Liwa Moreeb Dune Festival
Liwa Moreeb Dune Festival takes place Dec 2026 - Jan 2027 (exact dates announced only a few weeks ahead) in Liwa, UAE. The dress code is Casual and practical - sun protection, closed shoes for deep sand, and a proper jacket for cold desert nights. Free to attend; budget up to 600 EUR per person for hospitality and extras.
A desert motorsport and heritage festival at the foot of Tal Moreeb, a roughly 300m dune in the Empty Quarter, where modified 4x4s and buggies attack the sand face in hill-climb drag runs. Around the racing sit camel races, saluki contests, falconry and traditional markets. It is remote, free and a genuinely unpolished slice of Emirati desert life, a long way from the city's gloss.
- When
- Dec 2026 - Jan 2027 (exact dates announced only a few weeks ahead)
- Where
- Liwa, UAE
- Dress code
- Casual and practical - sun protection, closed shoes for deep sand, and a proper jacket for cold desert nights
- Cost
- Free to attend; budget up to 600 EUR per person for hospitality and extras.
- Weather
- 20 - 25C by day, cold at night, with strong sun and frequently blowing sand
- When to book
- Dates are announced only weeks ahead, so watch Visit Abu Dhabi and Al Dhafra channels; Liwa has very few rooms, so either book Qasr Al Sarab the moment dates appear or day-trip from Abu Dhabi
- Getting there
- AUH (Abu Dhabi), about 2 hr 30 min by road to Liwa
- Where to stay
- Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort by Anantara, Liwa, Tilal Liwa Hotel, Madinat Zayed, Liwa Hotel, Liwa Oasis
- Official site
- https://www.visitabudhabi.ae
How to attend
Entry is free and open to everyone. Drive roughly 2 to 2.5 hours south from Abu Dhabi to the Moreeb Dune arena in Liwa - a 4x4 helps once you leave tarmac. Spectator berms and grandstand areas are unticketed. Confirm each season's dates through Visit Abu Dhabi or Al Dhafra Festival announcements, as they are published late and shift year to year.
Entry to the Moreeb Dune arena is free and the spectator berms are unticketed; the dates are only published a few weeks ahead.
Insider tip
Come for the late-afternoon and evening hill-climb runs when the light rakes across the dune face and the temperature drops - the midday heat and glare on Tal Moreeb are punishing and most of the crowd only arrives after 4pm.
Get inside Liwa Moreeb Dune Festival
Booking matters here: dates are announced only weeks ahead, so watch Visit Abu Dhabi and Al Dhafra channels; Liwa has very few rooms, so either book Qasr Al Sarab the moment dates appear or day-trip from Abu Dhabi. Members track that window, what it really costs, and 573 more events across the season.
Free while in beta. One email when your invitation is ready, nothing else.