Bonnington Jumeirah Lakes Towers Dubai
Perfectly located, enjoy morning runs along Jumeirah Lakes Towers Dubai, United Arab Emirates
I chose to stay in Jumeirah Lakes Towers due to its location and a few other factors. I wanted a place where I can go running in the morning, not too touristy, walking distance to Dubai Marina and the RTA Train system, and I would say that this hotel fits that description.
Tip:
In the UAE, there are dry hotels and non-dry hotels. If you are one that will indulge in a libation such as wine, beer or spirits, make sure to book a hotel that is not a dry hotel. I recommend going directly to the hotel website to confirm. Some booking sites do a great job in reflecting this, some don't. Don't even think for a second of bringing alcohol to a dry hotel. If caught, this can have serious implications. Bonnington Hotel is a non-dry hotel, where one can have a libation or even pick up their favorite spirit, beer or wine from duty-free upon arrival and bring to their hotel room.
Ok, back to the review. Upon arrival, my check-in process was quick. I even got an upgrade to a larger room! The hotel has three restaurants, McGettigan’s Irish Pub, Healy’s Bar & Terrace and The Cavendish. All three places were great! I would highly recommend that you add the breakfast, lunch or dinner option to your hotel stay. I'm a pretty picky eater, and this place offers variety. Whether you're a vegetarian, vegan, meat lover or gluten-free, there are tons of options. I didn't add this option to my booking at first, because I didn't know what to expect, but after day two, I opted for the daily breakfast from Cavendish (definitely worth it). So now I’m telling you that you will not be disappointed by adding this to your booking reservations.
Now on to the hotel amenities. The hotel has a full salon on the 11th floor called Le Michel Salon. Yes, I did pay a visit to the salon to see if it was worth it. I decided to get a full shellac manicure, and the lady that did my nails did a fantastic job! I also saw some of the hairstyles coming out of the salon, and they looked great! If you run out of time in your home country before flying to Dubai, which is what happened to me, don't sweat it! This place can have you beauty ready in less than a few hours. I ran out of time in Seattle to get my nails done, and I’m so glad this place was there! They do offer same day appointments, so if you find your self in need of hair or nail care, I highly recommend them. They are sweet, and the quality of work is on point!
Ugh, the gym! Ok, so you want to stay active and on top of your daily health. This gym has everything that you would need (treadmill, weights, elliptical, etc.), beautiful city view, apples (yes, they were yummy, I ate one), and complimentary water. In the women's changing room, there is a steam room, a sauna room (if you opt for the executive workout) and private rooms to change.
Next, the pool is lovely! They do have a lifeguard on duty, and they even offer swim lessons (I took some LOL, I have a goal for my birthday of 2018, to know how to swim). There is also an outside bar if you want a libation, coffee, tea or mocktail. There is also a hot tub, which was quite cozy. The pool does have a pretty city view, and there are lounge chairs with towel service available. So even if you don’t want to swim, but lay in the sun, you have this option. There is also a small gift shop inside of the hotel where you can find all sorts of cute stuff and across the street from the hotel is a little supermarket.
Next, transportation! The hotel is walking distance to Jumeirah Lake Towers train station (only a five-minute walk). I took the train daily to get me around different parts of town such as Media City, Business Bay, and Mall of Emirates. I loved this! The walk is beautiful, and I used the train during different parts of the day, and everything worked out lovely. Whenever you need to take a Taxi or a Car for Hire, just step outside because you’ll see them lined up. If there happens not to be one, the hotel will call one for you. The round train trip from Jumeirah Lake Towers is 14 dirhams, RTA Taxi (depending on where you go) for example, to Dubai Marina will run you about 20 dirhams, and Car for Hire cost more than the RTA Taxi. The Car for Hire are usually luxury cars, and they do run on a meter. So, whatever your budget is, you have options.
Tip:
Walk (only during cooler months)-it's free
Train (it's affordable, clean, can get you anywhere in Dubai pretty quickly, sometimes even faster than a car)
RTA Taxi (price ranges are comparable to London, Seattle, New York, Los Angeles. They are owned and operated by the government. I never had an issue with fare)
Car for Hire (cost the most, I used them a few times, and I never had an issue)
During my trip; I broke transportation into two parts. In the morning I walked and used the train and then in the evening I used RTA Taxi or Car for Hire. Dubai also has women RTA Taxi drivers (their cars are pink in color) and women Car for Hire. Just let the hotel or airport know if you prefer this option, and they will call one for you. I used all these types of transportation, and they were great!
I highly recommend this hotel, and I would stay here again. I was a solo female traveler, and this place felt completely safe! Whether you’re traveling alone, on business, with children and family, this hotel will accommodate you. They have single rooms all the way to apartment style rooms (which have full kitchen and washer/dryer machine). The staff & service is excellent; the hotel is spotless, daily shuttle service to Jumeirah Beach, and the location is close to all of the nearest attractions.
Tip:
If you're on the hunt for a great hotel deal, I always recommend comparing all booking sites such as Booking.com, Expedia, Kayak, Agoda, TripAdvisor, etc. Between all of them and the hotel, one of them will give you the best deal. In my case, the best offer was through Agoda.com (I love this site because they are very transparent with all fees related to the country). The UAE has two different types of taxes added to the daily rate, city tax 10% obtained at the time of booking and service charge 10% not included in the price and is collected by the property). In my case, I booked and paid for daily rate plus city tax 10% before arrival, and upon arrival, I paid the 10% service charge to the hotel. Also, some hotels do require a deposit upon arrival. At this hotel, it was 1000 dirhams and the hotel refunded the full amount upon my departure.
Jumeirah Lakes Towers Hotel and Apartments Dubai UAE
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