Moving to Abu Dhabi during the Covid19 pandemic. Fear or Excitement?

    Moving to a new place is never easy. Currently, with the coronavirus pandemic sweeping the globe, it would seem the worst possible time to pack your things and go, but if you don’t have a choice and have to do it while the whole world is suffering from a terrific, contagious disease such and not having a clear set of rules this can be somehow scary. 

In normal circumstances people usually share memories of how exciting moving to a new place can be and also a little anxious about it for many reasons, such as the idea of meeting new people, experiencing brand new places, exploring unknown roads and destinations, arranging and decorating you’re their new homes. In my case, my life got transformed and I had to adjust to an unfamiliar environment during the pandemic, which at the first place caused fear and anxiety.

First of all, the sooner you realize that Covid19 significantly limited not only many international moves but also made it complicated and time-consuming for internal moves as well, the less stressful your journey will be. In our case, the life-changing decision to relocate to Abu Dhabi from Dubai was made in February 2021. By that time, the regulations and rules of moving between two cities were already in place and unfortunately for us were constantly changing. 

As much as we love and trust our friends and relatives, they can misguide or provide wrong and incorrect information that’s why it’s extremely important to check the latest updated information on the Emirates News Agency “WAM “or any other official sources unlike Facebook, Twitter, or another sort of social media, which we often use to get the latest updates.  In my personal experience, better to check all information twice, early morning and late evening. As I have already mentioned, it can change overnight. 

I would suggest downloading the applications you are required at that particular moment, in our case, it was the “AlHOSN” App and also make sure your documents such as Emirates ID or passport are kept with you as you will need to show them to the policeman to be able to cross the checkpoint into Abu Dhabi. Get your PCR test done in advance and don’t take risks with the DPI test. Personally, I know many cases where people were turned away just because the officials saw something abnormal in the blood, which isn’t necessarily Covid19.  No need to mention that permits to move out/in should also be in arranged insufficient time.

Get the right moving company. I will repeat, THE RIGHT ONE! The success of your move or at least 99 % depends on the moving company you choose.  If you have never deal with the movers before, ask your friends or colleagues if they know a reliable company, or crawl the browser and check the reviews and feedback of the various moving enterprises before going ahead. Unfortunately for us, our first choice was a disaster, as they promised and gave unrealistic deadlines, which they couldn’t meet. The night before our move, we were informed about their failure to pass a PCR test. So that’s why REALISTIC DEADLINES are crucial! Make sure that all team members of the moving company had a PCR test as well as installing the app and only after that a moving out the day should be finalized and confirmed. Fortunately for us, Maxi Care Facility Management Services provided excellent service in a reasonable period of time and within our budget. Note, that it can takes days to move completely because apart from the quantity of your furniture, trucks have to pass through the special gate at the checkpoint which is dedicated for them, traffic is horrible, especially during rush hours.

Choose your optimal place to live. Where Dubai offers glitzy, luxury resorts, endless skyscrapers, shopping malls, attractions, and a variety of affordable properties, Abu Dhabi is a city known for being a calmer, more traditional, and family-oriented community with an extremely high cost of accommodations compared to Dubai.  

If you decided to relocate to Abu Dhabi, you need to answer the questions below:

o What is your budget?

o Are you single or married?

o Do you drive?

o Where is your office location?

o Which neighborhood are you looking for?

o Do you have Pets?

As I said earlier housing cost is extremely high and can set you back up to 50 % of your monthly salary. If you are single, a studio or one-bedroom apartment near the Corniche Area or in the heart of the city will fit you perfectly fine. If you are a family with a dog, like us, go ahead to check properties on Yas or Al Saadiyat Islands. Having a golden retriever – a puppy for life, we decided to go for a townhouse with a decent garden, which was difficult to find. To our surprise, the majority of villas in AD have little to no garden.

By browsing well known Property Finder website and having assistance of a real estate agency, which I found not really be proactive, unlike those in Dubai, we found our home in Yas Acres, which matched our requirements being a European community with all the amenities and facilities around. Talking about the community, I would like to subject it in my next article in more detail, as most of the time you don’t get what you see or you don’t see what you get, very tricky one!

The last, not the least thing about the move is housing connections. UAE like any other countries requires deposits to do any sort of connections such as ADDC, Gas Connection, Internet, etc. If you are having an agent who is taking care of that, make sure everything is connected and paid accordingly, and don’t trust any promises if some of the connections can be done later as Property Management needs approval. Get it sorted before you move in or you will appear in the same situation like we are when it took them 5 months to connect the gas in the entire community. 

    To put it in the nutshell, I pen down saying that there’s no right or wrong way to pack up and make your move, so if you’ve got the itch to try out life in a brand new place and the opportunity to make it happen, "Yallah"! You are more likely to regret not doing it than taking the plunge. Bon, voyage!