The best boutique hotels and resorts in Dubai

Dubai is better known for its record-breaking luxury hotels and floor-to-ceiling aquarium restaurants than its boutique stays. These include one of the world’s tallest hotels in the Burj Khalifa, and the ultra-luxurious Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, where private butlers accompany each duplex suite. Address Beach Resort has the world’s highest infinity pool, closely followed by The St. Regis Dubai, while the gargantuan Atlantis hotel is famed for its family-friendly amenities and kids clubs, with an enormous water park and private beach.

Away from razzmatazz, however, you’ll find smaller luxury hotels and authentic stays with a difference, many of which support local artists and have laudable sustainability credentials. Ennismore has also recently expanded into the Middle East with new openings from Delano, SO/ Hotels and Mama Shelter, which offer a cool alternative to the city’s flashier residences.

Discover the best boutique hotels and resorts in Dubai and further afield for those seeking a different kind of thrill.

The best hotels in Dubai

XVA Hotel

Best for: Creative souls
Address: Al Fahidi Street, Bur Dubai, Al Fahidi Neighbourhood (formerly Bastakiya), Dubai
Price: 556 AED / 150 USD per night, room only

Accessible only by foot through a maze of shaded alleyways in the heart of Dubai’s historic Al Fahidi neighbourhood, XVA Art Hotel is a rare gem. Part art gallery, part one-story hotel, the quaint 15-room boutique stay was the former home of the Seddiqi family (Dubai’s Rolex dealers), until hotelier Mona Hauser took over at the turn of the millennium. She kept the charming wind towers, Arabesque architecture and dark wood interiors and filled the space with contemporary artwork, creating one of the city’s most soulful stays. Each cosy room has been designed by a handful of regional guest designers including S*uce boutique owner Zayan Ghandour, who hung hers with Warhol-esque prints of Mentos and Fanta. Dine in the quaint courtyard restaurant where an ever-changing vegetarian Arabian menu draws on seasonal ingredients, or sip a lemon and mint mocktail alongside the arty crowd that regularly hangs out here. It’s perfect for anyone that wants to skip the skyscraper scene and experience a quieter side of Dubai.

Hotel Indigo Dubai Downtown

Best for: Art aficionados, lively social spaces
Address: Marasi Drive, Business Bay, Dubai
Price: 410 AED / 112 USD per night, room only

Anchored between Dubai Design District and The Dubai Mall, Hotel Indigo Downtown marries traditional Arabic interiors with modern details. The hotel teamed up with nearby institutions the Alserkal Cultural Foundation, Tashkeel and XVA Gallery to curate its art collection, which comprises more than 200 works (all available to buy) from local artists. In the rooms, find Mashrabiya-style wooden wall panels, colourful surrealist paintings, mother-of-pearl adorned bathrooms (a nod to the city’s origins in pearl farming), and rugs made by Afghani artisans as part of a collaboration with the Fatima Bint Mohamed Bin Zayed Initiative. Challenge the mixologist to shake you up something unique at Off The Wall, a relaxed drinking hole with vibrant wall murals. The hotel’s restaurant, Open Sesame, serves a diverse menu of Emirati, Levantine and Anatolian fare including mezze platters and mixed grills. If you don’t end up basing yourself here, you can book an art tour of the hotel for 50 AED (14 USD).

25hours Hotel Dubai One Central

Best for: Party people with euro cool
Address: Trade Center Street, Sheikh Zayed Road, Trade Centre, Trade Centre 2, Dubai
Price: 109 GBP / 498 AED per night, room only

25Hours hotels are known for being playful pads for party people, and the Dubai property (the first outside of Europe) is no exception. The kitsch and inclusive space has changed the face of Dubai’s hotel scene, drawing a youthful, eclectic crowd looking to let loose. The lobby sets the tone, with a hand-painted ceiling by Dominik Bulka and a book-filled sculptural centrepiece, topped by a giant globe. More than 6,000 antiques are dotted through the hotel, including retro typewriters, vintage trunks and polaroid cameras. In the rooms, open showers and colourful living areas are a nod to the region’s traditional majlis (a social place where communities gather). The mixed-gender sauna and cheeky slogans (“come to bed with me”) were unheard of in Dubai before 25Hours landed. Expect to find a crowd of thirty-something creatives sipping coffee in the multiple co-working spaces or the alfresco courtyard (home to one of the best coffee shops in Dubai). The hotel’s Monkey Bar is one of the city’s hot spots thanks to its impressive views of the Museum of the Future, and its Latin-American-inspired menu.

