Searching for old historic little towns in UAE I came across a mention of Jazirat Al Hamra in Ras al-Khaimah (UAE), what was more intriguing was the fact that it seems to have a reputation for being a Ghost Town, and I mean quite literally, lots of people believe that this little deserted town is haunted by ghosts.
It all seemed too intriguing so I decided to drive down hoping to meet some Ghosts.
Waling around this deserted old town you can't help but get a little overwhelmed, imagining what life must've been like when it was a bustling town.
People have all sorts of theories about this old town, the most common one is that this town was haunted and that's why it's occupants abandoned it and has remained uninhabited for over 40 years.
Jazirat al-Hamra was a bustling coastal village, about 3km long with around 500 houses.
According to the historical documents, the original occupants of this village/town were Al Za'ab tribe and that's why this town was also referred to as Jazirat al-Za'ab. The tribe relocated to Abu Dhabi soon after the United Arab Emirates confederation in 1971. Conflicts, economic crises and decline of the pearl industry are some of the suggested reasons for the move. Documents also suggest that the tribe have subsequently refused to allow the demolition of the houses.
Jazirat al-Hamra is a wonderful piece of authentic UAE/Arab history, if you happen to live in Dubai and have few hours over a weekend then I would highly recommend it, it only takes a little over an hour to drive there but it's a living exhibit that's much better experienced in person then watching photographs of on you your monitor.
Good news is that most of the town is a protected site now and Museum of Ras al-Khaimah is documenting these beautiful houses.
People still live around that site and some local residents told me that occasionally people camp overnight in the ruins hoping to see ghosts.
No ghosts for me this time around but I would definitely go back over and over till I find one.
