Jumeira Rotana Hotel - Dubai, United Arab Emirates 

I spent a long time online trying to find a hotel for my 6 night stay in Dubai in May. I really needed to be close to the Jumeira and Sheykh Zayed area of Dubai but could not afford the huge price tag of the hotels in these areas. I also wanted to avoid the traffic on Sheykh Zayed as and when. So the location of this hotel was really good in that respect. There were a few routes available to and from the hotel so the taxi drivers could avoid most of the traffic. The hotel was also close to the Deira area although I didn't really venture out there. This is a 4 star hotel and it is a reasonable 4 star standards. The rooms are spacious and clean but dark. There are no cieling lights and because my room faced another buidling at the back of the hotel, I couldn't really keep the curtains open for natural light, so that was a little challenging as I like good lighting. The bathroom is fine although agree with other reviewers that looks a bit dated and could be brought up to better standards. I never dined at this hotel except for room service breakfast which was fine and reasonably priced. The room service menu is almost 24 hours a day and to me seemed like a good menu and good prices. I did have a look at the hotel's top floor restaurant and pool area and they seemed to match the overall standard of the hotel. There is a small business center next to the reception with 2 PCs, internet access and a printer and it is available free of charge to guests which was very handy for me and a nice gesture. Another point re the location, the hotel itself is on Al Diyafa street, where you can find a KFC, couple more restaurants, a baskin and robbins, and Al Ansari money exchange. I found the 6 night stay as a special price with expedia costing about ?110 a night, breakfast not included. Although still not cheap but this was one of the best hotels I could find for that kind of money, so I was very pleased with this deal. It is possible to get a room here for around ?90-100 at certain times of the year. If you are after beach access, the hotel will, for a fee, arrange a visit to Dubai Marine beach resort. This resort is only 5 mins drive away from the hotel and although houses many of the bars and clubs for nightlife, the beach area of this hotel is tiny and really not the best Dubai has to offer. So if you dig a bit deeper in your pocket, you can go to Oasis beach hotel at the Dubai Marina to get the best of the beach and a buffet lunch, 2 towels each, changing room facilities, sun loungers, for 240 DHS before 3:30 and from 3:30-5:30 pm, 140 DHS (per adult). The area next to this hotel is a free beach, but obviously you don't get any of the above, but the same lovely sand, water and views. I also wouldn't recommend going on the desert safari through Funtours. This is the safari the hotel uses and the whole trip was lengthy, tiring and boring. The food was great though. Use another tour provider if you want to go on the desert safari. Final note on the hotel, the staff are friendly and polite and overall a pleasant hassle free stay in this hotel and ease of access to areas I wanted in to visit in Dubai.

Lovely hotel, friendly staff and excellent service. Our room was nice, housekeeping came in the morn to clean the room then back in the evening to check if you needed anything more. the Boston Bar has an excellant service, the food is really good. the only problem with this hotel is its a good 20mins drive from the main tourist attraction area.