Last month, just a few days before Easter I have been returning from what I may call, one of the most luxurious vacations of my life. It was a week in Dubai, however that’s not the only reason my vacation was oh so glamorous, but also the stay in the magnificent hotel Rixos The Palm Dubai.
About Dubai, you’ll read more in the next article. Shortly, I can confirm that Dubai is the best warm weather location that is close to us in Europe, perfect to visit during winter, spring and autumn, for shopping, beach and fun.
The main reason I’ve visited Dubai has been the STEP Conference 2017, but also for pleasure. Jonathan and I decided to celebrate our birthdays earlier in a warm destination, and defeat the cold that has awaited us in Sweden all April and May.
The 360° panoramic view spans of the turquoise waters, the white beaches, the iconic Burj Khalifa & Burj Al Arab and the Dubai Marina view with its incredible glittering lights from the giant sky scrapers – simply wonderful!
When I chose the hotel, I looked for a place to be relaxing, far away from the noise, crowd and agitation of the city. If you’ve been to Dubai, then you know that the city is very much alive and crowded, the traffic is absolutely insane at rush hours. Therefore, to live for 7 days in a hotel situated on the end of The Palm Jumeirah’s crescent, where I could enjoy the 360° panoramic view spans of the turquoise waters, the white beaches, the iconic Burj Khalifa & Burj Al Arab and the Dubai Marina view with its incredible glittering lights from the giant sky scrapers – simply wonderful!
You stay at Rixos The Palm when you want to have a relaxing vacation.
Rixos The Palm Dubai is located at the end of the right branch of The Palm, which is one of Dubai’s most interesting creations. An artificial island, which simply beats many natural islands, full of luxury hotels and residences. To reach the hotel, your taxi, or rental car has to drive through The Palm, which is ok as it’s only a 15 – 20 minutes drive and you have much to enjoy on the window. The hotel offers a free shuttle several times a day to the Dubai Marina and Mall of Emirates, and a water taxi which takes you directly to the Dubai Marina pretty fast. Most times we took a taxi, as it’s so cheap in Dubai. So the location is not a problem, but actually a benefit because you get a real vacation by staying on the beach, skip the noise and see the whole beauty of Dubai from the comfort of your room’s balcony, no matter if you travel with business, for shopping or you’re in vacation. I managed to actually combine a bit of work with my vacation in the hotel, as the Wifi connection was so good. Working on the terrace of our Junior Suite was an eye-opening experience, which made me want more and more to make my dream come true, working remotely in places like this.
The Rixos Experience
When was the last time you woke up early and made yoga on the beach surrounded by palms, turquoise water and giant skyscrapers? Think about it, we always live in a hurry, even during vacations. We want to explore as much as we can in the time we have. Well, I have discovered during my days in Dubai, that time is irrelevant for the body. I have never felt more relaxed, happy and accomplished than the day I skipped breakfast and went to yoga on the beach. After which I have jumped in the water to wake up the senses. AMAZING! The yoga class is organised by the hotel, but it’s not the only activity offered. If you are a more active person there are numerous things you can do. Water gym, beach volley, I’ve even seen they have water sports, but I’m not so into that. Also, for families with kids, I’ve seen all kinds of interesting and creative activities, such as sand art which I found hilariously funny.
The Hotel
You usually know if you’re going to live in a good hotel and your vacation will be a success from the entrance in the hotel. Depending on how our arrival will be, our first impression, the appearance and the hospitality we have been received with, will stamp the rest of the days we’ll spend in that hotel. At least, that’s the case for me. In Rixos The Palm, the stamping started already at the airport when we have been awaited by a clean Lexus car belonging to the hotel and a very respectable and nice driver.
I loved the entrance in the hotel, and every time we returned from the town I would stand a few minutes just to enjoy and admire the beautiful plants and flowers at the entrance, which by the way, were changed every now and then! Like I said, the hotel breaths luxury, and so does its rooms.
To speak about impeccable services is not needed, as Rixos never let me down on that. I have been staying in several Rixos resorts around the world and never, ever, had I anything to complain about on that level. Upon arrival, we have been surprised in the room with a delicious plate of fruits and cakes from the hotel’s own patisserie, fresh flowers, cold champagne and a handwritten letter from the management, and you know how much I love handwritten personal letters!
The Suite
We had a magnificent suite, with a huge marble bathroom, ceiling to floor windows with (again) breathtaking views and an even more amazing terrace and two sun chairs facing the sea and views. The suite was a wonderful experience and I must say everything in it was top class. The furniture, design, art works, the modern electricity system, the bed and the pillows were extremely comfy and the amenities….Bulgari. Yes, you heard right. After all, luxury stands in the details.
The apartment was very spacious, and there’s a great air conditioner in both the living room and bedroom. Considering the temperatures in Dubai in April, it was very well used by us.
The Beach
The thing I enjoyed the most at Rixos The Palm was the landscape. Breathtaking, fabulous and unique views! From the balcony, from the restaurant, from everywhere in the hotel. But what Rixos has that I personally haven’t experienced before is a beach view. I admired Dubai Marina’s skyline every day from my sun chair. It’s something you don’t really experience everywhere in the world. Look for yourself:
When lemonade with ice won’t do in the 40 degrees Celsius, take a Cabana!
The beach in Rixos The Palm is as any beach in front of a respectable 5 star hotel chain. Clean, beautiful, fun, safe, as they have safeguards watching over. The water is magnificent, crystal clear and very still in the mornings. The music in the mornings is so relaxing, indulging you to sleep more or read a book, which is exactly what I like to do at the beach. The sun chairs are super comfy, and we always got a spot near the water as we always came to the beach early around 10:00. As everywhere in the world, there are people leaving their towels on the chairs to make sure they have a place when they come back from breakfast, but the beach is so large that it didn’t create any problems to us. The hotel made sure they have room for everyone.
I loved the beach so much, that I didn’t spend any time at the pool during the trip.
The best part are the Cabanas! So delightful spacious and comfy cabanas, perfect for when the sun burns so strong as it does in Dubai. The cabanas have an extra cost of 500 AED, compared to the free of charge sun chairs, but if you have a suite in the hotel, you’ll have it for free.
The Shisha Lounge
NuAir Lounge is where you can smoke shisha in Rixos and I must say I loved the experience. Most times after the beach I would go to the lounge and just drink a delicious fresh lemonade and enjoy the quietness in one of the cabanas.
El Chringuito
The hotel hosts three nice restaurants, pool bar and you can serve food at the beach, which is pretty comfortable! Near Rixos is El Chiringuito, a fabulous beach and beach bar that belongs to the hotel, with amazing food, drinks and music! However, you need some kind of access to it, I’m not sure they let all hotel guests inside, and it’s definitely a younger crowd. We loved the ambiance and we were lucky to catch a nice party one of the evenings which was pretty fun! All classy people, delicious drinks and fine music!
With such an amazing time spent in this place, it’s going to be hard not miss it. My only regret is not having time to visit the SPA, which looked so fabulous as I saw a hammam bath in the images on one of the catalogues in our room, but I’ll save that for my next trip there, probably during an autumn.
