Dubai is our favourite destination during winter. This time it was different. Instead of the usual hotels, we opted for a Hotel Apartment. We were recommended the Marriott Hotel Apartments by our travel agent based on our specifications of a place in the vicinity of shopping and not too far from any major tourist attraction.

Instead of a hotel we opted for a hotel apartment largely because we were staying for a longer period of three weeks instead of usual two or less. Also, we wanted to experiment wheather instead of hotel food we were better off catering for ourselves.

The Marriott came as a mixed bag of pleasant AND rather not so pleasant surprises...
PLEASANT

1. Excellent, very spacious, clean room. The two bed room that we took when our son came to join us.....was FABULOUS period.
2. The cooking facilities including all pots and pans etc again were FANTASTIC. Home from home it was!
3. I guess I need not say yet again because by now you must have heard many times. The standard of hotel service in Dubai as a whole is extremely high. It was not any different here. The personnel were...simply TERRIFIC! They had the knack of making you feel, shall we say, royalty?
4. Now dont rush to verify at the Guiness Book of Records or quote me on this but I was told many times that the foot bridge or the cross over connecting the two blocks of the Marriott was the longest in the world! One thing I can say for sure though is the eerie feeling you have when you are on it! The sky line of Dubai looks great at night from here.
5. Although a big grocery shop across the road, rather than an ambitious sounding super market, is extremely handy. It even delivers all your grocery to the hotel...without any charge! I told you Dubai is famous for its services....
6. Lap tops with very good access to internet are provided in the restaurant....FREE OF CHARGE.

NOT SO PLEASANT
1. The staff were fantastic but take my advise. Unfortunately smiles and courtesy are no substitutes for the best AND the most important meal of the day! Sorry but the breakfast was extremely limited and bare-bone adequate. Prepare your own in your own kitchen. Much better and satisfying.
2. I sorely missed decent cafes or restaurants nearby. You better be prepared for a lot of taxi journeys...not cheap!
3. Be prepared for the frequent visits of students from the University Of Dubai just across the road. Well, after all the internet is free can you blame them?
4, Our stay was between 20th. December 2011 and 10th. January 2012. A total of 21nights. A package deal including a British Airways Economy Premier return cost us a whopping £6,480.00!! Er..er..no wonder we felt like royalty!

So, will I stay here again?

Well the negative points aside, the biggest deterrent will be the cost. For that kind of money I will rather stay elsewhere. Unless of course it will cost me about half or so....
Azeem Diwan