Week in Dubai in April - any smaller hotel recommendations?

[artylady14]

My husband and I want to book a week in Dubai in April. We dont like big hotels and I know Dubai seems to have a lot of them. Does anyone have a recommendation for a smaller, more peaceful hotel on a lovely beachfront with good food. We want to go half board and pay around £2000 to £2500 for both of us in total. Thanks for any help. I dont know where to start!

Bump!

My initial thought was, do Dubai do boutique style small hotels? I have never seen one. They tend to be large with lots of beachfront. Some of the hotels might have smaller 'club' areas.

have you looked at apartments, shared pools etc. try tripadvisor

The Residence at The Royal Mirage has only 48 rooms. It's a great hotel.

Mr and mrs smith will have some suitable recommendations
I'd poss go for Oman?

Thank you for your advice. I did look at tripadvisor and they had a list of boutique hotels including the Atlantis and other huge ones! I will look up the Residence and Mr & Mrs Smith. Thank you all.

Wow, the Residence is nearly £5000 for a week for two people! Not quite my budget.

Oops. Didn't realise it was that bad!! Try the other parts of the Royal Mirage! I just think Dubai isn't known for its small boutique hotels and if they do exist, they won't be beachfront. There are much smaller hotels on some of the smaller Caribbean Islands. April rates should be a bit less to but flights might be a problem.

BA have really good deals to Antigua in April. Much nicer than Dubai in my opinion. There are some smaller properties available, eg Sugar Reef Club.

Sorry, that should be Sugar Ridge ....

My last holiday was in Antigua so might be a bit too soon to go back - sounds spoilt but not - I got married there and we hadnt been away in years!. Antigua is lovely but trying to find somewhere hot in April. Dubai is not beautiful (I think, dont know) but has the heat we are looking for.

Try looking for beachfront hotels in Sharjah or Ajman (I'd prefer Sharjah). They are about 30min to an hour away from Dubai traffic-wise (depends on time of day) and if you're only really going for sunshine then they will be perfect. Also, much cheaper.

Come to think of it, Sharjah is a dry Emirate and Ajman permits alcohol (I think), so you may prefer Ajman!

We went on a family holiday to Dubai when our children were 11 and 9. Frankly, I was bored. We did stay at the Royal Mirage and it has a fab pool and lovely restaurants but that is the holiday! Dubai has little else to do besides shop and go into the desert in a 4 wheel drive! It is very built up or desert! The beach was not that wonderful and not like the Caribbean! We obviously think alike regarding Antigua. What about Mexico or Morocco? I have just seen the Six Senses Zighy Bay Oman. Looks like fun, but does have a children's club! Avoid school holidays? You might get something in budget in Sri Lanka. Cape Weligama looks lovely but perhaps a bit more than you want to spend. Trailfinders is also advertising a good deal at the Westin Turtle Bay in Mauritius. It might be a bit big though but it is in budget!

It's not beachfront, it's next to Dubai Creek, but the Park Hyatt Dubai is gorgeous. It's not quite 'boutique' but it's understated, fabulous rooms, and it's so peaceful. Lovely restaurants where you can sit overlooking the creek. The beaches are a taxi ride away but it's very near the airport and not too far from the gold souk. You can also board a dhow quite near and cross the creek itself. The service is impeccable too.
We did go and look round some of the flashier hotels one afternoon and it felt like we'd gone to Blackpool for the day.

Try Vida or Manzil in the downtown area. Beach is a short cab ride away but it's on the boulevard, near burj khalifa, lots of outdoor cafes and shisha places and the Vida in particular has an amazing French restaurant. Both been recently refurbished too.

Thank you all. I am now thinking maybe not bother with Dubai as its not peaceful if its on the beach. I will look at all these other places too.