Located minutes from the dubai international Financial Centre and the World Trade Centre, this Dubai stalwart is predictably primarily a business hotel. This is reflected in the decor, which is pretty straightforward but expensive-looking. Don't be put off by the lobby, which is an odd combo of Majlis seating, mismatched chairs, glass and steel.
The rooms are large, with Miller Harris toiletries and a surround-sound system that pumps music into the bathroom. The bedrooms are decorated in dark, masculine neutrals with high, padded headboards, and all have a seating area and desk. They don't all have balconies, though, which is probably just as well, as most only have a view of the Sheikh Zayed Road or the maze of old, low-rise buildings behind.
Iron King Headboards
For a hotel that clearly hasn't put much store in the designer flourishes of its more recently-opened neighbours, it actually does rather well on the fashionable food and drink front. The year 2009 saw the opening of the world's first Cavalli Club - the king of bling's cavernous and wildly expensive nightlife offering (think black marble, faux fur, Swarovski-draped ceilings and gold-leaf sushi). The crowd here are predictably overdressed and underweight, and come the 2 a.m. closing time, they all head down to The Fairmont's basement club, 400, where they dance on tables and order supersize bottles of premium vodka served on velvet cushions with sparklers.
Less ostentatious is Spectrum on One, an International restaurant that manages the impossible by tackling each cuisine brilliantly - the Friday brunch is particularly lauded. There's also the much-garlanded Exchange Grill, and the quite frankly odd Japanese joint called Kitsune, that wows diners with its Clockwork Orange-meets-Narnia decor and dry ice instead of its cooking. Cin-Cin is a pretty wine bar but a bit of a pickup joint, and cripplingly expensive. There is also a sandwich joint and a conveyer-belt sushi cafe.
The pool is pretty small and overlooks Sheikh Zayed Road, so really more for business types than sun worshippers, but the Willow Stream spa, decorated in a faux Roman style, is large and well appointed (it is particularly hot on half- or whole-day packages).
Sheikh Zayed Road, PO Box 97555;
Phone: 04-332-5555; 04-332-4555;
Cost - AED 1,199
Location - Sheikh Zayed Road
Number of rooms - 204 rooms, plus 86 suites
Room - sq m 40-550
Conference facilities - Yes
Pool/sauna - Yes
Beach access - No
Exercise facilities - Yes
Spa - Yes
Parking/valet - Yes
Licensed bar - Yes
On-site dining - International, Arabic, Italian, Japanese, steak, juice bar, coffee shop
Extra amenities C- D alarm clocks, hairdryer, iron/ironing board, international adaptor, Internet
Business amenities - Business centre, laptop rental, secretarial services
Shuttle buses - To Dubai Mall, Mirdif City Centre
Wheelchair facilities - Yes
