Your Complete Guide to do Visita Iglesia in UAE

For Christians, Holy week is one of the most important occasion in Christianity because it commemorates the passion of Christ. There are many events that are happening in the church during this time and one of them is the Visita Iglesia. Visita Iglesia is a religious tradition that most of the catholics perform during the Holy week. By visiting at least 7 churches, the pilgrims commemorate the 14 Stations of the Cross.

Candles for Prayer Intentions

Ninth Station of the Cross

Here in UAE, although Islam is the official religion of the country, the rulers allow freedom of religion and the non muslim religion can even build churches and other house of worship.

For me and my family we have been doing the Visita Iglesia yearly for many years with some friends in private cars. While it is also good to join a big group in a rented buses, I prefer to be in a small group because it is quicker to move, waiting time is reduced in every churches and can at least try to cover as many churches as we can in one day. 

In UAE there are 9 catholic churches and one chapel. 

St Joseph's Cathedral

Al Mushrif, Abu Dhabi
-----St Paul Church
Musaffah Industrial Area, Abu Dhabi Behind KM Supermarket
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St Mary's Church Catholic Church
Al Ain, Near Lulu Hypermarket
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St Francis Assisi Church
Jebel Ali Village, Dubai. Landmark: Ibn Battuta Mall
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St Mary's Catholic Church
Oud Metha, Dubai. Near Rashid Hospital
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St Michael's Church
Yarmook, Sharjah. Near Ministry of Labor
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Our Lady of Arabia Catholic Church
Industrial Area, Umm Al Quwain. Landmark: Few streets behind Al Manama Supermarket
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St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church
Ras Al Khaimah. Near Acacia Hotel
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Villa Chapel
Al Dhaid. Opposite ADNOC Petrol Station
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Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church
Fujairah. Few blocks away from HCT and Our Own English High School
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The St Paul Church catholic church in Musaffah is the second church in Abu Dhabi after St. Paul Cathedral that was opened to the parishioners in June 2015.

There are 3 ways to do the visita Iglesia in UAE. First: is to  visit the churches from Dubai, Al Ain and Abu Dhabi. Second: to visit the Sharjah, RAK and Fujairah Churches. and Third: if you are able to do  10 Churches in one day, the so much better.

We tried the second route starting from Sharjah, Dubai, Jebel Ali, Al Ain, Abu Dhabi before.(that time there was no church yet in Musaffah) but it was a very long drive. The Jebel-Ali-Al Ain route was a 2 hour drive,   Al-Ain- Abu Dhabi route was another 2 hour drive and Abu Dhabi Dubai/Sharjah was another 2 hour drive. So if you take this route it is a back breaking  long drive not including the time for prayers at each churches, toilet stops and meal breaks. 

For us, it was convenient to cover the following churches in this order because the route is shorter and quicker:

 - Sharjah-Umm Al Quwain-RAK-Villa Chapel in Dhaid-Fujairah (5 churches). If you can add Dubai and Jebel Ali, you can cover a total of 7 Churches. Meaning you can pray two Station of the Cross Prayer at each stop.   

Try to reach St Michael's church before 6am to avoid the big crowd. By this time you should be able to park in front of the church. After the prayer in the church drive toward E11 or the old national road leading to Umm Al Quwain. At the big round about in Umm Al Quwain turn left. The church is few streets behind Al Manama Supermarket. The building is a warehouse that was converted to a church. 

There is enough parking area in front.  

Our Lady of Arabia Catholic Church MAP

From Umm Al Quwain we return to E11 and drive toward RAK until you reach the round about before Al Hamra mall. Drive right until Acacia Hotel. Turn left. After about 100 meters the Church is to your right.   

St. Anthony de Padua Catholic Church

From Acacia hotel turn left toward Sheikh Zayed bin Mohammed road. Cross this highway toward the truck road. Drive until you reach E18. Go straight. This time you are driving along E87 toward Dhaid. Be careful on this road because this area is sloping and some wild goats are crossing the road. When you see the big cement factory on your left, turn left. You will pass Lulu Hypermarket and when you reach ADNOC petrol station make a U turn at the next round about. 

You should reach Dhiba before 12 NN because sometimes they are closing the villa but if people come they remain open. It is not difficult to find this place because it's exactly opposite the petrol station. 

You may eat lunch at Khor Fakkan beach in Fujairah while enjoying the seaview. On weekends Khor Fakkan is popular tourist destination.

Next stop is Our Lady of Perpetual Church in Fujairah. The church is located near HCT or Civil Defence.

Our Lady of Perpetual Church

Our Lady of Perpetual Church MAP

From Fujairah drive back to Sharjah via E84 road or Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed road that will join Kalba road and Maliha road. This is a new road bypassing Dhaid. It will take one hour to reach Sharjah. You should be able to reach Sharjah around 1pm and still have enough time to visit St Mary's Catholic Church Dubai and St Francis Catholic Church in Jebel Ali.

St Francis Church, Jebel Ali

St Mary's Church, Dubai

We never tried yet to visit all churches in UAE in one day. But if you plan to do so, I think you need to start early and have lunch while the car is running. Few stops can cost you precious time. If someone can replace you on the wheel much better because it will be a long drive.

What to bring? Expect a warm weather. Bring sunglasses, pack lunch, snacks, enough water or juices and the car must be in good condition.

So there you go folks! I pray that you enjoy and be blessed spiritually this coming Holy Week.

If you need additional info you may contact me at: akosimangjuan@yahoo.com. Other infos can be looked up at google. com.