Where to stay in Dubai

When booking your trip to Dubai, there is always the question of where should I book my hotel or apartment. There are so many luxurious hotels at great prices, much more affordable than in the UK and Europe which makes it difficult to choose. You can find our views on the different places you can stay in Dubai given that you are with your family, your partner or a group of friends. This will help you to find the perfect place to spend your holidays in Dubai.

Tableau récapitulatif

Good to Know

The city emirate of Dubai is quite spread across the coast, but the traffic is very fluid with its 5/6 lanes motorways…provided you do not take the road at peak hours mainly between 6-7 pm. An average car trip in Dubai is 30min and the taxi is cheap. You can book one using two apps, Careem for the Dubai taxis or Uber.

If you choose a hotel, better take the breakfast option. Breakfasts are great, and there are often lots of food choices. If you are in an aparthotel, we do not advise the breakfast option. With few exceptions, there is not much food choice. And there are plenty of places to have a great breakfast or brunch in Dubai and for all price ranges. You can even take it to a hotel!

All hotels from top brands are very luxurious and have spacious rooms. Most hotels are pretty recent (between 5-10 years old), have a pool, a room for kids to play, a pool for kids, and have great and helpful staff.

Try to check directly some hotels website as they often offer great deals. If you are with a baby or a toddler, most hotels and aparthotel have baby cots and child beds.

If you do not have kids, try as much as you can to avoid the kids’ holiday period, mainly the UK, German and French kids half terms. It can be up to twice more expensive as another period. But we will have an article on the different periods of the year to visit Dubai.

Palm Jumeirah

There are plenty of new luxurious hotels directly on the beach. The beaches on the Palm are among the best beaches in Dubai. They are wide, quiet, with light sand and offer great views on the Dubai skyline. The hotels or aparthotels have spacious rooms, great pools and there is a place for kids to play. At the base of the palm you will find some hotels for the ones keen to party.

The con is that you need to add 10-15min to every trip to any Dubai attraction – apart from Atlantis. And the palm can be too quiet with very few restaurants.

JBR – Jumeirah Beach Residence

Don’t be confused as there are many places with Jumeirah in their name, JBR is Jumeirah Beach Residence. This is one of the nicely busy places in Dubai, day and night. If you are looking for a resting place, that won’t be this one. You are less than 5min by foot from the Beach, a nice beachfront with plenty of restaurants, coffee shops, and a night market. There are several places for kids to play and great places to brunch, lunch, have dinner and supper. This is a nice place to walk around in the evening.

Dubai Marina

That’s one block from JBR. There are 2 parts, the one between JBR and the marina and the one after the marina. The one close to JBR is very calm and residential, but less than 10-15min by foot from the beach and all the nice JBR restaurants. The one after the marina is more animated. There is a very nice walk in the marina and you can stop for a coffee, at a restaurant or at a kid playground. But you are 15-20min by foot from the beach. Avoid the part which is close to Bluewaters Island and after the marina as it is too quiet.

We also think Dubai Marina restaurants are not great and not cheap at all, so that won’t be a pro to stay there. If you want to have brunch or dinner, better go to JBR.

Jumeirah Lake Tower: JLT

On the map, this is close to JBR, but in practice, there is a 30min walk. There is only one access road, a one-way road and it can take 10-20min by car to go out of JLT.

Dubai Creek / Old Dubai

That’s the old part of Dubai. This is not really what one pictures of Dubai, with low building, dense areas. There are mainly wholesale shops. That’s a nice place to see if you are in Dubai for a week or more, especially to cross the creek in a small wooden boat or go to the Gold Souk, where plenty of Indian tourists rush to buy gold. But that won’t be a great place to stay in Dubai. That’s also far from all main attractions, around 20-30min drive at least. However, you can easily use the Dubai Metro to connect to all part of the city.

Umm Suqeim 2 / Al Barsha

This is a quiet residential place next to the Burj Al Arab, the world famous 7 stars hotel. You will find mainly houses, or 2-3 storey buildings. You are less than 20min drive from Dubai best beaches, and not far from all Dubai activities. However, you have to travel by car all the time.

Business Bay / Downtown Dubai / Dubai Mall

This is just next to the Dubai Mall and the Burj Khalifa the highest building in the world. You are close to many restaurants, Dubai fountains with their marvellous show every evening. The beaches are 20-30min by car. However, you will enjoy the latest built hotels in Dubai, all from top brands and at very competitive prices. You are within a short walk from Dubai Mall, and the pathway is covered and with aircon. And that’s next to the metro to connect with all parts of Dubai.

Bluewaters Island

This is the latest man-made island of the city. It is planned for the Dubai 2020 universal exhibition.  The biggest wheel in the world, Ain Wheel is on Bluewaters Island, and scheduled to open mid-2020. Hotels and aparthotels are brand new, spacious and you are on the beach. But it is a bit early to be there, better wait for Dubai 2020 opening, late 2020. Most restaurants are not opened yet, and there is 20min drive to join the main road, which makes travels to all Dubai activities and attractions a bit long.