- Trip Report: To Abu Dhabi For An Etihad Inaugural
- Review: US Airways Club Tampa
- Review: American Airlines Premium Lounge Miami Airport
- Review: Airberlin Business Class A330 Miami To Dusseldorf
- Review: Airberlin Lounge Dusseldorf Airport
- Review: Etihad Airways Business Class A330 Dusseldorf To Abu Dhabi
- Review: Hyatt Capital Gate Abu Dhabi
- Review: St. Regis Abu Dhabi
- Review: Etihad Airways First Class Lounge Abu Dhabi Airport
- Abu Dhabi Airport United States Immigration Pre-Clearance
- Review: Etihad Airways First Class A340-500 Abu Dhabi to Los Angeles
During my last visit to Abu Dhabi I stayed at the St. Regis Saadiyat Island Abu Dhabi, which is also a fairly new development.
This time around I decided to stay at the St. Regis Abu Dhabi, which just opened late last year. Interestingly Abu Dhabi is now the first city in the world to have two St. Regis hotels, which I guess says a lot about the growth they expect to see in the city.
So for my last three nights in Abu Dhabi I decided to book the St. Regis Abu Dhabi through American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts.
The hotel was inexpensive to begin with, but American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts was offering a third night free promotion, which made it an even better deal.
The Fine Hotels & Resorts rate for the hotel was $185 per night, not factoring in the third night free. Factoring in the third night free, that was like paying $120+ per night, which is by far the cheapest rate I’ve ever paid for a St. Regis.
In addition to the great rate, the benefits for booking through Fine Hotels & Resorts included the following:
- Room upgrade upon arrival, when available
- Daily full breakfast for two
- Complimentary massage for up to two people, once during your stay
- Noon early check-in, upon availability
- 4:00 pm guaranteed late check-out
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Fine Hotels & Resorts benefits
I took a taxi from the Hyatt Capital Gate to the St. Regis, which took about 20 minutes. The St. Regis is located inside the Nation Towers, which are located on the South end of the Corniche.
The buildings themselves are somewhat isolated in that it’s not easy to walk to/from them, but it’s an easy 5-10 minute taxi ride to just about anywhere in Abu Dhabi.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi exterior
Upon pulling up to the St. Regis I was welcomed by the bellman and escorted into the lobby.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi entrance
The lobby sure feels grand, with a bit of a modern “old world” feel, if that makes any sense.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi lobby
To the left of the entrance is a large seating area, and then just next to the that is the reception area.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi lobby
St. Regis Abu Dhabi lobby
St. Regis Abu Dhabi lobby
The reception area is in a separate room, and as is the norm for many St. Regis properties, they have individual desks with chairs, so you’re invited to sit down during check-in formalities.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi reception
I ran into some hiccups during check-in, which I outlined in the post entitled “Starwood Platinum Suite Upgrades: Why Does It Always Have To Be A Fight?”
I won’t rehash all that here, so check out the original post for more details. Basically I was told:
- American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts stays don’t qualify for Platinum benefits
- I was told there were no suite upgrades available, even though there were many suites still for sale
Like I said, check out the previous post for all the details. There’s also some interesting discussion in the comments section, as clearly I’m not the only person that sometimes has these issues with Starwood stays.
Eventually I was assigned a junior suite on the 49th floor. For what it’s worth, the hotel takes up the 33rd through 49th floors of the building, with offices located below that.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi elevators
The hallways were beautifully appointed, I thought.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi hallway
I was assigned junior suite 4907.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi floorplan
Once inside the junior suite, the bathroom and bedroom were to the right, while the living room was directly forward. On one hand I was impressed that the junior suite had two separate rooms, as I usually think of a junior suite as just being one large room with a sitting area.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite entrance
To the right was the bedroom, which was compact, with a king bed and chaise at the bottom of it.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite bedroom
The bed faced a flat screen TV and a vanity mirror and seat.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite bedroom
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite bedroom
Then there was the living room, which featured a loveseat and coffee table.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite living room
That faced a flat screen TV, and next to it was a desk.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite living room
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite living room
Then next to the couch was a table which housed the minibar.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite minibar
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite desk
The living room was awkwardly designed. Behind the loveseat was a massive empty space, which was just “blocked off” by the rest of the couch.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite living room wasted space
Ultimately it’s no big deal, but I don’t get how a brand new St. Regis can be so poorly furnished. While a junior suite with two separate rooms is nice in theory, in this case they were both so small and awkward that I think I would’ve preferred a deluxe room.
