Hi All,

Just got back from a three night stay at this hotel. Overall, a very positive experience. I was upgraded to a junior suite on a Towers floor (had booked a regular Towers room), with a good view of Dubai Creek.

The hotel is triangular shpaed, with most rooms having a Creek view. The point of the triangle faces the Creek, so depending on which side of the triange your room is located, you either a view up the Creek or down the Creek. While both views are nice, I would think the down the Creek view is more interesting, as you will see more dhow action and more of the Deira skyline. The up creek view offers a good view of the Emirates Towers and, at night when the haze has dissapated, a very distant view of the Burj al Arab. From what I could tell from the floor plan on the back of the door, the only junior suite on the floor faced up the Creek.

The one downer was the Platinum amenity. I was not offered the 500 points, but only a mystery local gift, a $10 mini bar credit and soem other things of minimal value. I chose the mini bar credit, but consider a $10 credit (not $10 per day), pretty chinsey. I thought all Starwood hotels except those in Europe offered the 500 (or 250 for a 4 Points) points and I am pretty sure I was offered the points at the Sheraton el Gezirah in Cairo last year. William, should I have been offered the points?

Now for the warning. For the Dubai Shopping Festival, which lasts until February 12, Dubai stages a fireworks show every night at 8 PM. The fireworks are launched from a barge on the Creek, which is positioned right outside the hotel, making for a perfect view of the pyrotechnics. However, if you do not realize that the show is starting, you (if are like me), will just hear and incredible loud explosion that sounds like it is coming from within the hotel. So, if around 8 PM you hear a large boom, it is in all likelihood not a truck bomb, but the fireworks display.