One&Only The Palm

Best for: A boutique-style luxury resort
Address: West Crescent, Palm Jumeirah, Dubai
Price: 5,666 AED / 1,543 USD, all-inclusive

One&Only The Palm, at the end of The Palm’s West Crescent, is one of the city’s most luxurious stays, and also its greenest. This calm oasis features verdant gardens, cascading fountains and a private stretch of golden sand. The Andalusian-styled property has only 90 rooms, which is small by Dubai standards. Rooms are generously sized, with king-size beds, rain showers, free-standing marble bathtubs and Acqua di Parma amenities, while all suites have private pools. The shared pools have sprawling day beds and staff will regularly polish your lenses and top you up with fruit popsicles. If you can muster up the energy to pull yourself out of a horizontal state, the two-Michelin star restaurant Stay by Yannick Alléno serves local ingredients infused with excellent French flair and attracts serious foodies from all over the globe.

Delano Dubai

Best for: Miami-cool interiors; Private beach
Address: Bluewaters, Bluewaters Island, Dubai
Price: From 3,000 AED; 653 GBP

Ian Schrager of Studio 54 fame partnered with Philippe Starck on the design of the Delano Miami in 1995, which became an instant byword for South Beach cool. Now part of the Ennismore stable, Delano debuted in Dubai in 2024, transplanting the hotel’s signature all-white bedrooms and distinctive sunken furniture to the sandy shores of Bluewaters Dubai. Guests can enjoy a serene stretch of private beach or take a dip in the pool (which is also open to non-guests for a fee). There are 251 rooms and suites with sweeping sea views, balconies and Byredo bath products. Wave down the Bellini trolley in Tutto Passa, the hotel’s Italian restaurant, or head to the atmospheric Rose Bar, which also draws influence from its Miami counterpart.

Four Seasons Dubai International Financial Centre

Best for: Location; rooftop swimming
Address: Gate Village, Building 3 – Building 9, Trade Centre, Dubai
Price: 1,674 AED / 456 USD per night, room only 

Four Seasons DIFC has 106 rooms, which is considered boutique by Dubai standards. Spacious digs are smartly furnished in warm caramel tones, with floor-to-ceiling views of the Burj Khalifa or Zabeel Palace gardens. Take a dip in the rooftop pool followed by lunch on the terrace, and grab a drink in the evening at one of the buzzing DIFC bars. The Pearl Spa (which is also available at Jumeirah Beach and Four Seasons Abu Dhabi) is often ranked as one of the world’s best. Treatments, including a range of jet lag-busting massages, employ traditional Arabic ingredients such as camel milk and oud.

SO/ Uptown Dubai

Best for: Eclectic art; 
Address: Uptown Tower, Uptown, Dubai
Price: 105 GBP / 506.42 AED per night, room only 

S/O’s first Dubai address sits high inside the striking 340m-high Uptown Tower in Dubai’s stylish new Uptown district. The hotel impresses from the off, with soaring columns covered with lush jungle flora and fauna, made using lenticular technology to give the appearance of birds in flight. Surrealist artwork continues throughout the hotel, including a Salvador Dalí-inspired wall clock and subverted stone statues. Rooms are furnished with statement headboards and gold-flecked textures, with floor-to-ceiling views of the heady Dubai skyline, Marina and Jumeirah Beach. On the seventh floor, a swimming pool features a swim-up bar and in true S/O style, a bevy of dining concepts include a cocktail bar, Asian restaurant and all-day brasserie. There’s a spa, fully-equipped gym and in-house movie theatre to play with, too.

Mama Shelter Dubai

Best for: Affordable rooms; remote workers
Address: Business Bay, Dubai
Price: From 483 AED; 131 USD

Another Ennismore brand that has recently made its Dubai debut is Mama Shelter. The French hotel group is known for its affordable rooms, playful style and open-plan social spaces, which are designed with remote workers in mind. When you clock off, head for a drink on the poolside terrace or head to the lively Mama Restaurant for a menu of international cuisine and views of Business Bay, often with live DJs.

