It’s impossible to truly appreciate the beauty of these majestic beasts, or the work required to tame them, without getting to handle them firsthand.
Shaheen Xtreme Falconry is the only outlet in the region that offers introductory falconry courses. Participants go as far as donning a leather glove and using training techniques, both with falcons and the more unruly eagle. They also get a brief lesson in bird anatomy and falconry history.

Courses run two days, and are on the plush grounds of the Banyan Tree Al Wadi Resort and Spa in Ras Al Khaimah. Granted, it's somewhat out of the way—a taxi from Dubai takes 75 minutes—but it's worth the drive.