Dubai seaplane company spreads its wings to Abu Dhabi

Seaplane tours are starting to fly into Yas Marina.

Seawings, a seaplane operator based in Dubai, yesterday said it had partnered Yas Marina to bring aerial sightseeing flights into the emirate from Dubai.

"They get to see The World Islands, the Burj Al Arab, the Palm, the Meydan race track, Dubai Marina, the Mall of the Emirates, the wildlife sanctuary in Al Ain," said Claudia Barua, the client development manager at Seawings.

The flight, which leaves from Dubai Creek, takes about 40 minutes. A ticket for an adult costs Dh1,225 (US$333.50).

Chartering the flight for private use would cost about Dh14,000, which was normally a popular option for corporate bookings, Ms Barua said.

The launch of the flights had been prompted by more interest in Abu Dhabi as a tourism destination, she said.

"Abu Dhabi has become another destination where people are interested to go apart from Dubai," she said.

"Obviously the Ferrari World has come up, which has added an advantage, especially for the tourists," Ms Barua said. "We haven't had any bookings as yet. We've had destination management companies calling us for enquiries and all of them are quite excited."

Seawings is hoping to expand its presence in Abu Dhabi with more aerial tours, she said.

Cedric Le Rest, Yas Marina's general manager, said the partnership was "great news" for the marina.