Reach for the sky in Dubai
NIGEL THOMPSON HIGHLIGHTS ONE OF DUBAI’S NEWEST HOTELS
DAZZLING Dubai, one of our favourite sunshine playgrounds, is a huge holiday success story. Just six decades ago it was a dusty Persian Gulf backwater. Why would you go there?
Today, thanks to some visionary leadership and prudent investment of oil money, it’s a premium, glittering and oh so desirable destination that offers... well, just ust about anything and everything. .
And the novelty of skiing on real snow in the desert at Ski Dubai is hard to beat.
Dubai certainly does not do things by halves and its marketing tagline could easily be: bigger, better, bolder, brighter.
And that applies to its remarkable portfolio of luxury hotels.
Right at the heart of the action in Downtown Dubai lies the new-ish 169-room Address Sky View hotel.
There are many excellent reasons why you’ll want to stay here, but surely the foremost is the 230ft-long infinity pool located 720ft up on the Sky Deck bridge between the property’s twin towers?
By day, and especially at night, there are stellar views of the Burj
Khalifa – at 2,722ft the tallest building in the world – and Downtown Dubai, with an outdoor bar and the adjacent indoor CÉ LA VI restaurant and club lounge bar.
If heights aren’t your thing, there’s another pool with a swish
(of course!) bar on Level 2. Appetites are amply catered for with ‘global bistronomy at the multi-space The Restaurant and the ‘open yet intimate’ The Lounge. There’s also a modern grab-and-go cafe and sweet indulgence at a patisserie.
A five-star Dubai hotel needs exceptional rooms and Address Sky View’s sizeable offerings ooze attention to detail, with biscotti and light grey colourways, floor-toceiling views of the Downtown Dubai skyscraper landmarks or the blue waters of the Persian Gulf. Premium in-room amenities and tech come as standard.
If you can tear yourself away from that infinity pool, Downtown Dubai and the sky piercing Burj Khalifa (a must-visit) and the mesmerising displays at the Dubai Fountain (also unmissable) are within walking distance, as is the stellar shopping at the Dubai Mall plus its aquarium, ice rink, kart racing, VR park, cinema and restaurants.
For added convenience, Dubai International Airport is just a 15-minute drive by taxi and the nearest public beach is about 20 minutes away.
Reputedly, taxi drivers say the hotel entrance is slightly difficult to find. With luck, when you are due to leave and your cab fails to turn up, you’ll just have to stay another night...