Peter Rickman

■ AmazonBasics’ ski bag and ski boot bag are great value carriers. Both £15, amazon.co.uk ICONIC The oryx is the national animal

Hold on! Hold on tight… don’t let go whatever you do… it’s going to be a two bounce landing!” The balloon’s captain was very insistent and we weren’t likely to disobey. We hit a dune and, sure enough, the basket bounced twice before coming to rest on its side on the desert sand. The landing was rough but it was an amazing experience.

We’d arrived at the launch site just outside Dubai at dawn to be taken skywards by Balloon Adventures Dubai (ballooning.ae) to see the sunrise over the desert.

We rose slowly up into the dawn’s half-light, the other balloons around us providing a spectacular sight. Initially my legs felt like they were made of jelly but I relaxed once I realised how peaceful it was, looking at the camels and gazelles roaming across the sands below.

Once we had clambered out of the basket after landing we were treated to a very tasty breakfast at a bedouin camp, before setting off on the day’s next adventure – a safari in a 1948 Land Rover.

Safari organiser Platinum Heritage (platinum-heritage.com) uses the open-top vintage Land Rovers because they have a connection with Dubai as they were the first cars brought to the region by the British Army in 1950.

Our guide and driver, Joel, was very knowledgeable and told us about the animals we would see on the drive through the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve, which was established in 2002 to protect both animal and plant life.

At 140 sq km it comprises around 5% of Dubai’s total area and is part of the Empty Quarter, the world’s largest sand desert, which covers all seven of the United Arab Emirates, and parts of Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Oman.

The reserve is home to gazelles, Arabian oryx – the national animal of the UAE – snakes, lizards and lynx. After the camel, the oryx is the second largest animal found in the desert.

“There is a connection between the gazelle, oryx and Arabian culture,” Joel explained.

“Abu Dhabi, for example, means ‘the father of the gazelle’.”

We were lucky enough to see plenty of gazelles and oryx, a couple of lizards but sadly no lynx.

The balloon flight earlier had