REVIEW DONE IN 2014 AND PUBLISED IN MEN’S ESSENTIAL GUIDE AN ITP PUBLICATION
The Ritz-Carlton Club Level offers a luxury hotel experience combining intimacy, comfort and exclusivity with the personalised service and attention to detail that arethe hallmarks of The Ritz-Carlton. The services, including complimentary food and beverage presentations, provide added value to a stay by solo business travelers or families on vacation.
Club Level Guest Rooms and Suites
The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal features 447 luxury suites and guestrooms, as well as 85 villas. Inspired by the 15th to early 17th century Renaissance architecture and the urban planning of the city of Venice, the villa hotel consists of ten stately buildings arranged in a crescent formation, completed with artfully designed water features and manicured gardens throughout the 230,670 square metre (57 acre) property. Enjoy magnificent views of the illustrious Grand Canal, stately gardens or breathtaking Grand Mosque as you step onto the outdoor terraces featured in all of the villas in Abu Dhabi.
Experience
This hotel was spacious and beautiful with high quality materials and workmanship. The building curves around a large landscaped garden and pool area and is styled like the grand buildings in Venice. Our room had a large King bed with plenty of room for a sitting area and work desk. The bathroom was beautiful with a large tub and separate shower and a separate toilet stall. The tub features frosted glass doors that fold open to the rest of the room and allow views out the spacious sliding doors to the balcony overlooking the garden and pool. The balcony is large and a pleasant spot to enjoy the views. The Royal Suite will be the most expensive suite in the hotel at AED18,000 per night. There has already been a keen interest in this suite with enquiries from people wanting to rent it out for a year. The hotel has declined these requests as they want guests to use the room.There was a large closet with an ironing board and shoe cupboard, and the dresser in the room had plenty of storage, in addition to the minibar and safe.
The pool was beautiful and the service is remarkable. There’s a decent menu of food and drinks to choose from, and they deliver it to you on a bike. The swimming pool is 57m in length with an area of 1,600sqm. It contains approximately 50,000 litres of water and the mosaic design on the bottom of the pool was from a design that the president of Ritz-Carlton saw on a fabric in Italy. The 350sqm beach area is formed with local sand from the existing beach locally.
The Forge, the hotel’s steakhouse, got its name from the steak knives that they will be using. The six knives were handmade in the Forge at Laguiole, France and are some of the best in the world. Taking its name from the intricate process of forging or shaping a high quality steak knife blade, the signature steak house is serving specialty cuisine in a stylish and contemporary setting paired with the world’s finest wines. Private dining rooms and a variety of seating options provide the ultimate dining experience. The Forge may well be crowned the best steakhouse in the UAE. The ambience is perfect with plenty of niches so that you are hardly aware of other diners. The services sparkles with military timing and a dash of theatrical flair. The uniforms are smart and modern just like the interior of this uber cool restaurant. The service was excellent and everyone was very eager to help.
Luxurious spa
The all-encompassing ESPA at The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal occupies a 2,000-square-metre (21,500 square foot) beachfront standalone building and provides holistic rejuvenation and relaxation in a serene, meditative setting. Taking inspiration in traditional Bedouin culture and their use of colours, textures and most notably their metal works in jewelry, the ESPA spa takes the guests on a journey intotranquility. In addition to 16 luxuriously appointed treatment rooms, guests can enjoy separate female and male outdoor areas and their perfectly manicured lush greenery that bring respite during summer months and offer a private oasis, complete with its own plunge pool and waterfall. A pristine private beach is reserved for the use of spa guests only, and they can also take advantage of the resort’s striking scene-stealer, the massive 1,600-square-metre (17,222 square foot) outdoor swimming pool.
This resort is a luxurious place to stay and definitely one of the best I have stayed in.