SIMPLY THE BEST
Dubai Luxury Hotels
When it comes to cutting-edge design, style and service, Dubai’s ever-growing line-up of top-end hotels simply can’t be beaten, says Colin Ellson
U
ntil relatively recently, Dubai’s phenomenal development over the past
two decades has been difficult to put into perspective. However, NASA’s satellites help tell the true picture: they have been flying over the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula and have captured a series of time-lapse images that trace the emirate’s emergence from the desert sands to become the leisure playground and business centre of the Gulf and Middle East. A good road network, a metro system, towering office blocks and man-made off-shore islands are shown at various stages of construction, an infrastructure supporting some of the world's best hotels. Every international hotel group of
note, along with local hoteliers, is represented, their properties a byword for luxury, facilities and
Above: Atlantis, The Palm - Royal Towers
service: where else would a poolside waiter offer to clean your Raybans? Dubai’s hotel architecture is also unique, western influences married to the geometric patterns, towers and water features of old Arabia. Cool interiors house guest rooms with state-of-the art facilities and traditional Middle Eastern furnishings and fittings, and spas, kids’ clubs, fitness centres, a choice of restaurants, and well-appointed pools are almost de rigueur. An added bonus is that most
properties are close to leisure attractions and the emirate’s legendary shopping and golf courses. Newer properties such as The Armani, Giorgio’s first overseas hotel, located in the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building at 828 metres high, will take their place as landmarks of the future. Two existing hotels are rightly the emirate’s icons: the exclusive, sail-shaped off-shore Burj Al Arab, towering over the wave- shaped Jumeirah Beach.
Whats New As one of Dubai’s main source markets, the UK recorded a year-on- year increase of 14% in bed nights in the first quarter of this year, with British visitors spending an average 4.5 days in the emirate, compared to less than four in the same period last year. Their choice of five-star hotels totalled 63, a figure which will be exceeded in 2012 with the opening of a clutch of properties, many on Palm Island. Among the debutantes have been the One&Only The Palm (
www.thepalm. oneandonlyresorts), a boutique hotel where all guest rooms have an outdoor terrace or private pool and the facilities include the 101 Dining Lounge & Bar, only reached by boat. The property is a neighbour to the soaring, water-themed Atlantis, The Palm (
www.atlantisthepalm. com). Here, guests in its 1,539 rooms can enjoy numerous dining choices, including the new Asian Republic, and dive into the Shark Lagoon.
Opened in February this year, another new island hotel is the 204- room Rixos The Palm (www.
booking.com/rixos-the-palm- dubai), its interior covering just 30% of the property’s total land area, the remainder dedicated to gardens and a sweeping beach promenade. A further hotel on the island, due to open in autumn this year, will be Fairmont The Palm. (www.
palmdubai@fairmont.com), featuring 381 rooms and suites, a variety of restaurants, beach club, children's activity centre, watersports centre and Willow Stream Spa. Back on the mainland, the designer
Versace Hotel (www.
palazzoversace.com) is set to open in Dubai’s Culture Village and will include 213 suites, 169 residences, a spa, a Versace ready-to- wear boutique, a number of pools and a marina. Jebel Ali International Hotels (
www.jebelali-
international.com) is
62 September 2012 •
www.sellinglonghaul.com
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