In over 30 years of travel, I don’t recall ever staying at any Sheraton and thinking, “This is a hotel I’d like to come back to.” Conversely, there are many Sheratons (e.g., Sheraton Boston) to which I have no desire ever to return.

But now Sheraton Mall of the Emirates is my favorite hotel in Dubai due to the combination of its location, great rooms and bathrooms (including soaking tubs and separate walk-in showers), 100% success rate at upgrades from the lowest room category to an executive suite over 6 or so visits, an excellent breakfast buffet served until 11am, and price (I typically pay in the range of AED 350-550, or about €85-135, though taxes and service fees will add in the neighborhood of 25%)

Two other nice features: located on the 2nd floor is Brunswick, a reasonably good pub with decent food and a decent beer selection (I think it’s affiliated with Tom & Serg — 10 minutes up Sheikh Zayed Road — my favorite breakfast-and-lunch spot in Dubai serving my favorite burger); and it’s located in one of Dubai’s mega-malls. And while one can mock the mall culture of Dubai and the UAE, in a region where temperatures rarely dip below 40 degrees for six months out of the year, malls are the primary public spaces here and it’s nice to have the dining and shopping options adjacent to the hotel. For those who want to forget they’re in a mall, if you access the hotel through it’s main entrance you'll quickly forget you’re in a mall.