We had visited the Arabian Courtyard the first time we were in Dubai. It is situated right next to the Dubai Museum. We went for lunch after a museum visit and were impressed with the hotel and the Sherlock Holmes bar. It is in the Bur Dubai which is the historical area. There are loads of sites to see. The souks are a ten minute walk and that also takes you to the Creek where we spent a bit of time walking alongside , and were lucky to get a slight breeze Its the sort of place where you can spend ages watching the dhows sailing and unloading.We got a great price booking directly with the hotel. If you look at the website and then leave it for a few minutes it will automatically come up with a money off code.

We booked an executive room. It looked exactly like the photo of the room on the website. Very comfortable with exactly what you would expect in that standard of room. I loved the whole hotel as you really knew you were in an Arabian hotel. With the room came lounge access which was breakfast , soft drinks and snacks throughout the day and a happy 2 hours where you could get 3 alcoholic drinks and canapes.

There is a pool and a nice area round about it to sunbathe. The pool also has sails draped over the top of the pool so that it gives sections of shade. Also there is a gym,Jacuzzi and sauna- not sure why you needed a sauna as you could get it just by stepping outside!

The bar had live music every night plus great bar suppers, a happy hour (2 lots of them) and good prices for Dubai. It is popular with flight crews and expats. We also tried the Mumtaz Mahal restaurant where we had a superb Indian meal. We ate once at the Pharoah restaurant. I think perhaps I didn't make the best choice of main course but the restaurant was full with many eating there almost every night. The third restaurant was closed for refurbishment.

As the hotel is next to the museum, it is also next to a hop on/off bus stop which is really convenient.

The view from our bedroom window had no modern hotels in sight. You really are in the old quarter and its a great place for a wander- when its getting a little cooler late afternoon. There are many mosques around the hotel and you will hear the call to prayer. Early in the morning it does sound loud but part of the charm.

I would definitely return.

we stayed in an executive room which included breakfast coffee and soft drinks through out the day and three alcholic drinks all from the executive lounge on the seventh floor the lounge is a bit small but comfortable enough,the food was buffet style with a good range of breakfast dishes.the room was arabic style and kept very clean by friendly staff it was also a none smoking room. there is a good chinese restaraunt english pub and an indian restaraunt we used all three and all are excellent but the indian serverd us cold food and waiting on staff are a bit rude and it is expensive. all the hotel staff are curtious and helpful.we spent ten nights in the hotel with no problems everthing in the room was how it should be and all worked properly,are only disappointment was the pool and sundeck far to small for such a big hotel.the hotel is very central opposite the dubai museum and the road outside is always busy but very handy for the tour buses and not far from the creek.

We picked this hotel because of it's location and value for money and weren't disappointed with either. Our stay wasn't without problems but was overall very good.

When we arrived the hotel did not have our reservation. Apparently due to a mix up when they switched from the manual reservation system. Not ideal but these things happen and they did have a room available.

We were on a room only basis amd i strongly recommend booking this if you get a good rate. We tried the hotel breakfast one morning and it was a decent buffet fayre but nothing special. Basta Art Cafe (across the road) was without a doubt the best place in the area for breakfast. A beautiful courtyard for an alfresco breakfast of freshly squeezed juices, smoothies, etc and deliciously fresh, homemade food - Breakfast in a Glass being my favourite (a sundae glass layered with fresh fruit, yogurt and muesli).

The hotel bar was an 'English Themed Pub' so not really my kind of place but staff there were friendly and they had good promotions/happy hours. Mumtaz Mahal was without doubt the best dining option in the hotel. We visited on Friday night when they have live indian music and dancers though the food alone is good enough reason to visit. Very different menu to your average UK indian restaurant but some lovely dishes. They go heavy on the spices so if this is not to your taste let the waitress know.

The rooms are not large but comfortable and well decorated. We had one of the deluxe rooms which, though no different to a standard room, have great views of the museum. The rooms are cleaned daily to a reasonable standard but they forget the basics like replenishing toiletries, bottled water, etc from time to time. The bathroom was fairly small but clean, with a good power shower and plenty of hot water. I did like the fact that they'd gone for an arabic decor rather than the average, bland hotel room. Another nice touch was the control panel by your bedside for the air conditioning and lighting.

The pool was the biggest disappointment. No attendant so hygiene is lacking (dead flies and hairs in the pool) and you have to hunt somebody down if you want a drink as the pool bar is built but empty and unstaffed. The hotel do offer a free transer to Jumeirah Beach though so we decided to use that for our sunbathing days.

The location is excellent if you're looking to visit the museum, creek, old Dubai and Burjuman centre. It's very central so everything else is just a short taxi ride away. Ok this isn't one of Dubai's top hotels but it's pleasantly decorated and has good, friendly staff - I'd stay here again.