Review: The St Regis Dubai The Palm hotel

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• Benilyn says:

  27 May27 May 06:27

  I’m curious why they built a “tall” building in the palm, everything else is low rise, ruins the look a bit IMHO.

  • blenz101 says:

    27 May27 May 07:01

    Having a tower in what is effectively a traffic island next to a shopping mall is by far the best use of the space. It allows visitors to actually see the full view of the palm without the need to sky-dive. At ground level you really could just be in any other part of Dubai. It is only impressive from above.

    For a palm view at the Aura sky pool (which is booked out weeks in advance) you are looking at £100 for a 4 hour slot plus a minimum F&B spend of £200. People really like the view!

    As the article mentions, the apartments sell for a premium for the same view and most desirable address on the palm.

    What I will give you is the new Atlantis Royal is an ugly building with stacked shipping container vibes and out of scale and style with the original Atlantis next door.

    Although they have just closed The Pointe and just building apartments instead so nobody but residents on the final fond will be viewing both side by side in the future.

    • Gordon says:

      27 May27 May 08:48

      I guess you were basing your pricing, per couple?

      Morning slot, from 10am to 3pm is 250 AED pp, around £53.
      Afternoon slot from 3pm to 7pm is 300 AED pp, around £65.
      Evening slot from 8pm to 11pm is 225 AED pp, around £48

      There are various options for F&B,
      Pool buffet, daytime set menu and free flowing drinks for 600 AED pp, around £130.

      There are also, brunch options, including pool access, free flow champagne and premium drinks, from 22/06/2024 between 1,000 AED 1,600 AED PP.

      • TGLoyalty says:

        27 May27 May 09:02

        If I recall the actual poolside beds had a minimum spend as per the original comment. The prices / spend drops off as you move further back and inside but even if they don’t require you to spend it the prices are steep so you’ll end up spending £xxx having just had a couple drinks and perhaps a couple snacks

        • Gordon says:

          27 May27 May 09:20

          Yes there are many options to choose from, depending on how much your willing to spend,

          I found the taxi costs while in Dubai were pleasantly low, this is to encourage tourists to move around and spend money.

        • TGLoyalty says:

          27 May27 May 09:45

          And because the fuel is cheap af

        • blenz101 says:

          27 May27 May 10:50

          I am sure you are looking at the summer pricing as well (i.e. when nobody wants to be outdoors anyway). The general point was that this view commands a very high price. 1600 AED is also exceptionally high for a Dubai brunch even with free flow champagne.

          And yes, taxis are cheap by western standards (low fuel costs and low salary) but the prices are not set with tourists in mind, they are an essential form of transport for residents who don’t own a car. For the vast majority of the resident population who are from South Asia they do not consider them cheap and constantly complain how expensive they are.

      • Gordon says:

        27 May27 May 15:59

        I doubt if it would be about fuel prices being low, I’d go with blenz101 re residents transport.

        As I’ve just priced up an Uber from NBO to Hyatt regency Westlands, for a trip in August, at $5, fuel is around $1.50 a litre, and that’s a 30 minute ride!

        • TGLoyalty says:

          27 May27 May 16:53

          In some markets Uber is clearly subsidising trips to capture the local market and then will slowly increase fares ala US and U.K but they have so much of the UAE market together with Careem I don’t think it is much else other than costs are lower.

          Local price is about 3.3AED per litre or 70p in a market it means for every 25 or so miles you’re saving £3.5-4 vs U.K. plus the taxi drivers wages are lower and they still keep more as they pay no income taxes, these aren’t like UK taxi drivers they’re mostly working the butt off to send every penny home and spend as little as possible in the UAE.

        • Gordon says:

          27 May27 May 17:33

          I don’t doubt there’s a subsidy element to the Uber pricing, as Hyatt quoted $50 standard car, and $100 Land Cruiser, for a one way trip! Of course I know a hotel transfer is massively inflated.

