Dubai has several Le Meridien properties and the one that we stayed at a few weeks ago was the Le Meridien Dubai Hotel and Conference Center which is just across the street from Dubai Airport (DXB). I’ve passed by this hotel before plenty of times over the years, but this was actually the first time I’ve ever been to it. Its definitely more than what meets the eye from the outside of the property. The hotel and the grounds are huge! The main building of this Le Meridien is just one portion of the property.

We actually stayed in Le Royal Club, which is an entirely different building. Its a recent addition to the property and its just as beautiful as it is modern. Its a totally different feel from the classic-ness of the main hotel, and we absolutely loved both our stay in one of Le Royal Club’s rooms, as well as the entire experience of being on the property.

I checked in mid-week and was surprised to see that the hotel is actually very busy even on the weekdays, so its better to book ahead of time. Then again, I shouldn’t be so surprised at the fact that it was busy because of the location– its right next to the airport (Terminal 1 and 3), so I’m sure plenty of travelers opt to stay here, not just because of the great reviews they read about the hotel, but also because of the proximity to the airport.

As I mentioned, the decor is very modern– the lobby has tones of earthy-yet-urban. Its all very beautifully and tastefully done, and definitely not your typical hotel lobby. It’s got a lot of personality!

As soon as I showed them my ID and they confirmed our reservation, they took us upstairs directly to our room. We learned that every floor has a designated front desk person that greets you as soon as you enter your floor. They are there to assist you with anything you may need and it can save you a trip from going all the way downstairs to the ground floor.

Now for our room– we stayed in a Royal Club Room, which is the standard room at Le Royal Club. Its quite spacious and I would easily recommend it for families with 1 small child. The main area of the hotel room is a very open plan. A large king-sized bed is in the center, a large flatscreen TV is across the room from it and a large work desk is on one corner of the room. Now this room had something that I’ve never seen before at any other hotel room I’ve ever been to– a massage chair! This chair massages better than some of the professional massages that I’ve had at high-end spas! Now, not all of the rooms have massage chairs so you have to specifically request it upon booking.

The bathroom is also very spacious and it has two entrances; one near the bed and one from the hallway. Its separated into three areas: one for the bathtub and sink, the another room for the toilet and another separate stand-alone shower. The bathtub even has a built-in jacuzzi! All of the bath products used are mainly based on natural ingredients, and they smell great.

On the table in front of the TV, they had a little welcome treat for us– cupcakes, fruits and even jars of candies for our little Khalifa (which I later had to hide from him because he was getting a little too crazy with it)!

After getting acquainted with our room, we decided to rest for a few hours. I actually had my mother and sister flying in for a quick stopover that night and the fact that we were staying right next to the airport made things much easier!

Later that evening, it was time to go pick them up and I took advantage of the complementary car service to the airport. Khalifa and I were driven in a luxurious Mercedes S-Class to the airport where we quickly picked up his grandma and aunt and headed back to the hotel.

Once back at the hotel, we all headed over the Sukhothai, which is one of the 18 different F&B outlets on the property. We enjoyed an incredibly delicious Thai dinner, before heading out to do some late night shopping before the malls closed and then headed back to the airport to drop them off. To see a full review of our dinner at Sukhothai, check out the following link: Sukhothai [Restaurant Review].

By the time we got back, it was incredibly late at night and we went straight to sleep!

Day 2

Since we had a late night, we slept in quite late and went downstairs only for a light breakfast. The breakfast setting is actually very nice; its half buffet and half made-to-order.

After a quick breakfast, we headed back upstairs and took it easy for the rest of the morning/noon. We had a few errands to run in the afternoon and took a cab to The Dubai Mall, which was less than a 15 minute drive away. For those who are planning on visiting Dubai for a short stay, I’m sure you’ll find it nice to know that although the hotel is right next to the airport, its also very easy access to Downtown Dubai and other parts of the city.

By the time we got back, we were starving! Luckily we had a reservation made at the Chinese restaurant, Long Yin. The restaurant is located in the main hotel building, and it was a few minutes walk from Le Royal Club. Its actually quite a fancy Chinese restaurant and the menu selection is huge! I looked it up on Zomato before going, but the entire menu is actually not uploaded on Zomato so we were pleasantly surprised with the variety.

We ordered several different dishes, but my absolute favorite was the Wasabi Prawn. I thought it would be similar to dynamite shrimp, but its actually very unique. Its much sweeter than I expected and the heat from the wasabi is tempered out by the tiny dices of strawberries in it. It’s a very interesting combo. I also really liked their fried rice and the sauteed eggplant– it was cooked perfectly without a drop of bitterness that usually comes with eggplant.

Unfortunately my little Khalifa was exhausted by this time so we had to cut our dinner short because he was getting quite cranky. The staff were kind enough to pack up most of it and send it to our room so that we could enjoy it after putting Khalifa to bed.

Day 3

Since we had plenty of rest from the night before, we were able to really make the most of breakfast the next day, and boy did we! Just look at these fluffy, delicious pancakes with a maple syrup bottle that I’m dying to find out where they got it from! It tasted just as good as it looked.

After breakfast, we went back upstairs to hang out for a bit. This is when I really made the most of the massage chair, and I even looked up where I could possibly get one of my own and learned that the price of the chair ranges from 8,000 dirhams to 12,000 dirhams! I think I’ll just check in to Le Royal Club the next time I want one of those massages…

We requested a late check out at 2pm and they were happy to oblige. Right after check out, we went down to M’s Beef Bistro, which is a steakhouse located not too far from Le Royal Club. Although they have plenty of meat-y options, there were also several seafood choices as well. They’re also very kid-friendly and even had coloring pages, crayons and kids menu all ready for us at the table.

While the activities and kids’ chicken nuggets kept Khalifa busy for a bit, we enjoyed our meals. I got the Rock Shrimp which is coated in a creamy and slightly spicy sauce. My husband went for a much heavier option, the Wagyu beef, which he couldn’t stop praising throughout our time there! If you love your meat, you have to try their Wagyu beef.

After a hearty meal, we got the car from valet and headed back on our way home. Although you would expect that only visitors would stay at the hotel due to the proximity of the airport, its actually a great staycation as well because the hotel grounds is literally like a little village. There are so many different areas and restaurants to explore and it can keep you well-occupied for a weekend getaway.

The price for one night in the room we stayed in (the Royal Club Room) is around 725 Dhs (July 2016). 

Ratings (0-5): 

• Location: 4
• Hotel Ambience: 5
• Staff (Friendliness and Helpfulness): 5
• Room: 5
• Room/Bath Products Provided: 5
• In-Room WiFi: 5 (Not chargeable) 
• Amenities: 4.5
• Housekeeping: 5
• Value for money: 5

Overall Rating: 4.83

To book at Le Meridien Dubai Hotel and Conference Center, call +971 (0) 4 217 0000.