How a Sheikh’s vision kick-started Ras Al Khaimah’s tourist industry with Al Marjan Island

A man-made island in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE, was just a dream in 2004. However, the will of Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi made that dream a reality and Al Marjan Island is now home to major entertainment and lifestyle offerings.

In 2004, Ras Al Khaimah, the northern-most emirate of the United Arab Emirates, was beginning a journey to develop its tourism industry. Its first foray into community developments, Al Hamra Village, had recently been completed and its beautiful villas, apartments, mall and hotels were already proving a huge success.
His Highness Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, then Crown Prince of the Emirate and now its Ruler, was keen to embark on further projects that would put the spotlight on Ras Al Khaimah as a burgeoning tourist destination and a great place for investors. So H.H Sheikh Saud assembled a team and developed the concept for what was to become Al Marjan Island – a group of four coral-shaped islands in a man-made archipelago located in the Arabian Gulf.
Ras Al Khaimah is an Emirate blessed with a diverse topography, comprising mountains, desert dunes and coastal areas. It already had 64km of beautiful beaches but Al Marjan Island sought to add a further 23 kilometers of waterfront on a quartet of islands that extended 4.5 kilometers into the Arabian Gulf.
Marjan, which translates to “coral”, was to be built in the shape of the reef-building substance, a unique design feature that meant that each plot of land had a distinct identity and offered differing views of the sea or coastline.
“I always find that His Highness sees opportunities that others don’t - he has that vision,” says Abdullah Abdooli, CEO of Marjan, Ras Al Khaimah’s master developer, which counts Al Marjan Island as its flagship residential and hospitality development.
“Who would have thought at that time that Ras Al Khaimah could become a hospitality destination? Few people would believe it but His Highness could envision it. Now, everything that you see on Al Marjan Island and everything yet to come stems from his foresight of what was possible.”
With the blessing of the late Ruler, Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, work commenced in 2004 on the Al Marjan Island project, making use of some of Ras Al Khaimah’s existing resources and successful companies, which was a stipulation of H.H. Sheikh Saud.
Rocks and other materials were used from Stevin Rock and RAK Rock, transported via Saqr Port to the development site in the south of the Emirate, where nearby RAK Ceramics was already established as a world-leading ceramics manufacturer. A total of 3.5 million cubic meters of rocks were used in the construction of the island, which spans a total area of more than 2.7 million square meters.
The southerly location of Al Marjan Island was chosen due to its proximity to other emirates and due to the excellent transport infrastructure, meaning that visitors could travel from Dubai in just 45 minutes.

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