• Jordan D says:

  27 May27 May 07:06

  Wonder if this St Regis will last, seeing as two others have come and gone in Dubai.

  • Rob says:

    27 May27 May 08:44

    Indeed …..

  • TGLoyalty says:

    27 May27 May 09:03

    Both were part of Al Habtoor group … who have just dropped LXR too.

    The downtown one was the old Renaissance which was a good Ren but not a StR at all.

• N says:

  27 May27 May 09:32

  Useless data point – got a mega mega upgrade using an SNA here when the hotel first opened.

• Blair Waldorf Salad says:

  27 May27 May 09:55

  IIRC Trump was somehow involved with the high rise Nakheel Mall building until he wasn’t and others took over the investment. That StR is an odd hotel for me; if one was doing a night or two for work it is still a pain to get to as at peak times the road leading up to the Palm bridge is chocka too. My average exit time from Waldorf Palm to mainland was 30 mins in March 2024

  • TGLoyalty says:

    27 May27 May 13:09

    In terms of getting off the palm wouldn’t it be better to get to monorail off from the mall and then Uber / rail onwards from there?

    • Blair Waldorf Salad says:

      27 May27 May 17:01

      A walk from the Waldorf to the monorail at Atlantis could take 30 mins. Then the landside monorail station is hidden in a maze in a rather eerily empty multistorey car park

      • TGLoyalty says:

        27 May27 May 18:00

        I meant from St Regis … the hotel you said was an odd choice for someone on business.

• Novice says:

  27 May27 May 10:58

  Looks great. Sounds cheap as well for what you are getting. In my opinion 4* hotels in Arab and Asia sometimes are of equivalent quality to Europe and Americas 5*.

  • Blair Waldorf Salad says:

    27 May27 May 11:32

    Agreed. A Conrad in the UAE will be the best Conrad you’ve stayed in, a Westin in the UAE will be the best Westin you’ve stayed in, etc.

    • Novice says:

      27 May27 May 11:46

      Totally.

      I absolutely hate it when I pay for and the hotel markets itself (usually in the west) as 5* but is at best a 4*.

      Recently I went Madeira and stayed at the new Savoy palace which admittedly looked good but service was lacking. Water bottles would not exchanged for filled ones every day. Sheets wouldn’t be changed despite placing the card on them. I was having to call housekeeping to change it in front of me because I like fresh sheets every day.

      • Tracey says:

        27 May27 May 15:55

        If it was service you wanted, you should have stayed at Reid’s Palace, a Belmond hotel that is almost next door.

        • Novice says:

          27 May27 May 23:53

          It’s too outdated. I don’t like that sort of decor despite the history. I wouldn’t mind a night in a place like Reids palace but definitely not a full week.

    • aseftel says:

      27 May27 May 22:16

      I agree with the overall idea, but personally I didn’t think that Conrad Dubai was top-tier amongst the brand portfolio.

  • TGLoyalty says:

    27 May27 May 11:41

    The starts from price is very much the out of season summer price where it’s too hot to leave the hotel unless you’re heading to a pool or the seas (even that’s probably too hot!)

• TGLoyalty says:

  27 May27 May 11:41

  Marriott picking up more rebrands

  The InterContinental Seoul COEX hotel in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, is closing operations on July 1 and will reopen as a Marriott property, according to building owner and local hospitality brand Parnas on Monday.

  Under the new name Westin Seoul Parnas, the hotel is slated to reopen in the second half of 2025.

• Lauren says:

  27 May27 May 12:34

  I stayed there last year and hated it. It was well overpriced (we paid £400 to have a room with breakfast). Despite one pool being described as adults only, both pools were full of kids.

  The walk to the beach club was via roads for cars under bridges with no pedestrian access, so the walk was not suitable for most people. They do have a shuttle however the last shuttle leaves before the sunset which makes no sense.

  Also the beach club was very average and you can’t redeem your amex FHR credit there

  The hotel should provide discounted access to the swimming pool at the top of the building so you can enjoy the views, but instead you have no priority/access despite being in the same building.

