My original plan in Dubai was to chillax in Hilton Palm Jumeirah for five nights (for Hilton’s 5th night free benefit), but I changed my mind and moved to ME Dubai for the first two nights. I do however still want a beach holiday and laid my eyes on the Jumeirah Beach. In the end I booked the new W Mina Seyahi for the next three days.
The W is located in the Mina Seyahi resort, a complex of three Marriott hotels: W, Le Meridien and Westin, with a lot of shared facilities. The location is ideal: in proximity to the harbour and Palm Jumeirah island and the resort has its own private beach. It’s good for both driving and walking, but beware of the one-way road in front and it could take a long time to get out in rush hour.
The (fake) banyan tree outside the building is very festive.
I arrived at 2pm and was told, well, that the room wouldn’t be ready until 4.30pm. As a goodwill gesture they allowed me to use the club lounge at Le Meridien or Westin whilst waiting, and I picked the closer Le Meridien.
View is nice and the afternoon tea spread looks pretty decent. Note that the W doesn’t have a club lounge, which is a disadvantage compared to the other two.
After a long wait my room is finally ready after 4pm. I used my expiring suite night upgrade awards for the stay which cleared into a Fantastic Suite, but then it was downgraded to a Marvellous Suite near my arrival. From discussions on Flyertalk it seems to happen quite often at this hotel, but the two suites are identical in size and layout – floor is the only difference, so I don’t have much to complain.
The lobby is small but absolutely stunning. It’s a masterpiece blending W’s fun and fashion branding with some local Arabic elements perfectly.
There’s no window on the guest room floors, so it’s pretty dark and tranquil anytime during the day.
My suite is on floor 10 with an auspicious room number 1000. Here’s the living room:
The living room has a small balcony and bathroom:
And here’s the bedroom facing the sea:
The suite has a very spectacular design that shouts out the W character, just like the hotel lobby. You can count on the bathroom featuring a tub with a view 🙂
Speaking of view, you have the harbour on your left, and the beach and Palm on your right. All rooms and suites of W are sea view rooms, but from what I observe half of them face the harbour direction so view is limited.
Vertically you can see the infinite pool underneath.
According to the feedbacks I had seen on Flyertalk, there were many complaints about the construction work by the beach / harbour. I could see almost nothing though so that might have been either completed or paused.
Noise however is a big issue, as the bar music doesn’t stop until 1am or even later at night. Earbuds are already by your bedside table to help…
They have considerately prepared both slippers and flip-flops and they have the durable looking. I started to worry that I might not have enough space in my luggage but then there is a pretty nice tote bag too!
Not sure if the hotel’s really busy or what but turndown service only showed up on my third night. My welcome plate of fruits and cheese:
On Christmas day someone came knock on my door with a box of chocolate:
You get to pick a random welcome gift at check-in as well, and I got two free laundry items, which is handy. As W doesn’t have a club lounge, I also received a couple of vouchers for a drink and some snacks.
I exchanged them for a cocktail and a very tasty wagyu sushi set.
There’s a Spa on floor 30 and a restaurant that only opens in the evening on floor 31. I came up to take some photos.
Although 10+ floors higher, the view isn’t substantially better than from my suite.
And let’s have a tour of the resort. First up let me show you this map of Mina Seyahi:
Le Meridien:
Westin:
There are outdoor pools everywhere.
A lawn playground and water park for kids:
One thing that I forgot to mention: W used to be an adult-only hotel. Although it’s no longer the case, you rarely see kids inside W which is a bonus point for many solo and couple travellers. It’s a very different story at the its sister hotels – I almost felt like in a nursery whilst waiting in Le Meridien’s lounge!
Most outdoor facilities are shared by all three hotels, but there’s a private beach reserved for W guests only and it’s very peaceful.
The water is not as beautiful as the Mediterranean or Red Sea that I’ve been to recently, but still nice to swim in. 25 degrees is slightly on the cold end but I could cope.
If you want a heated experience, the infinite pool on the second floor (which is also for W guests only) is for you.
Breakfast hours are very friendly: the buffet is open until 11.30am and then you still have the a-la-carte option until 1pm. So you can basically have lunch if you are not an early riser.
The buffet:
The menu is pretty short though and I don’t remember much of my eggs benedict.
My experiences with the staff are mixed – some are very warm and address me with my first name right away every time we see each other; the others however do not greet or turn their head at all when I walk past. Those things aside, I love W Dubai Mina Seyahi’s location, interior and beach, and would definitely recommend it.
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