The bathroom was quite nice, with double sinks, a walk-in shower, bathtub, and partitioned off toilet and bidet. I do love bathrooms with some natural light, which this one didn’t have. But given the design of the room I totally get that.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite bathroom
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite bathtub
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite bathroom
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite toilet and bidet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite shower
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite shower
The toiletries were Remede branded. I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with Remede. Remede toiletries all remind me of toothpaste since they have a substantial “kick” to them.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite Remede toiletries
The room boasted views of the flatter part of Abu Dhabi.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Junior Suite view
10 minutes after I got to the room (right as I finished taking pictures, conveniently), the front office manager called me to let me know that a St. Regis Suite “suddenly opened up,” and asked if I wanted to switch (again, see the previous post for details on that).
The St. Regis Suite was on the 40th floor, room 4001.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi floorplan
The suite was past double doors, presumably so that it could be converted into a two bedroom suite, by simply closing the front door.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite entrance
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite entrance
This suite was simply gorgeous, with a large foyer.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite entrance
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite entrance
To the right of it was a dining area with a table and four chairs.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite dining area
And then there was an awesome living room with a couch, lounge chair, and a couple of ottomans.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite living room
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite living room
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite living room
Then on the other side of the room was a flat screen TV and desk.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite living room
I should note that there were no outlets easily accessible from the desk. The closest outlet was behind the curtains, so I had to open the curtains or lift them up in order to plug in my laptop.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite living room
The living room boasted views of Marina Village on one side, and downtown Abu Dhabi on the other side — awesome views, much better than from the junior suite!
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite view
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite view
Off the dining area was a guest bathroom, with a toilet and sink.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite guest bathroom
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite guest bathroom
Then off the living room was the bedroom, which was also gorgeously appointed, with a king size bed, and two chaises.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite bedroom
It also faced a flat screen TV.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite bedroom
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite bedroom
From the bedroom, a long hallway led to a large closet and the bathroom.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite hallway to bathroom
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite closet
The bathroom featured double sinks (one on each side), a soaking tub, a walk-in shower, and a partitioned off toilet and bidet.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite bathroom
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite bathroom
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite bathtub
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite toilet and bidet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Suite shower
I thought the St. Regis Suite was much nicer, not just in absolute terms (because of course a suite will be nicer than a junior suite), but in terms of expectations I have for each room category.
I should also mention that quite possibly my favorite feature of St. Regis hotels is the unlimited coffee/tea through the St. Regis Butler Service. This hotel even extended the benefit to specialty coffee drinks, which in my experience most St. Regis properties don’t do.
They didn’t have to know I was staying in the room alone, however. 😉
St. Regis Abu Dhabi complimentary tea/cappuccino
For a city hotel, the most impressive part of the property has to be the public facilities. The gym, Remede spa, pool, and beach club entrance are all located on the third floor.
The gym is large — it’s even spread across multiple rooms — and has great equipment.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi gym
St. Regis Abu Dhabi gym
St. Regis Abu Dhabi gym
St. Regis Abu Dhabi gym
Then across from that is the Remede Spa, where I got my complimentary 50 minute massage. The whole experience was impressive.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa entrance
I was offered a hot towel, iced tea, and some sort of fruity cookie thing or something or another to start.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa welcome
I then used the spa facilities, which included a hot tub, steam room, and sauna.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa steam room
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa hot tub
The relaxation room was nice as well, with heated seats and a few snacks (am I the only one that goes to spas to eat, and the treatment is just icing on the cake?). 😉
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa relaxation room
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa relaxation room
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa relaxation room
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa relaxation room
Their tea selection was quite progressive for the UAE. I had a cup of “Skinny Bitch Herbal Infusion.” I don’t think it worked… 🙁
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa relaxation room
But quite possibly the best part of the spa was the fuzzy slippers. Like, they should be a requirement at every spa, in my opinion.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa slippers
Oh, and the treatment itself was fantastic as well. My masseuse was Balinese, so was not only incredibly good with massage, but also exceedingly friendly.
