Finding a USP in the UAE: RAK Glamping

We often talk about finding a unique selling point when setting up – one ex-pat couple in Ras al Khaimah have done just that: building a business on the back of their love of dogs and their existing kennel business.

Ras al Khaimah is one of the seven Emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates. The capital of the emirate is the city of Ras al Khaimah, usually abbreviated to RAK City. The UAE has a great tradition of camping thanks to the Bedouin, Arabic-speaking nomadic peoples of the Middle Eastern deserts and their Bedouin tents known as beit al-sha’r or ‘house of hair’ made from the hair of goats.

But it was in fact dogs that brought Amanda and Neil Anderson to create their glamping business RAK Glamping, which is situated on 9 beautiful acres of desert wilderness with pockets of Gaff Trees, a Koi Pond and stunning views of the Hajjar Mountains. Amanda and Neil established RAK Glamping in 2019 after initially using the land solely as a dog kennel and training centre.

Amanda and Neil moved to the Middle East in 1992 and have lived in Saudi Arabia, Cairo and Dubai before settling in Ras al Khaimah in 2014. “I wouldn’t suggest that it is an easy task to set up a business in the UAE unless you understand the way things work over here,” says Neil who worked in the security business before setting up the kennels with his wife. “In order to start a business, you require the correct permits and the definition of what business you provide can be interpreted in a number of ways. Once you have a permit, you can expect to be inspected regularly and you will need to renew your permit every 6-12 months.”

The couple came by glamping almost accidentally when they put up a Bedouin tent to house visiting family and friends and decked it out with a bed and other comfortable furnishings. When the tent was not in use for their own guests, the couple put it on Airbnb and were pleasantly surprised at the demand. This led them to put up another tent, followed by a lodge and then an A-Frame cabin. “The cabin seemed to really capture people’s imaginations,” says Amanda. “People were putting it on Instagram and then we got a slightly different clientele.”

The USP of RAK Glamping remains the dog business. Neil and Amanda provide dog training as well as kennel services, which are popular in the summer season when Emiratis go away. They also have their own dogs and welcome people who bring their dogs with them to glamp. “It’s great, we get a lot of people bringing their dogs - there’s nothing else around that offers that possibility,” says Neil. “What’s more is if their dogs are not so well behaved, I sometimes offer training and I have got business from that too! We even get guests who come to play with our dogs because they can’t have dogs themselves in their apartments in the city,” he adds. The majority of hotels in the UAE do not allow dogs and the ones that do, usually have a weight limit of 18 kilograms. This means that anyone with a dog larger than the limit would not be able to travel with their four-legged friends.

Amanda and Neil were keen to bring the more boutique style of glamping, that is dominant in the UK, to the UAE, where larger, fullservice eco resorts are the norm. Facilities at RAK include a private bathroom, electric shower, BBQ and kitchen area and a fire pit. The site is self-catering, meaning that guests must bring and cook their own food, with each of the accommodation units featuring a fridge for storage. This proved to be a hit with international travellers from places like the USA, Australia and the UK but is an unfamiliar concept to Emirati guests visiting for a staycation, who are used to the larger, more controlled, resort-style holidays.

“We do get some guests who have never selfcatered before. We have to explain to them that they need to bring their own food and cook it. Once they get used to the idea they seem to love it,” adds Amanda.

RAK Glamping

There are many things that have to be considered when opening up a glamping site in the UAE as opposed to other countries.

The first is that the hot, dry, desert climate means that fire is of serious concern. The site comes complete with its own BBQ and kitchen area, and while guests are welcome to bring their own private BBQS, all cooking must be done in the designated area. Wildlife is also a concern, with regular checks being carried out for scorpions.

Due to the high temperature, the high season for glamping sites within the UAE is during the winter months, from around September to February. The temperature gets so high during the summer months that many of the expats who live in the area will leave and return when the temperature drops. This means that the pool of potential visitors drops.

“We have moved away from Airbnb after recent events and we do well marketing the site through our social media channels and by word of mouth,” says Amanda. “We have also started using Booking.com and it is working well for us, particularly for filling any mid-week gaps.”

For a couple who came to glamping almost by accident as an additional business to their dog kennels, Amanda and Neil have carved out something truly unique in the region that suits both them, their guests and their many four-legged friends.

rakglamping.com

Amanda and Neil Anderson