Destination Guides

Dubai has a reputation for luxury living, flashy nightlife, endless sunshine and viral chocolate The skyline is dominated by towers, including the Burj Khalifa (the world’s tallest building at 828 metres high); the nightclubs and dinner shows are designed to impress; the brunches are lavish; and you can shop ‘til you drop (and find that chocolate) at Dubai Mall, one of the biggest shopping centres on the planet. But blowing the budget isn’t a requirement when it comes to staying here. There are so many hotels in the city, which means there’s a property suitable for all types of trips, whether you’re after something family friendly, a prime location or all-out luxury. Hilton Dubai Palm Jumeirah If beach time is your top priority, head for the Hilton Dubai Palm Jumeirah. The expansive hotel on Palm West Beach has its own private beach, where you can relax on a day bed or take on some watersports, plus an ocean-front pool if you don’t wanna get sandy. Given that the hotel is close to Dubai Marina, it’s a great base if you’re planning on taking a yacht tour too (we recommend using Xclusive Yachts for this). The rooms all have balconies with views of the city or the sea, and they’re all super spacious - the King Room comes with a huge bed, flat screen TV, a sofa, a desk, and a Lavazza coffee machine. The bathroom is just as roomy, with a walk-in shower, a separate tub and loads of amenities, including Crabtree & Evelyn toiletries, dental kits, shave kits, and even a loofah. The gym is kitted out with high-spec gear (and views over Dubai Marina) but the Eforea spa is the ultimate place to indulge in some me-time. The hammam is the signature treatment but the aroma massage also works a treat, especially if you’ve just come off a long flight over. This being Dubai, you’re not short of dining options, with ten different concepts available in the hotel. Barfly by Buddha Bar is where you’ll wanna spend the night - the restaurant and terrace serves up a pan-Asian menu alongside live performances and DJs. There’s also a Negroni Lounge opposite the main restaurant, the first one in all of the Middle East, where you can hole up for a more intimate experience - and killer Negronis of course. In the morning, head down to Mowsem for a breakfast buffet so large you’ll need several trips round just to take it all in. Embassy Suites by Hilton Dubai Business Bay Opened in September 2024, the Embassy Suites in Business Bay is the brand’s first outpost in the UAE. The hotel, a great mid-range option for the area, is 70% suites plus guest rooms, which you can get with excellent views of the Burj Khalifa, It’s worth reserving one of these so you can enjoy the light display from the floor-to-ceiling windows (once you’ve cracked the electronic lights and curtain controls that is). The rooms are on the smaller side, though they still fit a king bed, widescreen TV, and a bathroom with a standalone tub and walk-in shower. And there are plenty of connecting rooms available if you’ve got the fam along with you. Embassy Suites shares the building with Hilton Garden Inn, which occupies the bottom 20 floors and is an even more affordable option - ideal if you’re travelling on a budget but don’t want to sacrifice on location. Both hotels share a large events space (which has its own dedicated entrance) as well as a common gym, spa and pool, though they have separate restaurants. At Embassy Suites, there’s Rio Restaurant & Lounge, serving Mediterranean-South American-inspired food; the 24/7 cafe The Drip; and The Gourmet Yard, where you can get a cooked-to-order brekkie (included in room rate as standard across all Embassy Suites). Old Dubai It’s well worth taking time away from the flashy high-rises to explore Old Dubai and get a taste of what the city used to be like before it became an ultra-modern metropolis. You can see the contrast best from the rooftop pool at the Canopy by Hilton Dubai Al Seef, with Dubai Creek on one side and that famous skyline, complete with the Dubai Frame, on the other. You can head across Dubai Creek to the gold souk and spice souk; ride on a traditional dhow boat; go shopping in Al Seef; and check out traditional emirati houses at the Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood. Take the opportunity to try a range of Middle Eastern food by going on a food tour - Frying Pan Adventures tours are led by knowledgeable locals and you get very well fed, with stuffed falafel sandwiches, kunafa, chicken shawarma, masgouf (Iraqi barbecued