Ramiraw

download the swan app https://instagram.com/shopwithswan?utm_medium=copy_link

for at home pcr test

Ramiraw

no they don’t but you they won’t let you board if your destination requires a test

pentiumvi

I've been eyeing this property for a while now, can't really justify the cash rates and was thinking of doing a points redemption.

One thing that I noticed was that cash rates mention it being full board with 2 selected activities, while award rates have no mention of this.
I recalled in the past there was a brief time when award stays had some of these inclusions removed, but IIRC they were added back?

Reading a few of the recent posts, seems like everything is still included when booking an award stay, but I'd just like to double check, since Marriott website makes no mention of these...

RASEWR

Our stay last month was full board. It was absolutely amazing, and a great value for the points.

Ramiraw

award stays still full board

Enishi

I booked an award redemption for 5 nights total. The website was showing 340,000 total (85,000 per night) but after booking it, the details showed 400,000 total (100,000 per night). Not sure if it's a website/system glitch but I tried calling Marriot customer support and they could see that it is 400,000 online. I also emailed Al Maha but they can't do anything about it.
Going back to the booking calendar, it is showing up 400,000 right now so it is odd that it was showing cheaper. Even when finalizing my booking it showed that it costed 340,000 points + 100 AED on the page. Luckily that page was still up when I was checking the details and noticed the discrepancy so I took a screenshot of it. Unfortunately Marriott rep said there was no way I can send that in for them to investigate. Have anyone encountered this issue or know who to talk to?

Ramiraw

just cancel it. 5 nights is way too long here.

1-2 nights is way more than enough. 3 max max max but it’s too much. I go there at least 3-4 times a year but always for one night at a time.

RASEWR

I disagree. Each person’s needs and benefits are different. We did five nights to just disconnect, relax, etc. and it was great. Would have been equally enjoyable with four nights, but I didn’t think five was too long. The fifth night free on award stays makes it better.

For some, 1-2 nights is good. I can see why this is recommended sometimes. There isn’t one size fits all answer here. It really depends on what you want to get out of the stay.

pazza2000

On the subject of a 5 night stay, is there any activities worth repeating when you’ve worked your way through those worth doing?

TBD

I did the sunset champagne thing twice.

RASEWR

we did that a couple of times. It was a nice way to get out and the views were great.

pentiumvi

I'm planning on heading straight to the Al Maha after arriving in Dubai, but the problem is that my flight lands at 03:00...

Assuming I get out of the airport by around 05:00, I'm trying to decide whether I should get a hotel near the airport for a few hours before Al Maha checkin so I have somewhere to stay.

Has anyone arrived very early at the Al Maha? I of course do not expect to be able to check-in to my room, but was wondering if there were some places I could just "chill" for a few hours till my room is ready.

I was about to contact the hotel directly, but I thought I'd check to see anyone has any experiences first.

randomdude

If you have elite status, it's worth contacting them and explaining your situation. They are very accommodating in general. If they're not at capacity, they might have a room available.

pentiumvi

I was under the impression elite status didn't mean much at this property, I do have Titanium.

I'll definitely reach out to the hotel, but wanted to first check here on FT, in case there's not much they can do to accommodate. I'd rather not put someone in a tough spot having to refuse my requests.

margarita girl

I don’t know about early check in, but I couldn’t get late checkout. I was invited to go and hang out at the pool by the spa and shower there.