The Desert Diva Usually when in Dubai I stay with some of my friends; it’s always a nice relaxing evening with a nice meal and a bottle of grape beverage. BUT last week when an overnight was required there I knew I would have to sit writing all evening, so rather than abuse my friends’ hospitality (I would have had very little time for anything but to ask for their wifi password before shutting myself in my room for the rest of the evening) , I searched for a very cheap hotel with free wifi on booking.com, near to the gold souq in Deira, since that would be my first port of call the next day.
I consider myself lucky that I chose the Sheraton at Deira – although an old hotel, it has been recently renovated and is a very pleasant place to stay. I was upgraded to a suite which comprised a large lounge/diner, one bedroom with bathroom and dressing room. Some flights taking off from Dubai airport do fly over the hotel but it has double glazing and I did not find the noise intrusive.
Once ensconced in my room I was there for the night and ordered off the room service menu. A wide range of foods, from soups and snacks right through to steaks are on offer so I chose the butter chicken which was good, followed on by one of my favourite deserts, creme brulee. Truthfully, all deserts are my favourite!
The bed was massive and extremely comfortable – not too hard, not too soft and once I had finished working at midnight, I had a very good sleep.
Breakfast the next day was buffet, with a wide choice of cold cuts, fruits & cereals, as well as a dedicated egg/omelette station to complement the hot food options. The tables are quite close together which allowed me to strike up a conversation with a lovely Australian couple, on a stopover on their way home from visiting their son and his wife in Scotland. And yes of course I gave them some ideas of where to go and what to do to maximise their three days there!
What I liked most about the hotel was the friendly atmosphere with all the staff seemed dedicated to ensuring their guests had a comfortable stay. My fellow guests were from many different nationalities, some from the Gulf with the rest mainly from Europe, Asia and Australia.
For my stay in August I was charged 250AED++ (local tax and tourism tax coming to 20%)
My room service meal was 120AED.
Hotel Website here
