If you think Dubai is the epitome of opulence; its best hotel is the grandmaster
By Shivangi Lolayekar
When you think of Dubai, your brain’s perhaps bursting with dollar signs thinking of the drip falling out of its many malls. Or your mouth’s salivating at the wealth of global cuisine. Maybe you’re thinking of the fashioned view from the Burj Al Arab and the many towers that make up its glossy skyline. But what if all the city’s addictive trappings were to be found in a singular spot. A place you check into and be hard pressed to check out of while you’re in the city. One that allows you to consume the opulence and cut out the noise. That’s what Atlantis The Royal is. The Kohinoor of the hotel scene in Dubai. A sum of all the luxurious parts the city has to offer. The definition of excess, with every single attribute, from your room to dining and everything else in between, incredibly exaggerated for a once- in-a-lifetime experience.
Dubbed as one of the world’s grandest, most flamboyant hotels, Atlantis The Royal jumped 35 places to the 9th spot in The World’s 50 Best Hotels 2024 list, earning the Highest Climber Award and justifiably the best in Dubai. Still, that’s not what makes it so attractive. At any of the common spaces, be it the 17 restaurants and bars or 17 fashion boutiques or even as you navigate the open areas of the 406,000-square-metre behemoth, there’s a collective pulse of vivacity. You’ll find pretty much every nationality inhabiting the hotel, all with a penchant for the good life and the same goal of savouring premium luxury and relaxation. Laughter is abundant. Water fountains jump up and dance in the air, synced to chart-topping pop music. Designer goods adorn guests. Well-heeled Emiratis and suited business folk gather for high profile meetings. Families are plenty and couples show off their toned bodies and enviable tans as they glide around the hotel.
However, the sheen of new-world opulence is a direct contrast to the warm hospitality. In the confines of Atlantis The Royal, your system experiences a coming together of two wondrous emotions, where you feel like your part of a larger-than-life experience, while being looked after like you’re the only one there.
A hit of high-fashion luxury
Of course, there are multiple luxury boutiques, including Valentino and Levels Shoes Dubai, stocking everything from Tom Ford to Sophia Webster. And of course, you can order the extended portfolio of Levels from the city to reach your hotel room. But what makes the property such an indulgence is integrated high fashion experiences beyond the obvious. Coming into this year, Louis Vuitton joined forces with Atlantis The Royal to celebrate the hotel’s first anniversary, bringing in handcrafted life-size versions of its mascot Vivienne. Presently Dolce & Gabbana x Ounass have done a fantastical takeover of Cloud 22, the hotel’s jaw-dropping poolside terrace. You’d think that floating beds on an infinity pool and private cabanas overlooking the Arabian Gulf and Palm Island were enough to invite you into the lap of luxury. But at Atlantis The Royal nothing is done in small measure and bringing in Dolce & Gabbana, with its white and blue motifs running across the space like you’re soaking in the sun in the Amalfi Coast, is indicative of how fashion is meant to be consumed—well beyond that $10,000 handbag you’re carrying.
Calories to combat
Find me a spot in the world where you have a cluster of Michelin star chefs spreading out their legendary restaurants for an epicurean euphoria, starting with a decadent take on historic British cuisine at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal; celebrity chef Ariana Bundy’s unique flavours inspired by her native home of Kashran in Iran at Ariana’s Persian Kitchen; Nobu’s first beach club Nobu By The Beach; arguably the best Mediterranean fare at Milos; body-tingling Peruvian food at La Mar by Gastón Acurio…. where do you start, where do you end? That Carbone, New York’s most celebrated and celebrity-studded Italian restaurant, opens early next year proves that there’s no limit for Atlantis The Royal’s culinary prowess.
Away from the high-profile restaurants sit ‘casual’ spaces like Gastronomy where the breakfast buffet—from lobster ceviche to stacked pancakes—is reassuringly slick and runs longer than the Orient Express. After the satiety comes the fun. Ling Ling is Atlantis The Royal’s sexy lounge that sits higher up in the expansive property, housing a dining space with Pan Asian food; an outdoor terrace to stare out to the best skyline you’ll ever see in Dubai; good-looking people decked in their finest; and heady cocktails that very quickly have you swaying to a live DJ’s electronica music. The intoxicating combination of superior food; cornucopia of cocktails; and over the top dining experiences is inevitably one of the most luxurious you’ll find on the planet.
The best night’s sleep
When Atlantis The Royal came to life last year, the gargantuan structure, including two terrace towers rising up 178m like a stack of Tetris and joined by a 33-metre-wide sky bridge— architected by New York-based Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF)—instantly became iconic and recognisable across the world. Sitting within it are 795 rooms of spectacular shapes and only big sizes—starting from a deluxe room that in any other property would be slotted in a higher category. Views from rooms overlook the Palm Islands that make for the perfect accessory to your morning coffee and indulgent night cap. Every room no doubt has state-of-the-art amenities. But for next level lavishness within the grandeur of Atlantis The Royal (like that was possible, but it is), royal mansions, mega penthouses, and skypool villas dotted by sun beds are the definition of extra. That Beyoncé and Kendall Jenner have been past patrons, and from what I was told a few rich Indians have thrown decadent parties in the confines of these plush rooms, you can be sure that you’re getting a serious hit of unadulterated luxury.
But you don’t have to be a celebrity to feel like a star at Atlantis The Royal. Everything the immense hotel offers is a stab at the best life. The personification— and perhaps more—of the world’s shiniest city. It’s why when you check in, you don’t feel the need to step out. You have everything you want, need, and then some. Isn’t that, after all, what a memorable holiday is all about?
Reproduced with permission from Mansworldindia.com