  I wish I’d known all of this before booking, as the photos on Google etc are very misleading. It makes it look like it’s a beachfront sky rise with a rooftop pool. It’s the opposite.

  1/5 from me.

  • TGLoyalty says:

    27 May27 May 13:09

    I actually thought way back when this project was announced the St Regis was meant to be building its own beach club much closer to the actual hotel and the renderings looked great.

    Kyma is a 3rd party beach club down on west beach and I know Rhys says access is free but if I was heading to a 3rd party operated venue I’d much rather go to Ula also Loren has a nice lunch vibe.

    • Blair Waldorf Salad says:

      27 May27 May 14:10

      Oh wow, I thought the St Regis and the Andaz both had private beaches on the east side of the Palm’s trunk. But West Beach? How unsatisfactory; nothing about West Beach is in keeping with the StR concept

      • TGLoyalty says:

        27 May27 May 16:59

        I thought it was going to be past club vista mare. There’s a big pool and beach loungers now days maybe that’s just part of Andaz?

  • HampshireHog says:

    27 May27 May 20:59

    Try Thailand instead

    • Gordon says:

      27 May27 May 21:42

      Not sure how to take this comment? But if it’s meant as a positive, I’d agree, south east asia is my favoured destination, Thailand and Vietnam in particular, if it’s a negative, maybe you should visit, you may have a different perspective!

      • Novice says:

        28 May28 May 00:08

        I loved Thailand but gosh the overcrowding in especially kho phi phi was horrendous. Couldn’t see an inch of the famous beach but I hear they are trying to save it by limiting the constant ferries that stop there. I enjoyed phang nga bay i think it’s called. I did a whole tour of all the highlights and was awesome country. I will head back once I have done all my list unless I’ve kicked the bucket 😂

        • Gordon says:

          28 May28 May 07:47

          Im actually touring Asia for a few months next year, I’ve reached my mid life crisis….

        • Novice says:

          28 May28 May 12:05

          Gordon, I am not that old. I am actually pretty well known here for repeating how young I am. I started doing it as a novice but then it turned into me adding it to all my posts to annoy but the amount of s*** I got from some commenters wasn’t worth it anymore.

          It’s just my list of countries is too long and I can only average about 3/4 proper tours a year.

        • Gordon says:

          28 May28 May 12:12

          Novice, I meant I’m touring Asia as I’ve turned 60. Maybe a little late in life to be doing it, but why not! Yes agree some commenters on here like to hear the sound of their own voices, a lot of the time, it’s who shouts the loudest!

• Mo says:

  27 May27 May 13:04

  “There are no bacon or pork products as far as I could see.” – It is in a Muslim Country

  • Rob says:

    27 May27 May 14:52

    Utterly irrelevant at best of times and even more so in Dubai. Even the alcohol ban is effectively gone now, given that beach clubs (which don’t need to be on a beach) are licensed.

    • Kpworldtravels says:

      27 May27 May 16:31

      Rob – I have never seen Bacon or Pork being openly served in any restaurant buffet. Its either tucked away in a hidden corner of the buffet or you have to specifically ask the staff.

      (Im vegetarian so irrelevant to me but thats what Ive seen)

      • Rhys says:

        27 May27 May 17:50

        I’ve seen it at hotel buffets in Dubai. In a corner, but still visible.

    • TGLoyalty says:

      27 May27 May 16:55

      There’s still greater control on pork products. Certain areas / districts are permitted others aren’t.

      • blenz101 says:

        27 May27 May 17:08

        Not really. Pork is widely available in most places catering to a western audience. They hotel just needs to prepare non-halal products in a separate kitchen and have them clearly labelled as such and be licensed to do so. There is no restriction by area.

        All Waitrose, Spinney, Park & Shop, Al Maya supermarkets sell pork products. The markup on frozen Greggs sausage rolls is quite something though!

