Mohammed bin Zaed City | ExpatWoman.com
 

Mohammed bin Zaed City

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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 03 April 2011 - 20:51

We are moving to Abu Dhabi and looking at different areas to live in, weighing in pros and cons. I looked at some 3BR flats on the Corniche at 180K, spacious, great views, although smelly corridors and the reception area isn't great. (I prefer new places). The agent told me that once we move on the Corniche we wouldnt want to live anywhere else. and that this is the Beverely Hills and everything happens here. Also with my 5yr old, it would be an ideal location. Of course that's the agent's pitch to get the commission.
Then my husband's Emirati colleague is renting his massive brand new 4BR villa in Mohammed Bin Zaed City also for 180K. I havent seen it. The owner says there is a Spinney, Carrefour, co-op near about, hospitals.

Could anyone tell me if this is a good area to live in, are there any other facilities and things to do for my 5yr old? And most importantly how smooth and quick is the drive to BSAK? I would hate to be stuck in a villa in the middle of nowhere with a long drive to the civilisation.
<em>edited by Olgita on 03/04/2011</em>

4747
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EW MASTER
Latest post on 05 April 2011 - 09:01
there is only one sort of hotel in mbz see link. http://www.booking.com/hotel/ae/arabia-apartments.en.html
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EW MASTER
Latest post on 05 April 2011 - 09:00
Hi,is Dusit Thani Hotel in Mohammed bin Zaed City? no they are building one but i think its over by al jazira stadium over on 4th st etc.
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 05 April 2011 - 06:50
Hi,is Dusit Thani Hotel in Mohammed bin Zaed City?
28
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 04 April 2011 - 16:08
see what you mean, very useful, thanks, prob worth a look,nothing to lose :)
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EW MASTER
Latest post on 04 April 2011 - 15:38
interesting Busybee, do you think it would be worth us looking at MBZ too then? sounds pretty ok from what you say. Where I live here is 20mins from everything, little village, so i live in my car, 30 min school run, so may suit us. Thanks for all your valuable input on here. yeh its like 20 mins drive to bsak from mbz/kcb whereby it can be 25/30 mins from kca. its straight down the main road so its much easier than somewhere on the corniche etc as you then have to go through many traffic lights etc.
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EW MASTER
Latest post on 04 April 2011 - 15:37
well u can look at kcb or kca or mbz all similar. but it depends on what is on offer at the time of looking. kca is very busy now getting in and out of the main road, kcb is off al ain road which is easier and mbz is off the mussfah road or al ain road depending on where you are. the thing is that here all the houses are built individually so each one is different.
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 04 April 2011 - 14:52
interesting Busybee, do you think it would be worth us looking at MBZ too then? sounds pretty ok from what you say. Where I live here is 20mins from everything, little village, so i live in my car, 30 min school run, so may suit us. Thanks for all your valuable input on here.
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EW MASTER
Latest post on 04 April 2011 - 14:16
even if you do this for 1 year to suss out the place where you like etc then next year when you have more time rather than just jumping in at the deep end. the most difficult thing was getting a spot at bsak, this is because you are already an expat and also now kids cannot change schools in the uae, so this is the perfect time to "jump the q".
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 04 April 2011 - 14:11
thanks a lot busybee, it was really a great help! Its amazing how you know the place!!! So now lets see what my hubby will look at this evening. Take care.
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EW MASTER
Latest post on 04 April 2011 - 10:42
ok, so its not a bad place and down the line there will be more malls, ets. What about Al-Raha, khalifa A, is that better than MBZ? Would the drive be the same from there to BSAK or busier than from MBZ? Looking at the map, we would need to take Al Salam st from Al Raha. I often hear there are accidents on this road. I would really love to live in a community, with facilities, play grounds. The compounds seem to be too expensive in town, so maybe have to look on the outside. ok mbz is fine but obviously everyone is different. khalifa a is a nitemare getting into and out of nowadays, there are more schools there so all that traffic is trying to get into and out of. i used to live there back in the day when no-one wanted to because there was nothing there. kca is fine but of course it can take you another 10 mins actually negotiating the roundabouts etc inside the blocks. if you find a place that has easy access to mussafah road then fine. al raha is the other side of khalifa a. if you are down the newer end towards etihad plaza then you should go down to the airport junction onto channel st (the main road) and come in over the new bridge and down salam st, but it will be in the region of 25 mins. accidents on any of the roads, no road is worse or better really. the new al salam st is good now as there are no traffic lights until you come off the road at 19th (saada) to go to bsak but then you have to sit at 2 busy traffic lights. faciltiies etc a lot of the compounds have swimming pools but then you need to look at the likes of sas but the cheapest 3 bed there is maybe now 180 but then you are right near to the power lines, so i personally wouldnt go there, and also its a right pickle getting in to sas much better coming out but then you have to go over mataq bridge. if it was me i would stick to mussafah road side, which is between the bridges, mbz or even kcb.
