Jebel Jais is the coldest place in the United Arab Emirates. The highest mountain in this desert country reaches 1,934 metres at its summit on the border with Oman, high enough that winter nights can dip below freezing — the -5.7°C logged here in February 2017 is still the lowest temperature ever recorded in the UAE, and a few times snow has even dusted the ridges. The range is the opposite of the sand the country is known for: bare grey-beige limestone that formed on an ancient seafloor before being buckled thousands of metres upward into deep valleys and sharp, stacked summits. As you climb away from the baking desert plain the air cools by roughly ten degrees, which is why anyone in the Gulf craving cool air heads here. The modern asphalt road that switchbacks up the mountain is an attraction in its own right, rated one of the most spectacular drives in the region.
Near the top, terraced viewpoints open onto the whole range, which turns shades of orange and purple at sunset as shadow floods the valleys and the summits still hold the light. The mountain has also become the Gulf's adrenaline hub: the Jais Flight, certified by Guinness as the world's longest zipline, sends riders 2.8 kilometres across the valley at up to 150 kilometres an hour, and there are hiking trails, via ferrata routes and marked stargazing spots as well. Most of this arrived recently — the zipline opened in 2018 and the mountain road was completed in 2019, turning a remote peak into Ras Al Khaimah's flagship destination. Whether you crawl up the switchbacks drinking in the view or watch the sun drop over the desert from a café at the top, Jebel Jais is a strikingly cool escape above the Gulf's hot lowlands.