        • Mark says:

          28 May28 May 09:06

          The Waitrose in the Mall of Dubai had pork products sectioned off in a separate room behind a heavy plastic curtain. Personally I thought that drew attention to it more than anything but as a vegetarian I didn’t really mind either way.

        • mvcvz says:

          28 May28 May 13:11

          I’m neither Muslim nor vegetarian. But if I never saw bacon or pork again for the rest of my days, it wouldn’t bother me one bit.

  • NicktheGreek says:

    27 May27 May 17:01

    This reminds me of my stay in Bahrain a few months ago for the F1. The host at the restaurant at the HGI whispered to me – “would you like some pork products” and promptly brought out a Styrofoam container of cold cuts for my table. Not on show but available nevertheless. But it certainly seems like the acceptance of alcohol and pork are not entirely comparable.

    • TGLoyalty says:

      27 May27 May 18:05

      In Bahrain it was on most restaurant menus.

      @Blenz I was specifically talking about restaurants and hotel breakfasts not for home consumption. Considering if you google pork Dubai restaurants you get lists of 40-50 I don’t think it’s as widespread as you say there are literally 1000’s of eateries in Dubai.

      • tony says:

        27 May27 May 18:48

        I was wondering where to post this question. This conversation seems like the right place. I stayed at the Hilton Curio in Shoreditch last week. No pork products on the breakfast buffet. I’d had a rubbish stay with them anyway but something bugs me about this – and I’m not entirely sure Hilton corporate would be overly impressed with the move. Following my “feedback”, I was advised that if I wanted proper bacon, all I had to do was ask. On that basis presumably I could have had a dollop of caviar on my scrambled eggs, too… Would genuinely like to hear people’s thoughts on this.

        “First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out….” etc etc

        • blenz101 says:

          27 May27 May 19:47

          @tony, I agree this is pretty poor as pork products are generally considered a staple hot breakfast item. I don’t think Hilton corporate would particularly care but your feedback seems valid and worth mentioning in a review.

          The only think I can think of is that when I was at the Hilton Leeds a few months ago I watched guests use a single pair of tongs and just go down the hot buffet line picking up a pork sausage, then tomato, then hash brown etc. I can imagine if the Curio in Shoreditch gets a lot of guests with religious dietary requirements then they may have been getting complaints of cross contamination (and as a result having to throw out whole batches of food).

          Does seem odd that products could not be sensibly separated or advertised as available on request. Especially if they have them and are preparing in the same kitchen in any event.

      • blenz101 says:

        27 May27 May 19:39

        @TGLoyalty as I said, it is widely available in restaurants and at hotel breakfasts where they are catering to a western audience. There isn’t such a thing as ‘pork restaurant’ so Google isn’t really going to help you get an accurate number.

        Generally if a hotel is serving alcohol then there is a very good chance that the owner will not have an issue with pork products. There are now plenty of stand alone bars / gastropubs across new Dubai and these will also serve pork.

        It is nowhere near as hush hush as the Bahrain example but in a buffet situation it will usually be on a separate table and potentially tucked away from the rest of the buffet. This is to prevent cross contamination and/or muslim guests thinking it is a halal product, i.e. assuming as it’s an Islamic country it will be turkey bacon, chicken sausage etc.

        Obviously it will be much harder to find in Deira and surrounding areas and restaurants catering to a more Arabic or South Asian audience will also not offer this but it is by no means rare to find.

    • Novice says:

      28 May28 May 00:17

      That’s because according to my Muslim mates; the actual alcohol is not forbidden but the influence of it is so essentially if someone can drink without getting drunk you should be fine and pork or any pig products are completely forbidden.

      A lot of Muslims drink depending on which sect or how religious they are or aren’t and also depends on country. But I have never seen any Muslims eat anything related to pigs. They just eat the substitutes as in turkey ham, turkey sausage or whatever. I may be wrong but this is how my mates explained it.

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