I thought it was a nice touch that at night when I returned to my room there was a bag of lavender and a thank you note from the spa director. A thank you for taking a complimentary treatment? Anytime. 😉
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Remede Spa thank you
Then just outside the spa on the third floor is the hotel’s pool, which is on the small side.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi pool deck
What I didn’t realize till the second day is that the truly awesome facilities are located at the hotel’s beach club.
It can be accessed from the third floor, and involves taking the underground tunnel across the street. I think it’s quite possibly the classiest underground tunnel I’ve ever been in, perhaps along with the one at the Park Hyatt Buenos Aires.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi hallway to beach club
At the beach club on the other side is yet another gym, though it was a bit smaller than the main one.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi beach club gym
The main pool is located at the beach club, and it’s gorgeous.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi pool
St. Regis Abu Dhabi pool
There’s even a hot tub, which you can use to cool down in the UAE in summer. 😉
St. Regis Abu Dhabi pool
St. Regis Abu Dhabi pool
Immediately behind the pool is the beach. It’s man made and not going to impress someone that’s really into beaches, but I was impressed for a city business hotel.
Not surprisingly, the beach was almost completely empty, given the temperatures.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi beach
St. Regis Abu Dhabi beach
St. Regis Abu Dhabi beach
So I wasn’t blown away by the service at the hotel on the whole, though I have to give a huge shout out to Meshan, who works at the pool.
When I was walking towards the beach club (from the hotel) he noticed I was kind of lost, and offered to show me around. He spent probably 20 minutes showing me every feature of the beach club, from the gym to the pool to the beach.
And he was exceedingly friendly and sincere. He was Sri Lankan, and while I’ve connected in Sri Lanka many times, I still haven’t been. But I’ve found Sri Lankans to consistently be friendly in my travels, so I really need to move it up on my list of places to visit. In luxury hotels you have service that’s polished because it has to be, and then you have people that are genuinely helpful and friendly, and Meshan fit in the latter category.
In terms of the hotel’s dining outlets, there was Rhodes 44, where breakfast is served daily from 6:30AM till 11AM. It’s located just off the lobby.
The restaurant itself is gorgeous, and I was always there between 6:30AM and 7AM right as it opened, and had the restaurant more or less to myself.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant
The buffet was good, though not as over-the-top as at the St. Regis Saadiyat Island Abu Dhabi. I appreciated the variety of cuisine they had. They had well over a dozen hot dishes, including a few Indian ones, where I concentrated my eating efforts.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
St. Regis Abu Dhabi Rhodes Restaurant buffet
I was on a really screwed up time schedule while in Abu Dhabi, so one night I ended up going to the St. Regis Bar for drinks/dinner (I always did lunch outside the hotel, but then stupidly napped in the afternoons, which screwed me up for the evenings).
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Bar
The ambiance is nice and they have live music (which sounded a lot more like amateur karaoke night, but that’s neither here nor there).
And I’m a sucker for any place that gives you good bar snacks with the purchase of a gin & tonic.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Bar snacks
I also had the chicken and shrimp satay, which was surprisingly good for a bar.
St. Regis Abu Dhabi St. Regis Bar snacks
The only other thing I’d note about the hotel is that service wasn’t that great, all things considered.
I don’t have very high expectations of service in the UAE, but even so I thought service at this hotel was somewhat underwhelming.
For example, I asked the concierge for recommendations on things to see. I explained that I wanted to see cultural things and not malls. He proceeded to circle everything imaginable on the map, 80% of which was malls. It seemed he just had one “spiel” about things to do in Abu Dhabi, and couldn’t actually give customized recommendations.
Nobody was rude, but aside from Meshan, I just felt like they were cutting corners everywhere. For example, when I stay at a luxury hotel in a foreign country and tell the bellman “I’d like a taxi to XYZ” (especially when it’s something I can’t easily pronounce), I’d expect him to tell the driver where I’m going. That wasn’t the case on every occasion I took a taxi.
In the St. Regis Bar I was checked on maybe once every 30 minutes, even though the bar was almost completely empty.
Again, they weren’t actively rude or anything, but I just think a lot of service opportunities were left on the table. Then again, it’s summer in the UAE, so I suppose the “A-team” might be on vacation.
