by Dubbed the City of Gold, Dubai is a trading hub for the precious metal – but it’s also famous for its golden sands. With year-round sunshine and warm, calm waters, the city’s shores are buoyant. Embrace the vibe and try kitesurfing, jet skiing, banana boats and inflatable flames. Many Dubai hotels provide access to private beaches with added perks, from free ice pops and frozen grapes delivered to sun loungers to Instagram-friendly swings built into the water for an enviable vacation. Then there are the ultra-luxury resorts with private coastal villas and barefoot beach bars. These are the best beach hotels in Dubai.
How we review
Each hotel on this curated list has been visited by one of our expert reviewers, and is usually hosted on a free basis. They stay for at least one night, test at least one meal and try other experiences the hotel may have.
The family-friendly Four Seasons Resort Dubai is Mercury, one of the coolest rooftop bars in Dubai – if not the world. When you’re not admiring the views, take a walk in the colorful gardens or enjoy the private beach. All of the hotel’s 237 large rooms have balconies that face directly onto the beach or out over the city skyline – book a room on this side if you want to see the twinkling Burj Khalifa piercing the night sky.
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One&Only The Palm is one of the most secluded and seductive resorts in the UAE, making it one of the best beach hotels in Dubai. Offering three restaurants by Michelin-starred French chef Yannick Alléno, luxurious spa treatments from the only Guerlain Spa in the UAE, and a stunning swimming pool. With just 90 rooms and suites and four Riad-like villas surrounded by lush gardens, the resort has the feel of a boutique hotel (for Dubai standards). It has a magical feel at night when lit by lanterns.
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This beachfront hotel has a relaxed vibe but is still within the city, with palm-shaded pools and views of the skyscrapers of Dubai Marina in the distance. It’s great for families and couples alike, and facilities include a fantastic spa, an adults-only pool and an excellent kids’ club. There are four swimming pools and an 800-metre private beach with volleyball nets, table tennis, speedboat tours and water sports. The hotel feels elegant and luxurious, with creamy marble and a sand-meets-sea palette of beige, tan and aquamarine.
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If you prefer modern neutrality to Arabic opulence, this low-rise option is for you. The centerpiece of the hotel are the seafront gardens designed by renowned architect Bill Bensley, with three large pools including an adults-only pool, giant hanging chairs and plenty of palm trees. There is also a seawater lagoon where rescued sea turtles can recover before being released back into the wild. The beach, dotted with turquoise umbrellas and cabanas with billowing white drapes, is only a meter away.
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One of the original beach resorts in Dubai, this stunning family-friendly property is as popular as ever. With an on-site water park and a wide variety of activities and restaurants, it’s easy to see why this five-star hotel is a universal winner. It is designed so that every room faces the sea with views of the sail-shaped Burj, and the décor is modern and practical. A kilometer-long stretch of private beach has been reserved by the adult-oriented Cove Beach bar and restaurant.
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This underwater resort has a crowd-pleasing water park, two pools and nearly a mile of man-made beach. Relaxing rooms and fine restaurants are aimed at luxury travelers, but Atlantis is really a bustling family resort. So accept it and you’ll have a ball. The kitsch, under-the-sea décor – carpets with a shell pattern, clam-shaped lights and hands fashioned like fish – may not be to everyone’s taste but it is certainly pleasant. There are more than 1,500 rooms, each with its own balcony overlooking the ocean or The Palm.
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A stylish all-suite resort situated on a pristine beach with lush gardens, several pools, multiple restaurants and numerous activities. It manages to be family-friendly and quiet enough for couples, thanks to an adults-only pool and a spacious lawn on the beach. With a series of low-rise buildings set amidst gardens with streams, waterfalls and a pride of peacocks, the resort feels incredibly tranquil. Contemporary interiors with high ceilings, large windows and neutral colors add to the quiet luxury vibe.
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Opulence abounds at this modern Arabian palace. If you are not relaxing in your plush bedroom, drinking sheesha under palm trees at the Courtyards bar, eating fine Moroccan fare at Tajine or enjoying the Oriental hammam, then perhaps you can find at the Jumeirah Beach or Mall of the Emirates, both nearby. There are luxurious rooms with expensive carpets, drapes and bedspreads, large marble bathrooms, Oriental lanterns, beautiful toiletries, and balconies or terraces.
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In a city brimming with information, Ritz-Carlton Dubai delivers luxury with elegant restraint. Despite its wealth of rooms, suites, swimming pools, restaurants and bars, the air here is personal and discreet; a lush, relaxing retreat from the hyperactive sprawl that surrounds it. Marble, Arabic arches and splashing water set a soothing tone in the lobby, from which awaits the refinement of the Lobby Lounge, together with a cathedral wooden ceiling, harp (Monday to Saturday) and evening jazz (Thursday). The hotel’s Eden-esque gardens lead to a private beach.
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Le Royal Meridien may be one of the oldest beach resorts in Dubai, but its huge swimming pools, wide stretch of squeaky white sand and first-class facilities for children make it one of the most popular family escapes in the city. At the far end of Dubai’s seemingly never-ending Jumeirah Beach, the site is not for visitors who want to focus on the cultural and historical sights of Old Dubai, but if water sports and working up that tan are the main interests. to you. eating and drinking, you will be perfectly happy here.
Contributions by Jenny Johnson, Sally Peck
