LovetoTravel83

$p Bur Dubai it's not the best place for a first timer.

The GH is considered cheap IMO, I've found cheaper rates (600 per night), nothing can beat the hotel in the Dubai area, the hotel management are one of the best in the world. I tried several times finding a BRG for the GH but never suceeded, the spg site gives you the lowest.

The 4P SZR is in a great location if you're willing to spend two days at the Dubai Mall.

stiwi

It looks cheap for GH at this time of the year but BRG is also an option. It is a great hotel in excellent location if you want to stay close to Marina. I have not stayed at 4p but SZR gets solid reviews and it has quite good location when it comes to proximity of downtown, Dubai Mall etc.

remymartin

Thanks for the responses so far. I decided to hold off my res for a while (too long to BTT, no obvious BRG) as z3h is obviously prepaid, and my plans are not fixed yet.

TravelinSperry

Thanks all, helpful thread. Thinking of going to Dubai in November (first time). Everyone clearly loves the Grosvenor House, but it's priced over $400 USD per night - and that's out of my range. I notice no one mentions the Sheraton Dubai Mall of the Emirates. Does anyone have any experience with this property?

What is the difference between the locations? I would like to see Dubai - get a feel for the place. I would wander through the mall one day (but that's it). I like beach, but am traveling solo and don't want to be away from it all either.

stiwi

You have to set your priorities what you want to have and where you want to be?

Grosvenor is great because it has excellent service, very good standard, directly on Marina which is packed with people in the evening (especially in November), can use beach / pool facilities of Le Royal Meridien and has free shuttle bus to Mall of Emirates. But it might be expensive.

If you want beach access, Sheraton Jumeirah should be much cheaper and is just 5mins taxi or within walking distance from Marina. Travelling alone I would probably choose Four Points by Sheraton on Sheikh Zayed Road, as it is centrally located, 5mins drive from Dubai Mall / Souk Al Bahar.

LovetoTravel83

I've stayed once at the Kempenski Emirates Mall and it was good after watching a very late movie and going to your room. Other thank that, I would still go for the Grosvenor House. How long are you staying for?

bgriff

The Sheraton MOE is fairly new to Starwood, hence the limited discussion of it on here. I believe it used to be a Kempinski but I may be confusing that with the other hotel at the MOE. The MOE is itself a destination worth visiting once, and you would have easy access to the Metro, although cabs are also inexpensive and fairly easy to come by (though you do sometimes have to queue). The main attractions of Dubai are split between two major areas, the Marina/MOE area and the Bur Dubai/Dubai Mall area, with a dead zone in between so either way you'll have some travel back and forth between the two areas; there's no single "central" location at which to stay.

How long do you have in Dubai? If just a couple of days and you're not too demanding of luxury, then you could be perfectly comfortable at one of the cheaper Four Points properties. If more than a couple of days, you could consider splitting your stay among a couple of hotels with one on the beach and one cheaper; staying at a non-beach hotel you'll have enough to do to stay entertained for a few days but a lot of the activities in Dubai can get repetitive (same shopping malls, restaurants, nightlife) so for a longer stay you'd want to have access to a beach/spa/etc. for some relaxation time.

Finally, if luxury is a priority for you, or if you want the real Dubai lavish/gaudy experience, and especially if you're paying cash anyway, explore outside the Starwood family...Dubai has an excess of upscale hotels so there are some 5-star hotels that can be had for far cheaper than one would pay for similar properties in other cities (though beach hotels do tend to be uniformly expensive). For example the Ritz-Carlton Dubai International Financial Centre is a smaller property and in a bit of an odd, though central, location, but is very comfortable with excellent facilities and is often available quite inexpensively. Also, if you have an Amex Platinum card, Dubai is an excellent city for inexpensive Fine Hotels & Resorts properties; otherwise you could work with a travel agent who has Virtuoso access or use the Visa Signature Luxury Hotels program.

LovetoTravel83

It used to be a Pullman.

bgriff

Ah, thanks.

Sphinx

I've stayed a couple of times at the Sheraton MOE and the service there is excellent - second only to GH. If you decide not to stay at the Marina, then this is certainly the best option for my view, whether for location, accessibility and platinum recognotion.

TravelinSperry

Thanks, this was very helpful - I didn't understand there were 2 parts, with a 'dead zone' in the middle. I may consider splitting my stay - although I generally prefer to stay in one place (I travel a lot, and it helps if you don't have to unpack/repack as often). I'll either stay 4 nights and pay my own way - or stay 5 if I redeem points for my stay (was even considering using my Platinum requal gift for this). Might make sense at the Sheraton MOE - that's why I initially asked about it - gets me in the 4-5% redemption range.

Helpful, thanks. I may decide to do this. How easy is it to get from here to the Marina? Is it as simple as a taxi or metro? Is it far or costly?

I would love to stay at the GH - but I pay my own way, and the GH is well over my budget. And at 25,000 points per night - I'd have to burn all my SP to stay there.

