10 of the best hotels in Dubai, from family boltholes to luxury resorts

Even by the standards of an emirate that shows all the constructional restraint of a toddler with a trunk of Lego, Dubai is in turbocharge mode. Eminent hotel groups are flooding in as superhotels spring up on man-made islands. Yet for all Dubai’s veneration of the new, decades of innovation have left a legacy of eye-catching and, in some cases, surprisingly affordable sanctuaries in which to bed down, whether you’re based in Burj Khalifa-dominated Downtown, the buzzing Marina or amid the sugary sands of Jumeirah Beach and the Palm. Throughout it all, the hospitality ecosystem seems to hum with a customer-is-king efficiency.

1. Jumeirah Marsa Al Arab

Best for: ocean-front refinement
Dubai’s biggest opening of 2025 feels like an old-money counterpoint to the chunky-gold ostentation of neighbouring sister hotel Burj Al Arab. The sotto voce colour scheme is big on cream and pale wood, and the fabled seven-star service of the Burj has, if anything, been nudged upwards. Guests in the yacht-contoured sanctuary are treated like emirs by an army of staff who outnumber the 386 rooms by a factor of three. The chameleonic Fore communal area on the ground floor morphs into a quartet of fine-dining restaurants by night via sliding partitions and chandeliers that emerge from ceilings. Umi Kei, serving delectable Japanese dishes in tapas-style portions, is among Dubai’s best. Opt for a room on the port side for sunset Burj views. Rooms: From 4,940 AED (£985), B&B.

2. Mama Shelter

Best for: downtown buzz
There are swankier hotels in Dubai. Better situated ones, too. But nowhere seems to be having quite as much fun as at Mama Shelter. Nightly DJs and themed events enliven this Business Bay hideaway in high season. There’s an outdoor cinema screening crowd-pleasers. Diners can do battle on eight-person foosball tables between courses. And signature croissant pizzas get the wood-fired treatment in buzzy ground-floor Mama Trattoria. The informal vibe is driven by the friendly young staff and supported by playful touches such as hand-scrawled aphorisms on room mirrors and Looney Tunes masks hanging on bedposts. Free shuttle buses ferry guests to the beach or nearby Dubai Mall. Rooms: From 830 AED (£165).

3. Jumeirah Burj Al Arab

Best for: bragging rights
It’s been 25 years since the Burj opened its gilded doors, providing the template for next-level luxury and artificial-island building for which Dubai has become renowned. Yet there’s still a heady thrill to staying here that goes beyond the grandiosity of practically every inch of this dhow-inspired landmark. Crossing its purpose-built 1,000ft causeway, you enter a world of almost cartoonish opulence in which even entry-level rooms are duplex suites, cappuccinos are sprinkled with gold flakes and restaurants come with upholstered micro-seats for five-figure handbags to perch on. One guest who checked in way back in 2017 is still resident today — how’s that for extravagant? Rooms: From 4,010 AED (£800), B&B.

4. Rove JBR

Best for: fuss-free convenience
An excellent option for first-time visitors to Dubai or those overwhelmed by the city’s growling supercar excess, Rove JBR is situated in the heart of the neighbourhood whose initials it adopts: Jumeirah Beach Residence. The mile-long Walk at JBR boulevard, with its boutiques, lively cafes and bars, runs past the front door. Dubai Marina is a 10-minute trip from here in a taxi. And the beach — to which the hotel’s colourful decor pays tribute through various nautical flourishes — is just a few minutes’ walk away. Rooms are spacious, with super-king beds, and — as with the eager, affable staff — low on pretension. Expect to be called by your first name and bombarded with suggestions for how best to spend your stay. Guests also get access to the adjacent UFC gym. Rooms: From 195 AED (£39).

5. One&Only the Palm

Best for: low-lying luxury
To be in the heart of the city yet feel miles from it is the precious alchemy that underpins the enduring appeal of this low-key resort. Surrounded by frangipani, olive trees and date palms, it’s one of Dubai’s most enchanting hotels. A-listers such as Leonardo DiCaprio favour the self-contained villas, which open onto the manicured, wave-free beach, and the tasting menus of the two-Michelin-star STAY by Yannick Alléno. Others come just to loaf on a day bed by the Grand Pool. Rooms: From 2,115 AED (£422).

6. Me Dubai

Best for: fashionistas
The only hotel designed inside and out by the late Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid, ME is squirrelled away in the Business Bay area of Downtown, and is all the more conspicuous for it. From the outside, the building resembles a giant dark-blue ice cube melting from within, with an eight-storey, curved-glass void at its centre. Inside, the hotel norm has been subverted, with communal spaces orientated inwards towards the boldly futuristic atrium. There are just 93 rooms, but nearly a dozen restaurants and bars, while a gallery with rotating artworks helps keeps the non-resident footfall high. Rooms: From 1,000 AED (£199).

7. The Lana

Best for: classic elegance
This haven of luxury opened in 2024 on a yacht-studded marina that flows into the Dubai Canal. It’s the first Dorchester Collection hotel in the emirate, and nods to the London original include a bijou cocktail bar with drinks conjured up table-side, and afternoon tea in the sculpture-adorned Gallery lounge. It has loftier assets, too. Namely, the 29th-floor Dior Spa, with cityscape-view treatment areas, and a rooftop terrace with cabanas, a restaurant and infinity pool. Rooms: From 2,930 AED (£584).

8. Rixos the Palm

Best for: family escapes
Surrounded on three sides by ocean, the Rixos specialises in what it calls ‘ultra all-inclusive’. That means an access-all-areas experience that’s irresistible for families. With six restaurants, you could dine at a different spot every night. A kids’ club programme frees parents up for a Turkish hammam at the spa or a spin session on the beach-front lawn. The 315 rooms and suites are soothingly decorated, with floor-to-ceiling windows that suck in the Arabian light. Rooms: From 1,650 AED (£330), all-inclusive.

9. 25Hours Dubai One Central

Best for: hanging out
The witty tone is set by the cartoon space-mural ceiling in the lobby and the pendulous cocoon chairs that dangle from it. Guests mingle with expats and digital nomads in the ground-floor cafe or sit with headphones and lattes around mezzanine-level turntables. The 434 rooms and suites are similarly ebullient; some have artist’s studio vibes, with pots of paintbrushes and TV stands resembling easels; others, hammocks and postcards of pre-tourism Dubai. The rooftop pool overlooks the Central Business District’s Museum of the Future. Rooms: From 910 AED (£181).

10. Atlantis the Royal

Best for: maximalism
It takes quite some effort to stand out among Dubai’s top hotels these days. Still, this £1.2bn exhibition of architectural Jenga on the outer Palm certainly achieves that. It has nearly 800 rooms and a selection of suites that start at lavish and work upwards (the Royal Mansion costs a cool £74,000 a night). Rooftop eyrie Cloud 22 is the place to quaff cocktails on floating beds with infinity-pool views. More refinement is found at Milos, a Greek restaurant so authentic that 90% of ingredients come directly from the Aegean. The dancing fire-and-water fountain outside exemplifies the Royal’s vaudevillian zaniness. Rooms: From 2,920 AED (£582), B&B.