Andaz the Palm Dubai, a Hotel Review

Nestled at the entrance to the Palm Dubai lies the Andaz Palm Hotel. While not close to downtown Dubai or the main tourist attractions, the hotel does offer a respite from the hustle and bustle of the town with complimentary beach access, spacious suites, and an enormous buffet breakfast that will satisfy even the most picky of eaters.

As a category 5 hotel, the hotel starts out at 25,000 points a night. Cash rates vary, but if you’re looking for a little bit of luxury mixed with a great attention to detail, you’ve hit the jackpot.

Check-in

We arrived a little past check in at 5pm, but were informed that our room wasn’t ready. Normally, we’d have raised a fuss since we were a full two hours past the check in time, but the front desk let us know that it was because the wanted to upgrade us to a suite as Globalist members, and they had a late checkout in the room.

In order to properly clean and sanitize the room, they needed a little more time.

The manager came over to sincerely and profusely apologize, especially since we had informed them of our check in time) and offered us to take a seat in the restaurant and have a coffee and snack while we waited for the final room prep.

a large white feathered palm tree in a large room

Considering the amount of food that we ate at the Al Maha resort, we opted for a simple coffee and cookies.

a cup of hot chocolate and cookies on a plate

He did offer us the chance to order something from the menu which was quite extensive with local options.

a menu of a restaurant a menu on a table a menu on a wood surface a menu with a brown leather strap

I’m not one to order a “club sandwich†when I go to a foreign county. I was glad to see quite a selection of “pide†or local sandwiches on the menu, but still, we opted for a simple cappuccino.

Remember the conversion rate from Dirham to USD is fixed at 3.67 dirham per dollar. For easy math, I divide by 4. So, something priced at 36 AED is $10. Again, for simple mental math, I round up to 40. 20 = $5, 40 = $10, etc. This means that an espresso is $6 and a cappuccino is $7.

Before you scream bloody murder, Starbucks wanted to charge me $6.25 for a grande sugar free vanilla latte soooooo….

We finished our drink and were escorted up to the suite.

a long hallway with colorful carpet and art on the walls

It should be noted that the hallway to the rooms was adorned with some sort of modern sculpture art at the entrance to each room. Cool, but odd.

a glass case with a yellow and red spiral sculpture inside

The Suite

Wow.

Marble tiles and hardwood floors at the entrance show you that this isn’t any normal suite.

a room with a painting and a couch

Immediately to the left of the entrance is a guest bathroom, because you can’t possibly have your guests blowing up the fancy bathroom that YOU have in your room, right?

a bathroom with marble walls and a toilet a bathroom with a sink and mirror

It was so large you could have a party inside… if that’s your thing.

Entering into the main living and dining area there was a large table with seating for 5-6 people. A small refrigerator and coffee/tea station was behind.

a table with chairs in a room a coffee machine and cups on a table

I’ll admit, I’m not really sure what was going on with the side table and one chair. Either this was a piss-poor attempt at a desk or this is where you can send your child to eat for time-out. It seemed like a slapdash effort to have more space in the room.

a table and chair in front of a window

Off to the other side was a curved sofa and chair with glass coffee table.

a couch and chair in a room

Here you could sit and watch TV or just relax.

a tv on a wall

Double frosted glass doors open to the master suite, lined with stained glass windows overlooking the grounds.

a bed with white sheets and yellow towels in a room with large windows

Two pool towels were waiting for us on the bed in case we wanted to head out for a swim or to soak up some sun.

a bed with colorful windows

The bathroom in the master suite came with a soaking tub, a full walk in shower, and two sinks.

a bathroom with a sink and a tub a shower with a shower head and a tile wall a bathroom with a sink and mirrors

 

And a closet with safe, luggage rack, robe, and plenty of hangers for your clothes.a white robe from a swinger in a black room

There was even a small “smoking balcony†which didn’t offer much other than a nice area to sig and enjoy a shaded outside view of the area.

a view of a courtyard with a stone walkway and a large building

Breakfast

Prepare your second stomach. You’re going to need it.

