We started our time in Dubai at Al Maha Desert Resort which I knew would be a tough act to follow. Dubai has a ton of luxury hotels to choose from. I ultimately picked the Ritz-Carlton Dubai because of its large beach and the fact that I could book it at a lower points rate before Marriott introduced Category 8 in 2019. Free parking was a plus too! Here’s my review of the Ritz-Carlton Dubai.
Booking the Ritz-Carlton Dubai with Points
The Ritz-Carlton Dubai can be booked with Marriott Bonvoy points. When we visited, we got each night for 60,000 points. As a Category 8 property, the Ritz-Carlton Dubai now costs 85,000 points per night for standard nights, 70,000 for off-peak, and 100,000 for peak. Given the number of luxury hotels in Dubai with competitive pricing, I think this property was worth 60,000 points but would have stayed elsewhere had it been 85,000.
Ritz-Carlton Dubai Location
The Ritz-Carlton Dubai is located in the Marina District near The Walk at Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR). This is a popular area with many shopping and dining options. However, Dubai is a large city and requires getting around by car to fully explore it. While you can rely on taxis or public transportation, I actually recommend renting a car. Valet parking at the Ritz-Carlton Dubai is free. We had no trouble finding public parking at Dubai’s malls and near Old Dubai, most of which was also free. Not only was the car extremely affordable at $200 for five days, but it also made it easy to get between Al Maha, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi.
Dining and Amenities
The Ritz-Carlton Dubai is a full-service resort with lots of dining options .
- Palm Grill: A beachfront restaurant located on the sand. It’s open Thursdays and Fridays for lunch and dinner and Saturdays for brunch and happy hour.
- Splendido: An Italian restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating options open daily for dinner.
- Blue Jade: A Southeast Asian restaurant open daily for dinner.
- Amaseena: An outdoor Arabian restaurant inspired by Bedouin culture offering a dinner buffet every night but Sundays.
- La Baie: A poolside bar and lounge.
- Lobby Lounge: A massive indoor lounge serving food all day including a traditional afternoon tea.
- Caravan: A restaurant open daily for breakfast and brunch on Fridays.
- Library Bar: A cigar and spirits bar open daily until midnight.
- Gulf Pavilion: A casual poolside eatery with a swim-up bar open daily until 6:00 pm.
In addition to the nine restaurants and lounges, other amenities at the Ritz-Carlton Dubai include:
- Complimentary 24-hour valet parking
- Spa and salon
- Fitness center with personal training and group classes
- Four tennis courts
- Complimentary shuttle to Mall of the Emirates
- Ritz Kids program
- Several gift shops including a fine jewelry store
The hotel also offers a large pool and beach complex.
The beach was only a short walk away from the pool through the gardens.
Near the pool was an area for outdoor activities like archery and chess.
The beach had plenty of lounge chairs and umbrellas set up. We were escorted to our lounge chairs on the beach and also given a cooler with water bottles.
The beach offered great views of the Marina District and JBR.
Lobby
The lobby at the Ritz-Carlton Dubai was massive with Arabian inspired decor and plenty of floral arrangements.
To the left of the grand entrance was the check-in desk. There were plenty of places to sit throughout the lobby.
Checking in took a while. The line wasn’t particularly long, but for some reason it moved slowly. We were offered a glass of orange juice while we waited.
Ritz-Carlton Dubai Deluxe Room
One plus of the Ritz-Carlton Dubai is that all rooms have a balcony and face towards the backside of the hotel. A con of this setup is that it makes for a very long hotel. It took us upwards of ten minutes to walk from the lobby down the extremely long hallway to our room. And our room wasn’t even the farthest away!
There were several lounge areas along the way and I could see some people needing to stop to use them!
The decor in the rooms was Arabian inspired with a modern twist.
The deluxe king room was a good size at over 500 square feet. There was plenty of room for the bed, a sofa, and a dining table.
As with all Ritz-Carltons, the bed was very comfortable.
At the foot of the bed was a TV and a storage unit.
Next to the bed was a seating area with a sofa and arm chair.
There was a dining table that could also be used as a desk. The room also had a Nespresso, a mini bar, and plenty of complimentary bottles of water.
The room was equipped with a control pad that pulled out from the nightstand for AC and lighting. This was similar to what we used at the Ritz-Carlton Tokyo.
The room had a large balcony with views of the pool.
While not technically an ocean view room, we still caught a glimpse of the water from our balcony.
Back towards the entrance of the room was the bathroom. There were two doors off of this short hallway: the toilet room and a closet.
The room with the toilet also featured a bidet.
The closet had several drawers, a safe, and an iron and ironing board.
The main bathroom had a large vanity with two sinks. Toiletries were Asprey Purple Water.
The bathtub was to the right of the vanity and the shower was to the left. There was also a TV in the mirror, just like the Ritz-Carlton Kyoto.
The standalone tub was a good size as was the shower.
Last but not least, when we returned after dinner, we were pleased to see a surprise for our anniversary along with the turndown service.
In addition to the towel swans, they left a small cake with macarons. Yum!
Final Thoughts
We had a wonderful stay at the Ritz-Carlton Dubai. The property had everything we needed including the perfect beach set up. Our main complaint was how long it took to walk to our room, but I guess that’s the price to pay to have a good view from every room. While we loved our stay at the Ritz-Carlton Dubai, given the sheer number of luxury properties in Dubai at cheaper prices, I would be hesitant to book this hotel at 85,000 Marriott points. However, if you have Marriott points to spare, this hotel won’t disappoint.
