I’ve made about 20 trips to Abu Dhabi. A quick look, Ramadan runs Evening of Sun, Mar 10, 2024 - Evening of Tue, Apr 9, 2024, next year - so no worries there.

1) The tourist visa that you get upon arrival, how hard is that to get / is it a hassle? No hassle at all. It will take a few minutes with four people. You will get your face captured on video and they will put a small sticker on the back of your passports. (In addition to the stamp inside). The stamp is just a visual check for when you leave, it will allow you to go through the automated passport controls.

2) Between Turkish Airlines and Qatar Airlines, is one better than the other? Qatar for sure. If Ethiad is an option to Abu Dhabi, i recommend it.

3) Is flying coach there and back really that terrible? With four of us going, obviously trying to not pay more than we need to. If you decide to fly into Dubai, go Qatar or emirates. Dubai is a big transfer airport for passengers going to Delhi and Mumbai - coach will be a sardine can in more ways than one if you fly into Dubai.

4) We were thinking next June or July but it doesn't have to be summer, but it does need to be a time when the kids are out of school. Is there a better time of year to go? Man, it’s going to be hotter than hell. But you can still have fun. Ferrari world, Abu Dhabi F1 track, snow skiing in a mall, dune bashing and bbq (highly recommend!) are all things you can go do and still enjoy yourselves. Plan on staying out late, most places don’t start hopping until the sun goes down.

5) Would staying there a week be enough time? We do want to go to Dubai for a couple of days. My kids want to swim in the Persian Gulf. A couple of days in Dubai will eat the hell out of a week (even though it’s a short drive). 8 full nights in country would be a good trip though.

6) How is the process of connecting through a foreign airport? Anything I need to know / helpful to know? Depends on the airport. Keep in mind, pretty much every airport you’ll connect through is moving thousands of people per day. You won’t be attempting anything new. Just prep before hand, have your kids use the bathroom at last call on the plane. You don’t want to be held up in the bathroom when you need to clear through security at a connecting airport. And yes, you will need to go through security at your transfer airport if you don’t have a direct flight from the US to Abu Dhabi. Not a big deal at all, but you should expect it.