Bottom line
Physically the St. Regis Abu Dhabi is a gorgeous property, especially keeping in mind how centrally it’s located in Abu Dhabi. The public facilities are extremely impressive, and the St. Regis Suite was gorgeous.
And I got beyond a hell of a deal on this stay.
But in terms of the soft product, I don’t think it lived up to some other St. Regis properties I’ve stayed at. That wouldn’t prevent me from giving the hotel another shot in the future, though.
Great post - you really captured the vibe of the hotel! I visited the hotel early this year and there were some things that changed, so you might be interested in reading my review: https://www.passportandpalmtree.com/hotels/
Am I the only one that finds it very cool that they have mirrors with built-in TVs? :D
I hear you on the Starwood Platinum upgrades - it's becoming a bit of a fiasco. I too find that at nearly Starwood property I now need to fight for the entitlement, even when it's beyond 4pm, even when there's plenty of availability showing online.
I'm not sure whether it's indicative of further program enhancements? Regardless, I'm starting to avoid Starwood like the plague because of it...
I have been reading your blog for quite some time now. I was wondering why not check out Bahrain's national airline, Gulf Air. I would love to see your take on our national product. Also being in Bahrain, I would love to show you around should you come over to the Kingdom.
All in all I like your reviews and this one was quite well put. One question though, how on earth did you take a photo of the bathroom mirror without your reflection being in it!
@ khalaf -- Trying Gulfair and visiting Bahrain is definitely on my list!
Like what is there to do there if you had no biz to do there? How is the underground LGBT scene? In Saudi its huge, what is going on in UAE Abu dhabi?
Great report. Were you able to take both massages for the FHR benefit?
FDW
@ FlyingDoctorWu -- It's one massage each for up to two people, so since I was alone I only got one massage.
Just wondering why the place looks totally empty in all your photos?
Nobody at the pool, or the beach, or dining, or in the hallways.
@ JOHN -- It's summer, so the hotel didn't seem full at all. And keep in mind it's also REALLY hot, so most people don't go outside to the pool or beach.
Btw, I was at the SR Abu Dhabi a few weeks ago. Love that lobby, just gorgeous.
Currently staying at the St. Regis Florence. Had no idea tea was free, even though I have stayed at a number of St. Regis' around the world.
Thanks for the tip, will order now. Hopefully they won't charge me the 8 euro delivery fee they charge on everything delivered to the room!
There really aren't too many cultural/tourist activities in Abu Dhabi other than malls (and even the malls are pretty crappy for the most part), so the concierge may just have been at a loss for what to tell you to do.
When you book through FHR do you still get night/stays credit unlike some other booking sites?
@ digital01 -- Yep, you do.
"What I didn’t realize till the second day is that the truly awesome facilities are located at the hotel’s beach club.
It can be accessed from the third floor, and involves taking the underground tunnel across the street."
Surely "It can't be accessed"
@ ScotlandsFlyer -- Sorry for any confusion. The elevator to the underground tunnel can be accessed from the third floor.
Is this or the St. Regis at Saadiyat better? I stayed at the St. Regis Saadiyat Island last year and was fairly impressed with the beach, breakfast spread, service and the rooms, whereas e.g. the rooms at this property do not look as nice to me from the pictures.
what do you say lucky?
@ bfkremer -- That's a toughie. The one on Saadiyat Island had a better breakfast spread and nicer beach for sure. However, I actually preferred the rooms at this one (I found the rooms at Saadiyat Island to be oddly nautical-themed) and prefer being a bit closer to the city. So I actually don't have a clear winner here. I like them both in different ways.
Great trip report as always. What is in that bridge that connects the two towers at the top?
@ Simon -- Apparently it's a suite.
You really should go to Sri Lanka - it's really beautiful and relaxing there. They have a safari thing that pales in comparison with the African ones, but the highlight is really the stop at the Indian Ocean beachfront in the middle of the hot day :)
Too bad they don't really have chain luxury resorts there yet :P
"suite will be nicer than a St. Regis Suite"
*suite will be nicer than a junior suite
@ hkairlinenews -- You have a sharp eye!
So to clarify, all this because you booked through American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts (which implies you need a Platinum or Centurion American Express card)? Is the booking process free?
@ Al -- There's no extra fee to book through Fine Hotels & Resorts, though you do have to pay the flexible rate (as opposed to a cheaper advance purchase/promotional rate).