As such, I may choose the Sheraton Jumeirah (I do like beaches/pools), especially if it is easy to get from the Sheraton Jumeirah to the Mall / Bur Dabai area? Do you have any experience in this regard? Are there restaurants near the Jumeirah (or am I stuck at the resort unless I 'get out').

stiwi

From MOE to Sheraton Jumeirah / Marina is fairly close, 10mins by cab.
Sheraton Jumeirah is located at the end of The Walk promenade. It is 1.5km promenade with cafes, restaurants, it is busy and lively during evenings. You can also take a nice stroll towards Marina. I would take this location over Sheraton MOE anytime.

Also compare some websites for BRG, you might be able to get Sheraton Jumeirah and Grosvenor cheaper. I had just my BRG approved for Grosvenor with Otel.com

KSA_USA

if you choose to stay at the Sheraton MOE then:

1) you are at the MOE. Huge beautiful mall. if you like skiing you can do it right there. very cool experience.
2) easy access to metro to go to the other part of Dubai where you can visit Dubai mall ( thats much bigger than MOE, crazy), khalifa tower where you can see Dubai from the top, Dubai fountain and old city
3) short taxi ride to Marina walk where it is packed with people at night ( Grosvenor house is very close to the Marina walk, Ritz Carlton is at the Marina walk, Sheraton JB is probably 3 mins walk to Marina walk I would say its at the Marina walk)
4) metro to Ibn Battuta mall. This mall is designed in a beautiful way as it shows some of the countries that have been visited by the famous Arabian voyager, Ibn Battuta. very nice place to visit.

if you choose to stay at Sheraton JB then
1) you are at the beach and within walking distance to Marina walk
2) short taxi ride to MOE then metro to the above mentioned destinations.

if you like to learn about the local culture and customs I would encourage you to visit sheikh Mohammed centre for cultural understanding. lots of foreign visitors go there http://www.cultures.ae

also visit Madinat Jumeirah its located close to the MOE, Grosvenor house and Marina area. its a nice area to explore . see this video

https://www.jumeirah.com/en/hotels-r...inat-jumeirah/

if you are interested you can also do the desert safari in a Land Cruiser or Hammer. there are tours that can pick you up from your hotel do the desert ride then drive you back to the hotel. its about 5 to 6 hours experience and it cost around $100.

there are many thing to do in Dubai. you will be busy. ask hotel concierge for suggestions or ask here in FT

Enjoy Dubai.

remymartin

Since posting in May rates have gone up and I've decided to go for primarily point redemption (unless the rates get really low) on all 3 nights and hotel hopping to find a favourite.

Here's the rundown for a sample night:

• 4P Downtown, 7k, AED 472
• 4P Bur Dubai, 7k, AED 360
• 4P SZR, 10k, AED 700
• Sheraton MOE, 12k, AED 950
• Grosvenor House, 20k, AED 1200
• Sheraton Jumeirah, 12k, AED 1150

None of the point redemptions seem like terribly good value although I've done worse this year. I left out LRM as it's probably >25k.

Thoughts on which properties and a particular order? I need late checkout so I'll forego resorts on the last night. I'm sure it matters - no, I don't like shopping.

bgriff

I should clarify, "dead zone" is perhaps a bit extreme. If traffic is light, getting from the Marina to Bur Dubai (i.e. one end of town to the other) takes only 20 minutes or so (and no more than $10-15) by taxi on the highway, or somewhat longer than that (I want to say 30-45 minutes but not sure exactly) by Metro. But, given that traffic can be heavy at times, making that cross-town trek fewer times is preferable, hence the possibility of splitting the stay.

However, staying in one place could also work, especially given that it sounds like you've found a great redemption value.

The only other thing to consider is that 5 nights in Dubai could get a bit boring--I describe Dubai as Vegas without the gambling; a lot of the activity is around shopping, nightlife, spas, big hotels, and gaudiness (not that there's anything wrong with that). For that reason alone, if you're going to do 5 nights at one hotel, I'd definitely go for the Sheraton Jumeirah, which at least has a more substantial set of on-site activities (the SMOE has the mall, of course, but you'll visit there no matter where you're staying).

If you're making the trip all the way from the US, might be worth considering adding a side trip elsewhere in the region (though various bits of instability these days do make that a bit harder). At the very least, you could consider going over to Abu Dhabi (1-1.5 hour's drive)--there's not much to see there, but there's a day's worth of stuff, and the St. Regis is a beautiful property with excellent pools and beaches.

Depending on your tolerance for driving in strange places, you could also consider renting a car. I would not recommend it for your first few days as the roads and traffic are a bit intimidating at first, but having been to Dubai a few times now I enjoy having a car as it's very much a driving city and you get a better feel for the place if driving around. If you do 5 nights in Dubai you could consider getting a car for your last couple of days and take a day trip over to Abu Dhabi, for example.