The Burj spreads its wings
New North Deck will house 32 beach cabanas among other top luxuries
The Burj Al Arab, the opulent Jumeirah hotel that has become the symbol of Dubai luxury, is all set to get its own exclusive beachside resort – a sun deck bigger than a football pitch jutting out into the waters of the Arabian Gulf.
The unique concept – believed to be a global first in resort hotel design – will accommodate 32 beach cabanas, 400 sun loungers, two swimming pools (only one of which is sea water), a restaurant and a bar. It will be called Burj North Deck. Designed in Finland with high environmental standards in mind, it is currently being shipped to Dubai, where the six steel sections weighing 5,000 tonnes will be lowered by crane on to 90 piles that are already in place on the Gulf seabed.
The structure is planned to be in place next month, and open for guests of the Burj in the second quarter of this year. Anthony McHale , general manager of Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, said: “As a hotel we are dedicated to surpassing guest expectations by providing the ultimate Arabian hospitality experience and we have no doubt that North Deck will do just that.
“We are hugely excited about its arrival – North Deck is a true reflection of Dubai’s own ambition to provide the most outstanding experience for guests visiting and living in Dubai,” he said.
There has been speculation in the leisure industry for some time that Jumeirah was planning to add an exclusive manmade beach to its facilities. Guests at the hotel – billed by many as the world’s only seven star establishment – have until now had to make a trip across the causeway to use their own dedicated beach near the Jumeirah Beach hotel.
But the scale of the North Deck project is a big surprise.
“The hotel, which is renowned for pushing the boundaries of architectural design and luxury service, is unveiling a global first in hotel construction with a break-though combination of creative marine design, ingenious engineering and guest- friendly planning,” a statement said.
The construction and steel pile installation process, it said, would cause minimal impact to the marine environment.
“In fact it has been designed to provide shade for local fish and to attract undersea ecosystems that are known to cluster around steel.” The deck has been customdesigned by marine construction experts Admares at a ship- yard in Finland that specialises in high specification cruise ships and yachts. Because it was built off- site, there has been minimal disruption to hotel guests, the hotel said.
Robert Swade, Jumeirah Group chief operating officer, said: “Dubai is renowned for providing exceptional experiences. This is the first time a structure of this nature and size has been built in one country and then transported to another country to be assembled and operated.
The group, he said, was pushing the boundaries of innova- tion and “demonstrating how committed we are to positioning Dubai as the most exciting destination in the world and Burj Al Arab Jumeirah as the finest provider of luxury experiences.” The North Deck project was planned in utmost secrecy by outgoing Jumeirah chief executive Gerald Lawless, who last week announced he was to take up a strategic role in leisure and tourism at Dubai Holding, Jumeirah’s parent company.