Room check: Dubai
Tall Order
Things are looking up in the UAE with the opening of the world’s tallest hotel, the JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai
By Karen Osman
—The Look It may not be the world’s highest hotel—that title is still firmly held by the Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong, which occupies floors 102 to 118 of the International Commerce Center in West Kowloon—but it is the tallest all-hotel skyscraper on the planet. Rising 355 meters above the pulsing traffic of Sheikh Zayed Road, the 72-story twin towers of the JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai—clad in blue glass and bristling with articulated window sections—add yet another eye-catching landmark to a city known for its soaring skyline.
—The Quarters Boutique it is not: the hotel has 1,608 rooms and suites and is clearly courting the events market, as 8,000-plus square meters of indoor and outdoor events space attests. But the guest quarters are suitably sleek and spacious, with high-end technology discreetly built in. Dubai’s year-round sunshine floods through floor-to-ceiling windows, while the easy-to-use control panel allows you to master your surrounds at the touch of a button. Powerful rain showers and bathroom amenities by Aromatherapy Associates are other welcome touches.
—The Food Guests have their pick of 14 restaurants, bars, and lounges, including Tong Thai for a cosmopolitan take on Thai street food, and Rang Mahal, the first Middle East venture by Atul Kochhar, whose flagship Indian restaurant in London, Benares, has a Michelin star.
—The Facilities The caravanserai-inspired Saray Spa offers exotic treatments that employ gemstone-infused oils, while the seventh-floor swimming pool features underwater speakers.
—Don’t Miss Drinks at The Vault on the 71st and 72nd floors, where daytime views extend from the desert to the tapering profile of Burj Khalifa and to the sea beyond.
Sheikh Zayed Rd., Business Bay, Dubai; 971-4/414-0000; jwmarriottmarquisdubai.com; doubles from US$326
Originally appeared in the April/May 2013 print issue of DestinAsian magazine (“Room Check: Dubai”)
