One & Only Royal Mirage - The Palace

Another amazing holiday at the One & Only Arabian Court. From the moment you arrive everything is taken of, nothing is too much trouble and any requests dealt with promptly and efficiently by the wonderful team of staff who strive endlessly to please you. The aromas, stunning decor, gorgeous bedrooms, beautiful gardens and grounds/pools, all add to the complete relaxation and 5 star 🌟 luxury that is the Arabian Court. For us - the best hotel in Dubai 🤩 Read less

If I could give the 'Residence and Spa Hotel' within the Royal Mirage group of One&Only Hotels in Dubai 6 stars I would. Why, well read on.... Firstly, despite the building work going on near by, The Residence and Spa is an oasis of calm. We were warmly greeted, despite the time being close to 1am in the morning, after our BA flight from LHR Quickly checked in, formalities dealt with and shown to a buggy to be driven to our Junior Suite, our home for the next 9 days. The room was just perfect, a lovely big bathroom, with an abundance of towels, toiletries, a big bath, as well as an equally big separate shower. The suite was beautifully furnished, not over the top with 'bling' like some Dubai hotels, just stylish with a huge bed, lounge area and best of all a terrace with views of the gardens, and out to the pool. Not that we found out about the view until the morning as we just wanted to get to sleep. The next morning we went for breakfast. As a guest of the Residence and Spa you are cosseted from the other two hotels either side. It offers seclusion, personal service as well was a relaxing, refined environment. This is where we first met Mohammed. He, along with the other members of the team such as Nisa and Crystal made us feel so very welcome. Breakfast is a combination of buffet style as well as choices from a menu. You could of course go 'off menu' as we and other guests did, making it feel like you were staying in someone's home, not a hotel. After breakfast it was time to relax by the pool. What a pool. Private, expansive with lots of beds, cabanas and the service. The best yet. Moses and Suvin were the perfect hosts. Nothing was too much trouble for us, as well as other guests. Beds were laid with towels, sunglasses cleaned, a cool box delivered daily, and sometimes replenished with cold drinks, cold towels and crisps. Fresh Fruit was offered as was a very much needed cooling spray experience. The pool area is kept spotless, and I must also say so were the toilet facilities, I regularly saw a team member cleaning them several times during the day. Akshay Seeranj You have a great team. We did not use the beach as we like the quietness of the pool but it looked equally as relaxing with cabanas spaced nicely apart, unlike other beaches. Within a short while we met our Host Syed. He was excellent. Quickly we made a connection using WhatsApp and from then on anything we wanted we just messaged him and he arranged it. Spa Treatments, Ice for our room, Laundry collection, the list goes on. One of the most attentive, courteous hosts we have had in a long time. When Syed was un available Sai stepped in with an equally excellent service. A great team. We tended to skip lunch, although we did on two occasions indulge in the complementary Afternoon Tea served inside at the Library as well as outside by the fountains. Here we were looked after by Akshay (apologies if the spelling is not correct) Again the service was efficient, professional, with a genuine willingness to make sure each guest had a memorable time. Given the fact he was the bar manager he stepping into the role of serving us with great ease. As it was my partners 69th (he will kill me for that) birthday on November 5th I had, prior to arrival arranged for cake and champagne to be delivered to our room at 4pm. On the morning when we arrived at breakfast a special table had been laid and Belinda, Mohamed, Nisa along with others all made a personal gesture to wish Peter a happy birthday. They even presented him with a cake and sang happy birthday. In fact on Peter's birthday everyone we met wished him a happy one. Moses at the pool gave us a complementary drink, Prisca delivered another cake along with a bottle of champagne and a card signed by members of the hotel. It made the day special. In the evening I had arranged, with the help of Prisca, for a car to take us to dinner at Stay, the 2* Michelin restaurant at the One&Only The Palm. Another amazing experience. Friends flew in from the UK as a surprise which made the celebrations special. Evin and Shah looked after us delivering a first class service throughout the meal. Thank you both for the happy memories. We very often would end the evening at the Jetty Bar. We might be in our late 60s but still know how to party and the Jetty Bar is the place to go. The vibe is pumping, as is the service from the whole team. We were impressed that on a subsequent evening one of the team came up to us and said he had the Monkey 47 Gin they had ran out of on a previous night...now that's impressive. We did witness a disagreement between two guest late one night, the staff as well as security handled it in a professional manner limiting the impact on the other guests. All credit must go to each of them. One other good think about the Jetty Bar is the Olives, they are the best on the whole resort.. We dined at some of the other restaurants. Firstly there was Tagine. We had been in conversation with Anass, the restaurant operational manager about our booking and he personally drove us to the restaurant, introduced us to the Head Chef, found us the perfect table, even suggested a menu, which was amazing by the way, all ensuring we had an memorable time, whilst being looked after by Othaame Habil (again apologies for misspelling your name). Another evening we dined at Tresind. We decided on the Degustation Menu. What an experience, not only for the tastebuds by the eyes and senses. Again, excellent service from Sachin as well as everyone who looked after us. We did dine at Eauzone but felt out of all the restaurants for us, this one lacked a bit of panache. The food was delicious, service was friendly, but we did not come away feeling like we had had an 'experience' like the other two. Our favourite was the Dining Room, within the Residence and Spa. It felt like an oasis of calm. The service was always just the right balance, no rushing with staggered courses, an excellent wine list. Walid was extreemly friendly and took time to chat with us as did most of the team. Michael the Head Sommelier was both knowledgable and entertaining. We joined him for a wine tasting at which he expanded our knowledge of wines. I realise I have mentioned some of the team specifically, as we interacted with them on a regular basis. However, EVERYONE we met was professional, friendly and welcoming. Housekeeping does an amazing job behind the scenes. Every time we returned to our suite from a day by the pool or an evening out the suite was immaculate with lots of little extra touches. I arranged for a 4 hr spa experience for Peter on his birthday. He was pampered from head to toe, looked after by Anoob and Natasha who, on departure presented him with a bouquet of flowers for his birthday. We hope one day to return and once again feel part for the One&Only Residence and Spa family. As mentioned, there is construction work going on quite close to the hotel, the noise does drift over to the pool area and can be heard from your terrace however, we did not find it intrusive. Read less