THE good travel guide 2020
Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa, UAE
Just a 45-minute drive from Dubai and another world away from its big city neighbour, you are surrounded by nature at Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa but have all the luxuries. Each private suite looks out over the desert and has its own private pool. The water in the pools is safe for the local gazelle to drink. Yes, they get that close. Arabian oryx are plentiful here also, though they were almost hunted to the brink of extinction between the 1940s and the 1960s. The population is now back to healthier numbers since the establishment of the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve, the first National Park in the UAE, in 1997. Activities at Al Maha include guided desert and dune safaris, nature walks, falconry, wildlife drives, horse riding and a sunset camel ride.
Campi Ya Kanzi, Kenya
This luxury camp in Kenya is an ecotourism leader as well as being the ultimate African safari experience. It’s 100 per cent solar, carbon neutral, and was built in partnership with the Maasai community and is situated on a Maasai-owned reserve spanning 283,000
