Dubai is renowned for its prosperous skylines and bougie holiday destinations. What’s more, Dubai’s Palm islands offer the pinnacle of the city’s luxury hotels. Two of the most popular are Fairmont The Palm and Atlantis The Palm. But which has the best prices, facilities and which makes for the best overall hotel? Fairmont The Palm or Atlantis?
Below, we delve into answering exactly that!
Which is in the Best Location?
Both hotels are located on The Palm Jumeirah Island, but each have their own pros and cons.
Fairmont The Palm is located beside the main road into The Palm beside some of the island’s other luxury resorts. It certainly has the better location if you’re looking for convenience as it is situated at the foot of the island.
The Fairmont is comfortably nestled by the beach for quick and easy access without the need for long walks in the heat. From the beach, you can relish in the stunning views of the city.
However, its downfall is that it lacks nearby entertainment and food options compared to Atlantis. It may also be a bit busier and noisier due to the nearby main road.
Atlantis The Palm is located at the top centre of the palm. Because of this, the hotel is slightly further to reach when compared to Fairmont The Palm, but it does come with the advantage of being one of the only hotels in the area.
Atlantis comes with the clear benefit of the location being surrounded by entertainment and food options within the hotel. This includes The Lost Chambers Aquarium and Aquaventure Waterpark which are all located onsite. As the location is slightly more secluded, you won’t have to worry so much about loud traffic.
When it comes to views of the city, Atlantis is unrivalled due to it’s central location and perfect distance for perfect skyscraper spotting.
Both hotels come with their own set of advantages and disadvantages in terms of location, but for the sake of an extra few minutes of driving, Atlantis The Palm has the best location.
Which Has Better Rooms?
To keep the comparison of rooms fair, we will be comparing the Presidential Suites from both hotels for which has the best price, best facilities, and best views.
Fairmont The Palm’s Presidential Suite heavily features Arabic themed décor combined with modern windows to let in plenty of sunlight for a warm and cosy room. The rooms feature views of the Dubai Marina Skyline, the resort’s gardens, and the Arabian Gulf. The size of the room comes in at 390 square metres.
The Presidential Suite is complete with a terrace, separate living space with sofas and a coffee table, a fancy marble bathroom, guest washroom, a personal butler, and a 40-inch HD television, plus common amenities.
To stay in the suite will cost approximately 4,650 AED per night for 2 adults.
Atlantis The Palm’s Presidential Suite features an oceanic theme combined with large windows and modern, luxurious amenities. The views from the suite overlook the Palm and the Arabian Sea for a blissful stay. The room’s size comes in at 220 square metres. The Presidential Suite can occupy up to 3 adults.
The Presidential Suite comes equipped with its own dining area, lounge, pool table, balcony, private butler, luxury extras, separate bath, TV, and common amenities.
However, staying at the Presidential Suite at Atlantis is quite costly compared to Fairmont, weighing in at a mega 16,875 AED per room per night.
When comparing the two rooms you can see that they both offer different themes and takes on a luxury experience. However, the best deal has to be Fairmont The Palm‘s Presidential Suite as it costs around a third of the Atlantis price to stay in for a similar luxury experience.
Which Hotel Has Better Facilities?
Now we will take a look at all of the facilities the two hotels have to offer, including food, drink and entertainment.
Fairmont The Palm offers several different dining options ranging from Al Magheeb serving traditional Arabic cuisine, to Boldly Asian for Asian cuisine, and Frevo for Brazilian dining. We like that the hotel offers different flavours and options for guests to choose from.
The hotel has its own health club, spa, beautifully designed pool , private beach, and watersports offerings. The hotel offers a range of activities whether you want to unwind or get your heart pumping!
Atlantis perhaps caters more to a luxury experience as the hotel plays host to a range of celebrity restaurants. However, it does also have Seafire which serves as a steakhouse, Wavehouse which serves pizzas and burgers, and Ossino the underwater restaurant where you can dine next to a tank of marine life! We like the innovation that Atlantis has.
As previously mentioned, Atlantis has its own onsite Aquaventure waterpark and The Lost Chambers Aquarium, which serve as great days out for all ages. There are also dolphin and sealion encounters to make for treasurable memories.
Further Reading: Wild Wadi or Aquaventure.
In terms of facilities, we think that Atlantis just about takes it as it offers innovative and larger than life entertainment options. There is also a range of cuisine to suit those wanting something luxurious or just something simple.
Which Has the Best Beach?
Beaches are one of the favourite places for tourists to go to relax and also have fun. So let’s take a look at what these grand hotels offer!
Fairmont The Palm plays host to a stunning private sandy beach with breathtaking distant views of the city. This is even more magnificent at nighttime when you can gaze upon the city lights. The beach is spacious and directly on the hotel’s doorstep. The quirky pool area is also on the edge of the hotel so you can relax there if you don’t want to get amongst the sand.
Atlantis also has its own outstretched private sandy beach with lush views of the sea and the distant city. However, where Atlantis falls slightly short is that the views are intercepted by the connecting bridge to access that area of the island.
We think the clear winner would be Fairmont The Palm as the beach has closer views of the night-time city, but is not obstructed by the bridge. Fairmont The Palm’s beach has a more scenic view and is right beside the hotel.
Fairmont The Palm or Atlantis for The Cheapest Room?
Most of the time, tourists are happy opting for the standard room. So we thought we would compare the average prices of the King-Sized standard rooms for both hotels.
Hotel Room | Price |
Fairmont Room | 1,050 AED per night |
Fairmont View Room | 1,175 AED per night |
Atlantis Palm View Room | 1,440 AED per night |
Atlantis Ocean View Room | 1,385 AED per night |
As you can see, you will get a cheaper price for either of the Fairmont The Palm rooms when compared to the Atlantis standard rooms.
So Which is The Best Hotel, Fairmont or Atlantis?
Overall, the winner is Fairmont The Palm by 3 points to 2. It was a close one, with both options offering a luxury experience and bringing different things to the table.
Atlantis offers an extravagant and larger than life experience but Fairmont The Palm provides an all round cheaper Arabian holiday whilst still relishing in stunning sights and a royal treatment.
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