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 04 April 2011 - 10:34
ok, so its not a bad place and down the line there will be more malls, ets. What about Al-Raha, khalifa A, is that better than MBZ? Would the drive be the same from there to BSAK or busier than from MBZ? Looking at the map, we would need to take Al Salam st from Al Raha. I often hear there are accidents on this road. I would really love to live in a community, with facilities, play grounds. The compounds seem to be too expensive in town, so maybe have to look on the outside.
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EW MASTER
Latest post on 04 April 2011 - 10:06
Hi busybee, thank you for such a detailed reply. Yes, my girl has a place in BSAK, starting on 17 April. So we have to move and do it FAST! So basically there isn't much in MBZ apart from food options. Alos the its not s guaranteed 15min drive. Plus when I look at the map its adjacent to the industrial area, hmmm. Do you know whether its mostly expat or emirarti community there? Would you live on the Corniche, is it really as great as they say it is? right i remember now that you have a place for next term. mbz is ok, yes its right next door to the industrial area,but the actual block of mbz is quite big. its right opp the labour camps but they have moved them to proper places further along the al ain road. mbz is fine, i would live there, but you need a car. there isnt much at mazad mall, there is a lulu express (supermarket) and then there are exchange places, cafes, food court, computer shop, pet shop and a few little shops like that. if you want proper shops then you will have to wait for the new mall to open just 5 mins or so away in baniyas then that will be a mall with a cinema, car4 (which is bigger than lulu) proper shops etc. if you want the other option is delma mall which is 5 mins down the road again, matalin, centrepoint, cinema (when it opens) etc etc so you are right in the middle of a couple of malls. its about 15 mins drive but then it would take you more than 15 mins if you lived in a apartment on the corniche because it can take you 2 mins at each set of traffic lights and from corniche to bsak you have to travel at least 10 blocks down etc so it can be more than 15 mins. so its about the same but of course mbz is more in miles but its a much much quicker road, and there is only 1 set of traffic lights to sit at. there will be a mixture of local and expat but with any area you may not see your neighbours. but there is a lot more expat there now than before. in the apartments behind the mall its mostly etihad accommodation which will be expat etc. the corniche is fine but its very busy, parking is a pain but better now with the paid parking you will have to factor that in to pay 2k for parking permits per year, if the apartment etc doesnt have parking. if you do not have parking i know its a pain.
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 04 April 2011 - 09:39
Hi busybee, thank you for such a detailed reply. Yes, my girl has a place in BSAK, starting on 17 April. So we have to move and do it FAST! So basically there isn't much in MBZ apart from food options. Alos the its not s guaranteed 15min drive. Plus when I look at the map its adjacent to the industrial area, hmmm. Do you know whether its mostly expat or emirarti community there? Would you live on the Corniche, is it really as great as they say it is?
4747
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EW MASTER
Latest post on 03 April 2011 - 23:43
We are moving to Abu Dhabi and looking at different areas to live in, weighing in pros and cons. I looked at some 3BR flats on the Corniche at 180K, spacious, great views, although smelly corridors and the reception area isn't great. (I prefer new places). The agent told me that once we move on the Corniche we wouldnt want to live anywhere else. and that this is the Beverely Hills and everything happens here. Also with my 5yr old, it would be an ideal location. Of course that's the agent's pitch to get the commission. Then my husband's Emirati colleague is renting his massive brand new 4BR villa in Mohammed Bin Zaed City also for 180K. I havent seen it. The owner says there is a Spinney, Carrefour, co-op near about, hospitals. Could anyone tell me if this is a good area to live in, are there any other facilities and things to do for my 5yr old? And most importantly how smooth and quick is the drive to BSAK? I would hate to be stuck in a villa in the middle of nowhere with a long drive to the civilisation. edited by Olgita on 03/04/2011 ok the goss on mbz. yes you can get a villa there for less than 180k. in mazad mall in mbz there is indeed a lulu express, and lot of food options but thats really about it there. there is a car4 located at delma mall which is 4 mins or so away from mayazad mall, but its a real pain to get into and out of as its part of mussafah industrial city. spinneys is located either at raha beach, 10 mins away, sas al nakheel a housing compound 5 mins away or mangrove village another housing compound 5 mins or so away. close by there are co-ops at between the bridges and also officers city (recently renamed abu dhabi gate city). in the next month there is going to be a new mall opening up in baniyas which is just the other side of the al ain road E22 in baniyas and that will have a car4 and cinemas and shops (will be much better than delma mall). travel to bsak, there are a few that do the commute from mbz to bsak, will be about 15 mins obviously depending on where you are actually in mbz, there is a lot of roadworks/detours there at the moment and thats adding a good 5 mins onto the journey time, but you need to look at the access off either the mussafah road or the al ain road for the commute to bsak. do you have places at bsak? hospitals the closest is mafraq hospital, government one. or private one at al noor airport road.