fish), baklava and ma’amoul. Desert Safari See another side of Dubai by escaping the city completely by journeying into the desert for a night safari. Platinum Heritage Dubai runs a range of experiences held on a reserve around 50km out of the city - don’t worry, they pick you up and drop you back at your hotel as part of the tour. Our night safari included a drive around in a vintage Land Rover, a guided eco-walk looking for snakes and scorpions; camel riding; an owl demonstration; a stargazing session; and a three-course Arabic dinner hosted at a plush desert camp. Waldorf Astoria DIFC When it comes to luxury, it doesn’t get much better than the Waldorf Astoria. The property in DIFC occupies floors 18 - 55 of the Burj Daman tower and blends NYC elegance, with a dash of Riviera chic at the rooftop pool, and plenty of UAE opulence - think mirrored and marbled corridors, walnut and brass finished and beautiful flower arrangements. All Dubai hotel lobbies smell amazing, this one especially so. The sleek design continues up in the rooms, with a leather trunk cabinet holding the fridge and coffee station, including bone china cups and saucers; a massive bed and sofa in front of a widescreen TV; floor-to-ceiling windows to admire the other skyscrapers from; and an enormous marble bathroom with a double sink, walk-in shower, big bathtub and full size Aesop toiletries. Nodding to that NYC connection is Bull & Bear, the signature restaurant modelled after the one in the original Waldorf Astoria in Manhattan. Marc Hardiman leads the kitchen here, using leaves and greens grown on its hydroponic farm and locally sourced produce across the modern European menu, with the wellington and After Eight-inspired dessert nodding to his British roots. Breakfast is also served in Bull & Bear, where you can get hot dishes cooked to order and a buffet featuring cereals, fruits, pastries, meats, cheeses, Arabic and international bites. Hilton is running a Green Breakfast initiative across 13 of its UAE properties, including the Waldorf Astoria, in an effort to reduce food waste. The kitchens use Winnow, an AI-led system that tracks the type and amount of food thrown away and translates that into data that can be used to adjust things like production schedules and portion sizes, dramatically reducing both pre- and post-consumer waste. Abu Dhabi Though it’s only about an hour and a half away (Dubai traffic dependent), Abu Dhabi does have a very different vibe to Dubai. Yes it’s still shiny and modern - the Conrad Etihad Towers certainly ticks those boxes - but it’s also more traditional, slower paced, and with more of a focus on family-friendly activities and cultural pursuits. The Louvre Abu Dhabi, France’s largest cultural project abroad and the first universal museum in the Arab world, is a must-visit. The complex itself is impressive and inside you can find a rotating collection of artefacts from across the globe. Organised thematically, many pieces that aren’t close in geography or chronology are presented in dialogue with each other, the displays explore the connections between different cultures and civilisations. You don’t want to miss seeing the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque either; it’s worth timing your visit for sundown as the architecture looks even more spectacular as the light fades. Home to Ferrari World, Seaworld, Yas Waterwold and Warner Brothers World as well as the Yas Marina Formula 1 circuit, Yas Island is the place to be for adrenaline junkies. And the place to stay is the WB Abu Dhabi Curio, the first Warner Brothers-themed hotel in the world and just steps away from the park. There are plenty of things for the kids, like Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck characters to take photos with, letters from Bugs Bunny in the rooms, and a dive-in screen by the pool showing movies. But the theming is done well for the grown-ups and film lovers too. There’s a living archive around the central staircase featuring memorabilia from a variety of Warner Brothers movies, the carpet in the hallways is inspired by the one in The Shining, the card holders for the room keys look like clapperboards, there are Hollywood mirrors in the bathroom, there’s curated comic book artwork in the bedrooms, and the menus in the Director’s Club restaurant are laid out like a script. You can get access to one park per day for each night of your stay at the hotel so you won’t be getting bored here.

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