Cassells Ghantoot in Abu Dhabi is the perfect place to escape everyday stresses
My daughter calls it “loa''. You know, laws of attraction — what you think, you get. I call it plain intuition.
So when we decided to do a double pillion ride on the jet ski, I knew exactly what was going to happen.
Splash, we went screaming to our left as the jet ski skidded to the right.
Sputtering, we came up laughing just as another rider, whom I had written off as a show-off (he'd been twirling and revving his machine, spraying water all around and dunking his companions), came to our rescue (reminding me not to judge people too quickly).
Packed with fun
It was early evening when we were trying out the water activities at the Cassells Ghantoot Hotel & Resort, a family resort in Abu Dhabi, though just shy of the Dubai-Abu Dhabi border.
Being a weekend, the hotel was fully occupied and Siddharth, the recreations manager at the hotel, informed us it would be a little difficult to fit us in for the boat rides that evening and promised us the same early the next morning. So we decided to head to the pool and relax.
Cassells Ghantoot was once the guest palace of a complex built by the late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan.
However, the main palace had to be demolished and the guest palace was converted into a hotel in 2006 — though the bridge that connected the two palaces has been retained as office space.
In fact, the Ghantoot area, with the man-made Al Jurf Channel (where we went jet skiing), is a pleasant retreat and has other palaces, such as that of the King of Bahrain, which is on the channel, and that of the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, I was informed by the hotel staff.
Workout wonder
The hotel also boasts a fully equipped gym, with a separate workout area for ladies, sauna and steam rooms, and a whirlpool bath.
After whiling away a good amount of time there and watching the sunset, we returned to our rooms to change for dinner.
We had been put up in the Diplomatic Suite, which was as big as an apartment.
The huge sitting, dining and bed rooms were all connected with a balcony that runs around the whole floor.
On cooler nights, it would be ideal to stand at one of the arched windows of the balcony and watch the moonlight dance on the water (quite romantic actually).
Tasty but limited choice
Unlike the afternoon, the Areesh Restaurant was empty, maybe because we were one of the few early diners. At present, the hotel has only one restaurant, though room service is available 24 hours.
“We are aware of the limited choice in food at the hotel,'' said Faisal Saeed Al Romaithi, the hotel's general manager.
“We plan to give a broader choice to guests in the near future by opening some new restaurants, though we haven't settled on the cuisines.''
Yet, the mixed Arabic and international buffet was quite tasty.
We took a walk around the premises before heading to our rooms.
Apart from the health club and the swimming pool, there are well-lit tennis, squash, volleyball and basketball courts too.
The health club and sports activities are available to guests until 10pm, though the water activities are only till sundown. I also found the hotel brochure mention equestrian activities.
“Yes, we shall have horses during the cooler months,'' Al Romaithi said. “Our stables are almost ready and we shall have trained professionals to conduct riding sessions.''
Early to rise
With eagerness for the boat rides next morning, we turned in early. We had planned to go on the banana boat but, at 7.30am, we felt it was too early to take a dunk, so we opted for a simple motorboat ride.
It was quite warm already but the spray from the rushing boat let off a cool breeze and we got a few nice shots of the area.
As we returned to the jetty, Siddharth was waiting. We wanted to go on the Segway but only after spending some quality time in the health club and breakfast. We decided to meet an hour or so later.
After a quick dip in the whirlpool bath, we headed to the restaurant.
We were just about lucky to get a table before everyone decided to have breakfast at the same time (guess the tasty smells rising from the live egg station were too tempting).
After a hearty breakfast, we headed towards the entrance, where Siddharth was waiting with the Segways.
Somehow, it seemed too easy when he was riding but it takes a few minutes before you actually get the hang of it as you are just balancing on a small platform on two wheels.
Mid-morning, it was quite hot but no excuse for us not to enjoy the ride.
Thrilling speed
Often enough I went “whheeeee'' (but only in my head), reminded of lazy summer afternoons back home and for once knew how all those boys must have felt riding full-sized bicycles “scissor cut''.
Yes, it was fun zipping down the road on a Segway and Siddharth soon changed the speed setting on mine from “tortoise'' to “normal''. But he did warn me to be careful.
He also informed me that I was the first guest to ride the Segway as it had been procured just a couple of weeks ago.
Oh, only if it was cooler! It would really have been difficult getting me off the thing (think a child with a borrowed bike he loves).
But morning was soon giving way to noon and as people began to check out, the parking area was beginning to fill (some encouraging, some, I'm sure, thinking “what a foolish old woman'').
So I had no choice but to follow the others back to the rooms — before they had to carry me on a stretcher.
Charges for activities
Special rates until September 17
All rates are inclusive of buffet breakfast for two, 10 per cent service charge and 6 per cent tourism fee.
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