Abu Dhabi is the largest of all seven emirates with an area of 67,340 square kilometers, equivalent to 86.7 per cent of the country's total area, excluding the islands. It has a coastline extending for more than 400 kilometers and is divided for administrative purposes into three major regions.
The first region encompasses the city of Abu Dhabi, which are both the capital of the emirate and the federal capital.
The city also has extensive cultural, sport and leisure facilities, together with the wonderfully engineered Abu Dhabi Corniche that offers many kilometers of risk-free walking, cycling, jogging and roller-blading along the seashore of Abu Dhabi Island.
Architecturally speaking the city is also a fascinating place where older buildings such as small mosques have been preserved and sit comfortably in the shade of futuristic modern skyscrapers.
Abu Dhabi's second region, known as the Eastern Region, has as its capital Al Ain city. This fertile area is rich in greenery with plenty of farms, public parks and important archaeological sites. It is also blessed by substantial groundwater resources, which feed into numerous artesian wells.
Points of particular interest in this region are the Ain Al Faydah Park, Jebel Hafit, and the leisure park at Al Hili, Al Ain Zoo and Al Ain Museum.
This is also a cultural and educational center and site of the UAE's first university, the UAE University, which includes among its many faculties a vibrant medical school.
A superb road network facilitates internal transport and Al Ain is connected to the outside world through Al Ain International Airport.
Tourist development in Abu Dhabi is ongoing and many new projects are under way. One imaginative scheme is Al Futaisi Golf and Country Club's plan to transform Al Futaisi Island off Abu Dhabi into one of the UAE's most popular tourist resorts.
The Club already has a restaurant, tent village, 18-hole golf course, and horse riding track, beautiful beaches and a swimming pool. Forty luxurious chalets are being built and the island, which covers 45 square kilometers, is to have several species of local and migratory birds, sand gazelles, turtles, and horses, and is a haven for nature lovers.