The best hotels and resorts near Dubai

Magic Camps Dubai

Best for: Stargazing, glamping
Address: Magic Camps Dubai, Silver Tower-2704, Business Bay, Dubai
Price: 9,116 AED / 2,480 USD per night

Escape the dizzying city lights by heading into the Sharjah desert where a luxury private camp emerges from untouched dunes. Comfort and camping coalesce, with each of the six tents hosting comfy beds with cool cotton sheets and Berber rugs. Sand board down the slopes, quad bike over the dunes and ride camels by day, and sip cocktails by candlelight at night. Guests can dine outside their tent with a private chef, or head to the communal majlis (social spaces) decorated with hanging lanterns and plush cushions to mingle with the other happy campers. Tuck into an Arabian feast of grilled meats and salads in the evenings, while a continental breakfast of cheeses, labneh and freshly-baked bread accompanies the sunrise. Magic Camps Dubai closes during summer between 1 May and 31 August, as its remote desert location and environmentally-friendly ethos means there is no air conditioning to mitigate the city’s baking climes.

Mysk Al Faya Retreat

Best for: Urbanites seeking an off-grid escape
Address: Al Batayeh, Al Faya Road Al Modam Road, Sharjah
Price: 4,383 AED / 1,193 USD per night, room only

The stark brutalist edifice of Musk Al Faya masks a pioneering alternative to the high-rise chains that dominate the Emirates shoreline. Nestled in the UNESCO-protected Mleiha region an hour’s drive east of Dubai, the stone and steel building was repurposed from an abandoned 1960s structure and is now a five-room property available to hire exclusively. Bedrooms are cosy and comfortable, with a skylight for stargazing at night. The hotel is encased in concrete and steel butterfly shutters that open up to expose the surrounding sands and barren mountains. The spa boasts a Himalayan salt therapy room, herbal sauna, and immersive water therapy room, while a minimalist saltwater pool awaits outside. There’s a small restaurant with a modern menu of crowd-pleasers, including drip coffee, avocado toast and burgers. For dinner, you can opt for a blazing BBQ of grilled meats and seafood with all the trimmings courtesy of the resort’s culinary crew. They’ll also set up a screen for you to watch a movie if you can pull your gaze away from the desert sky.

Al Maha, a Luxury Collection Desert Resort & Spa

Best for: Isolated luxury
Address: Al Ain/Dubai Road, Dubai
Price: 8,753 AED / 2,383 USD per night

A 45-minute drive from Dubai, hidden away amid the desert landscape, Al Maha Resort is an environmentally friendly oasis like no other. It is the only property to sit on the sprawling 200 kilometres of sand that makes up the protected Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve. There are 42 luxurious tented villa suites, each with its own private infinity pool with expansive desert views, and the odd gazelle wandering past. The word ‘tent’ is used loosely here: under canvas roofs, you’ll find Arabian antiques, super-king-size beds, huge soaking tubs in marble bathrooms, and Bulgari amenities. Sustainable choices include LED lighting, solar panels and a purifying water system. Try Arabian-inspired treatments in the spa, followed by an afternoon tea in the terrace bar. All-day restaurant Al Diwaan serves five-star fare (try the Bedouin platter with mahi-mahi fish, grilled jumbo prawns, rice and grilled vegetables) with a casual dress code, or staff can deliver your order to your room. It’s one of Dubai’s more expensive stays, but the generous all-inclusive system – which includes complimentary horseback wildlife tours, nature drives and champagne sunset camel rides – make it worth the splurge.

Bab Al Shams Desert Resort

Best for: An Arabian Nights experience
Address: Al Qudra Road (opposite Endurance City), Dubai
Price: 1,470 AED / 400 USD per night, room only

Bab Al Shams opened in 2004 but had a do-over in 2023, once again making it one of the best hotels in the UAE for those looking to get away from it all. Just a 50-minute drive from Dubai, the local institution has retained its beloved Arabic architecture, with desert-facing infinity pools and fort-like walls. Inside, Berber rugs and a muted, earthy palette provide a contemporary feel, while arched windows frame the desert view beyond. Spacious rooms have private courtyards shaded with leafy palm trees, while suites boast beguiling views of seemingly endless sand dunes. There are three pools and five new restaurants, complete with an all-singing, horse-galloping, belly-dancing Al Hadheerah nightly dinner show. This, plus a menu of flame-grilled seafood and regional delicacies like tender lamb ouzi and sticky date pudding served beneath the stars, is worth the drive alone. The crowd is a mix of couples, families and local repeat guests, all wanting to wind down and relax.