Hotel Insider: Vida Downtown Dubai

A boutique stay with designs on new Dubai.

A deluxe room at Vida Downtown Dubai. Courtesy: Vida Hotels & Resorts

The welcome

The hotel is in “The Old Town” part of Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Boulevard, opposite Dubai Mall. The entrance is at the back of the hotel, and one gets a sense of being at the centre of “new” Dubai and that it’s a relaxing escape from the stress of the mall, shopping and driving in the area. As I check in on a Friday evening, the entrance and lobby offers a more exclusive and personal welcome than that usually experienced at UAE hotels. The cream-coloured, six-storey building is somewhat bland from the outside, but inside, the mostly white lobby features a striking atrium, designer furniture, books and artwork.

The neighbourhood

The hotel is within walking distance of the Burj Khalifa, The Dubai Mall, Dubai Fountain, Souk Al Bahar and The Pavilion Downtown Dubai. Business Bay, DIFC and Dubai World Trade Centre are close. Developed by Emaar, the hotel is one part of the group’s increasingly varied property portfolio in the area.

The room

The hotel has 156 rooms and suites; mine is a standard room on the fifth floor at the back of the building. It’s a compact 32 square metres and mostly white, save for a giant maroon headboard and grey striped carpet. It’s nice to be able to open a window for fresh air. The bathroom is well-designed with a generous amount of cupboard space. The TV navigation system is awkward to operate.

The service

The ethnically diverse staff are smart, with an understated, almost hipster manner, plus a sense of good training and care.

The scene

Other guests are generally a thirtysomething crowd without children; those on business look like successful entrepreneurs – lending a civilised, adult atmosphere. The lounge area features a coffee bar and comfortable seating, and the adjoining business centre is open-plan, with large iMacs free to use. Free Wi-Fi is available throughout the building with your room details.

The food

The hotel has three restaurants – 3in1, an all-day-dining restaurant with an emphasis on Arabian food; Toko, a Japanese restaurant situated just beside the hotel; and La Serre, a French outlet at the very front of the property. The full menu at Toko is sensational, but a large dinner here would be costly. It’s more restrained in the bar area, where I have dinner with a friend – we share the green papaya salad (Dh55), spicy maguro maki (Dh50) and spicy eggplant with mushrooms and chilli sauce (Dh35). The food is good, but let down by the dim lighting. The buffet breakfast at 3in1 is one of the best I’ve had in Dubai; the only downside is the presence of a few flies both inside and outside. Standout items are the fresh breads, cheeses, honeys and yogurts. The juices and coffees are also excellent and there’s also a choice of 10 hot items, including quinoa porridge and egg shakshouka.

Loved

The location and strong sense of design, the room’s blackout blinds and the breakfast.

Hated

The hotel’s lovely outdoor terrace – perfect for a discreet weekend breakfast – is marred by guests smoking. My room key didn’t work (possibly because it was kept next to my phone) and I had to walk all the way back to reception to get it changed.

The verdict

A smart, slick, boutique-style hotel.

The bottom line

Double rooms at Vida Downtown Dubai (www.vida-hotels.com; 04 428 6888) cost from Dh958 per night, including taxes, but excluding breakfast (it's cheaper to book the breakfast at the initial booking stage rather than as an add-on).