After 36 hours of mistreatment from Emirates before flying meaning we were rushing around finding substitute flights with British Airways (they were our saviours), 16 hours before leaving for Dubai, we were frazzled. Due to fog near Heathrow and Bahrain air closures we arrived late in Ras Al Khaimah, getting to the hotel around 4am. We were exhausted, stressed, and hoped the hotel would be everything we hoped it would be. IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT.
They gave us a lovely 5th floor room (Infinity Sea View) with a massive bath, walk-in shower, fridge, tea & coffee, water etc. The room had a great balcony with a large circular seat but we moved the occasional seats in the lounge area out onto balcony as we like to spend a lot of time on our balcony. The room had a comfortable bed and furniture - my one criticism is that their 'All Inclusive' doesn't include soft drinks or cans of beer in the mini-bar; we've never been to an All Inclusive hotel with a mini-bar containing just water.
The hotel grounds are lovely - plenty of sunbeds around the pool, gardens and beach so never a problem getting one. Staff were always on hand putting towels on your sunbed. It was lovely listening to and watching the birds – it was lovely to see them. The pool was lovely and warm which meant I could swim – the only downside was a DJ from 4-6 with music blasting out 'thump thump thump' music. Some areas in the bottom of the pool where tiles had been removed did cut my toe but it wasn't really an issue for me. Speaking to other guests they felt the same as us and came to the conclusion that the loud music was a ploy to get people to leave the pool area. It was loud in our room with the door closed and really needs looking into by the management. I recorded the noise from inside our room and shared it with the hotel; the duty manager said they'd look into it! During our 4 week stay they had two Indian weddings and yes they are joyous occasions, a bit noisy but wonderful to watch and didn't disturb us as the celebrations stopped by 10pm. The joy was infectious and the guests loved it. The hotel certainly know exactly what they are doing and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it for any celebration. They did also hold corporate events as many hotels do; again that didn't affect us in any way. The hotel is understated modern elegance and is really clean and easy to get around with lifts or steps.
With All inclusive you can only use the Saffar buffet restaurant - you can pay for 'all inclusive dine around' but due to my food allergies I like to stick to one restaurant. Food is varied, always hot, a lot of Indian, Arabic, Lebanese and Asian food. Pasta is freshly cooked as is pizza and the choices of sweets were lovely. The restaurant ambiance was lovely. Weekends got really busy with weekenders as most of the hotels do.
Now for the best bit of the hotel - THE STAFF. It's not often that leaving a hotel brings you to tears, but the staff are without doubt the hotel's crowning glory. Always a smile, 'hello, can we help', from reception to gardeners to restaurant staff to bar staff are a true reflection of the hotel. We like to speak to the staff as most are away from home and family, and staff badges with name tags had their country flag on and we learned about them and their country which was nice.
I have some food allergies, intolerances and this wasn't a problem in any way and they cooked food for me which in the UK doesn't happen very often. (Even last week in the UK at a hotel I asked for an omelette or poached eggs and was told 'no' as it's not on menu!)
The staff in Saffar restaurant are amazing for their welcome - staff, waiters, waitresses, chefs to cleaning staff, always a smile, a 'hello can I help' without any agenda. We always tried to leave tips and to try to spread the money around amongst the staff. We put a lot of money into paying for the trip but we take some extra Dirhams not to buy items from the UAE but to leave tips. I see online constantly people asking 'do we have to tip?' - the reality is this goes a long way with staff working so just remember they work long hours and still care about you and your experience.
I will name some staff and apologize to any of them for any mis-spelling or not putting your name as I tried to write everyone's name down while we were there. Doni the reception manager - thank you for going above and beyond and helping with my shopping - you know what you did / you are a star. All reception staff for their help and kindness. Housekeeping staff Mandeep, Sha Alam, Shaik - thank you for keeping our room clean and for the lovely flower / towel art on the bed, and the little gifts. Concierge Ahmed, the staff on duty at the entrance - Collins and the guys moving cars, luggage etc. Chef Shibin - what a caring kind man you are. Along with Chandra thank you for the cooking lesson, and to all the chefs behind the scenes who we didn't meet. Restaurant staff managers Milan and Avi, Kujeet, Sakshi, Sue Sandi, Falguni, Syam, Dianne, Mycah, Preetak, Hendra, Sanam; Waitresses Renu, Swe Zin, Eldray, Pema, Same, Abhi, and above all Moses - you are the light in any darkness - your smile is just so infectious. These are just a few of the amazing staff.
The hotel is on a lovely beach with plenty of beds and space and with some games to play. If you are 'all inclusive' the only outside bar you can use is the pool bar (Sha Sha) and on a cool evening it's not great. I wish the hotel had somewhere to sit inside with a drink. The beach lawn has two fire pits which was a nice touch as it got a bit cool in the evening. Twice a week birds of prey are brought in which were amazing to see and hold.
We stayed in an Infinity sea view room on the 5th floor - looks over the pool to the sea and beach. I'd love to upgrade to a Club room and lounge access but that was out of our budget. The beach villas look amazing as the rooms are overlooking the stream. Rooms 1-4 I'd choose them as they had sunbeds on the patio.
Some ideas for the management: 1, our shower floor was like an ice rink when wet as it's made of smooth wall tiles - you need to replace them with anti-slip tiles or provide a mat. 2, stop the DJ blasting music out so loud around the pool – is it really necessary?, 3, To make the hotel completely accessible for disabled guests put electric access buttons on the doors into the hotel as they are very heavy – I use a mobility scooter and I couldn't have opened them on my own. 4, the minibar should have beer and soft drinks in when all inclusive. 5, like other hotels locally there should be a free bus to a local mall.
We think the management need to know how wonderful the staff all are, as if they look after them they will stay., can't wait to return.