Instead of using my words to describe the IMMENSE selection of breakfast options, I’ll let the photos do the talking.

The “Vegan Cornerâ€

a food on the counter

The Local Bakery with freshly made pastries daily

a display of bread and pastries

Donuts (The Homer Simpson Corner)

a display of doughnuts on a stand“Condiments†including homemade apple butter and plum jam. WHAAAT!

a table with different food items on it

Chef Shalu’s Waffles and Pancakes

a kitchen with a waffle maker and plates

The healthy section including greens and AMAZING fruits.

a buffet with different types of food

Look at these dragon fruit and granadillas. The options changed every morning.

a trays of fruit and a plate of fruit

Yogurts

a row of bowls of yogurt and other food

Dried fruit and nuts

a table with bowls of food

Cereals including “sultan bran… poop like the Sultans?!â€

a bowl of cereal on a table

Arabic Mezze with pickles

a table with bowls of cereal and bananas a glass display case with different types of food

a wooden container with jars of food

OH WAIT WE’RE NOT DONE YET… KEEP GOING

Cheese

a table with food on it

Meats

a trays of food on a table

English Breakfast section

a woman in a mask standing at a buffet

Indian Breakfast section

a kitchen with many silver pots and plates

Not to mention that you could order made-to-order eggs any way you liked including poached, scrambeled, fried, or more.

We chose to sit outside to have some fresh air and a view of the water/city.

a building with a glass wall and windows

If I had to nitpick one thing about breakfast, it was the nickel-and-diming that the hotel did with their coffee.

You want an espresso, latte, or cappuccino? No problem. You want a flavor? That’ll be 5 Dirham.

Really. 5 Dirham…

After all of the free food and ridiculous amounts of breakfast thrown our way, you wanna charge me $1.50 to get some flavor in my coffee?

Come on now guys… just put the damn pumps of flavor in there and call it a day.

The Grounds

Leaving the dining area and walking straight out you’re at the pool/waterfront in under two minutes.

a walkway with trees and a building

If you need any last minute foodstuffs, there’s a small supermarket on the right hand side. It’s kind of hidden, so here’s a picture for you to spot it better.

a man standing outside a building

On a sunny day you can see both the Burj’s, Khalifa and al Arab, from the grounds.

a body of water with buildings and trees

a beach with umbrellas and lounge chairs

The hotel itself has a pool which is more shaded from the sun than the actual beach itself. In the background you can see the new St Regis hotel that just opened.

a pool in a building

Just like on ground level, the views from up here are ridiculous.

a view of a beach and a city from a building a body of water with buildings and a beach    a tall building with a lot of windows  a city with a large building and a large dome

There’s a pool menu and the prices are average to high. Water is free in your room, so unless you enjoy paying $7 for bottled water, bring it for free from the room.

a menu on a counter

The Bar and Lounge

Just at the front entrance to the hotel is a speakeasy that only opens at night. Note and long pants are required, no shorts or sportswear.

I did find the “hiding from wife†rates quite funny!

a barrel on a table

The Andaz lounge is on the second floor and during the afternoon offers complimentary coffee/tea/juices. During the day it doubles as a fun chill place to relax and get work done.

a large room with glass windows and people in it

Bottom Line

The Andaz really took customer service to the next level. From the suite upgrades to the over-the-top breakfast, clean rooms, and perfect location, the Andaz Palm was a great choice.

It did cost quite a few Hyatt points, so if you can find a great discount cash rate this is a quality offering for your next Dubai adventure!

Author: Jon Nickel-D'Andrea

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2 Comments

  1. Jon, thanks for the wonderful review of the Andaz. Wish I had stayed there when in Dubai.

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  2. Great review and wonderful photos. I think you gonna have a future at this.

    Post a Reply

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