Tropical Sky’s Steve Garley sampled some real luxury recently at the Burj al Arab in Dubai…

When it comes to luxury hotels, none can compete with the self-styled “Seven Star” Burj al-Arab!  Of course, no hotel can be any more than “Five Star deluxe” really, but you’ve got to experience the Burj to appreciate what genuine luxury is!  And at a staggering $650 million to build and Dubai’s most famous landmark, you’d expect it to be luxurious!

I thought that it might not be for me.  To my mind, luxury doesn’t have to be too flashy and ostentatious.  By the time we arrived at the main reception amidst a collection of Cadillacs and Rollers my sense of being slightly out of place without being a millionaire was heightened, but then my senses were assailed by the sheer scale of the place!  Nothing prepares you for the interior of the Burj. Every colour and every material, metal, fabric seems to have been used in the décor.  They are all bold and all clashing, but somehow sheer scale seems to make them fit together!  Waterfalls, passageways and the highest atrium in the Middle East.

A very nice young lady showed us to the 12th floor, where we discovered that the suite was also outrageous!  The same clashing colours with opulence in every corner while the view of Jumeirah Beach from the floor to ceiling windows was breathtaking.   James, One of the suite’s three butlers, showed us how to operate all the hi-tech controls. When he left, we couldn’t turn off the TV, close the curtains or turn on the computer. He came back and patiently explained all over again!

You do run out of superlatives very quickly to describe this place!   The gym has a panoramic view and there are geometric fountains with single jets travelling in parabola movements or in a sudden surge that easily reached the 5th floor. During the day, the hotel is pristine white, but after dark computer controlled lights means the whole building changes colour.

Breakfast in the restaurant was just paradise. The only buffet I have ever seen with rhubarb, muesli, rice pudding, pickled herring and camel’s milk – we chose not to combine certain items! Do check the price of wine before you buy it though!   In our suite the first bottle was free, but the second was £50.00. The only disappointment in the entire edifice was the underwater restaurant, the Al Manhara (Arabic for The Oyster).  Don’t’ get me wrong: standards of food and service were excellent, but the “submarine ride” they advertise to get there is just a bit of average Disney magic.

The staff were a pleasure to talk to and really couldn’t do enough for you.   I definitely want to go back again!  Even If you have been on Concorde, stayed at the Plaza in New York and sailed on the QE2, you will still marvel at the Burj al Arab!