To understand where to stay in Dubai, you must first get it into your head that the city is immense, and choosing the neighbourhood or area where to stay can become a choice dictated by several parameters: budget first and foremost, but also favourite activities to do in the city and flight schedule.
You can stay in Jumeirah, in Deira, near the shopping malls, along the Sheikh Zayed Road or in various other areas. There are plenty of hotels in the city and they are generally of a very good standard, so it only remains to solve the problem of finding the one that suits you.
If you don’t have budget problems, we recommend you try the experience of a luxury hotel: whichever hotel you choose will make you feel like royalty, you will be guaranteed the highest level of service in the world and every possible convenience.
Staying in Deira brings with it a number of advantages: for one thing, the hotels are definitely cheaper, you’ll be within an average metro stop and very close to the international airport. But above all, in Deira you can breathe the real Dubai, the Dubai of the middle class, teeming with life day and night, with flavours, smells and noises.
It’s a different story if you love luxury, beaches and social life: there is none of this in Deira (although the metro and taxis take you everywhere in the city). Above all, if you land at inconvenient times at Al Maktoum airport (Dubai World Central), getting to Deira could be a big problem, not so much because of the more than 60 kilometres separating them, but rather because public transport stops running from a certain hour onwards, making connections impossible.
You might then consider staying in Jumeirah: in this district, many hotels are super-luxury, just think of the Burj Al Arab, the most luxurious hotel in the world or the Atlantis, built at the end of Palm Jumeirah, the incredible artificial island.
Most or all of the hotels facing the sea have a private beach equipped with sunbeds, parasols and beach towels, you will be pampered by the attendants and spend a pleasant day relaxing in the Emirati sun or by the pool.
The main disadvantage of staying at Jumeirah is a bit of a resort effect: you’ll be quite isolated from the rest of the city, and you might risk spending the whole holiday locked up in the resort. Not to mention the prices are definitely not for every budget.
Those who enjoy spending time on the beach in Dubai will be spoilt for choice. The city has miles and miles of coastline, and there are essentially two areas to stay near the city’s most beautiful beaches.
The first is Dubai Marina, chock-full of hotels of the best known international chains, as there are many in Jumeirah Lake Towers, the neighbourhood that mirrors Dubai Marina, built on the other side of Sheikh Zayed Road.
The second is Jumeirah, where, apart from the unbridled luxury of the Burj Al Arab, one can find notable, very prestigious hotels, such as the Madinat Jumeirah, the Jumeirah Beach Hotel or the numerous structures built on the foliage of Palm Jumeirah, the iconic artificial palm-shaped island, at the end of which is another of the city’s most intriguing hotels: the Atlantis.
All hotels in Dubai close to the beach, or in any case all those of a certain standard, have a private beach with sunbeds and umbrellas, but of course all the comforts expected of hotels of a certain standard, such as air conditioning, bathroom with bath or shower, safe, 24-hour reception and Internet connection, are not missing.
One of the first luxury hotels in Dubai to achieve worldwide fame is the Burj Al Arab, which opened at the end of 1999 and soon became the city’s icon in the world. Built on an artificial island a few dozen metres off the waters of the Jumeirah district, its sail-like shape soon became the universal symbol of Dubai.
Critics have dubbed it ‘the world’s first seven-star hotel’, although officially it has been awarded five, and it is a favourite destination for celebrities and the international jet set.
At the Burj Al Arab, luxury is at an all-time high; an overnight stay can cost up to several thousand euros, but the quality and attention to detail that Burj Al Arab guests receive is hard to find elsewhere.
An alternative to consider for shoppers is to stay close to a shopping centre. All three of Dubai’s most beautiful and important malls have hotels within walking distance or directly inside them.
The Dubai Mall has the Armani Hotel located directly in the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest skyscraper just a few metres away, as does The Address Downtown Dubai, which is the skyscraper vaguely reminiscent of the Burj Al Arab facing the Burj Khalifa.
Those who enjoy the enchanted atmosphere of the Ibn Battuta Mall can stay at the Ibn Battuta Gate, a breathtaking property run by the renowned Movenpick chain, a five-star hotel with access to a private beach, world-class restaurants and luxurious rooms.
On the other hand, those who prefer the Mall of the Emirates and its centrality to the rest of Dubai can choose from world-renowned luxury brands such as Kempinski or Sheraton, both of which are directly connected to the mall.
Other areas to consider for a stay in Dubai are the Sheikh Zayed Road, where practically half of the skyscrapers are hotels of the most diverse international luxury chains, Dubai Marina, which is a beautiful neighbourhood located along the shores of the Persian Gulf and built around the world’s largest man-made marina, or the city’s business area, between Business Bay and Dubai Internet City.
Dubai Marina Sheikh Zayed Road Al Barsha Deira Bur Dubai
Finally, a word of advice: when you book a hotel in Dubai, take into account that the price you will pay will be much higher than initially expected, due to the service charge of taxes. In particular, you pay a tourist tax (varying from 7 to 20 dirhams per person per night, introduced in March 2014 to fundExpo 2020), plus a 10 per cent service charge and a further 10 per cent municipal tax.
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