Dubai's 'QE2' to get a makeover under new ownership

After the renovations, the floating hotel will have 447 hotel rooms and nine food and beverage outlets

QE2 reopened in 2018 as a floating hotel at Port Rashid. All photos: Antonie Robertson / The National

A theatre where live entertainment is held on Dubai’s only floating hotel, the Queen Elizabeth 2, which is being taken over by French hospitality group Accor.

The interior of the ship, which is permanently docked at Dubai's Mina Rashid port, has been completely preserved.

The midships lobby area in the restored QE2.

The old Golden Lion pub.

The casino is filled with slot machines - now purely decorative.

A games arcade cluttered with old machines remains.

The QE2's stairs have been restored.

The hotel has 447 hotel rooms and nine food and beverage outlets.

Inside a deluxe room on the QE2 hotel.

Inside the renovated Yacht Club restaurant on the QE2.

The corridors are all soft carpet and 1970s kitsch.

The ocean liner is named after the late Queen Elizabeth II.

The midships lobby area in the restored QE2.

Dubai’s only floating hotel is getting new ownership. French hospitality group Accor is taking over the Queen Elizabeth 2, with plans to add upgrades and renovations to the property.

Once the project is complete, there will be 447 hotel rooms and nine food and beverage outlets. There’s also expected to be six retail outlets, a swimming pool and a gym. On the business front, there will be 10 meeting rooms, plus a 5,620-square-metre area for outdoor events.

All of these renovations will take place in phases.

“We are very excited to partner with Accor on this project. We trust the group’s expertise will elevate the QE2 to a new era of operations,” says Saeed Al-Bannai, chief executive of Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation.

“The Queen Elizabeth as we know her, has made history and we are confident that Accor will keep her legacy alive while her strong heritage and notoriety will remain a destination in itself, where guests and visitors alike can enjoy a unique experience.”

The world-famous ocean liner-turned-hotel, is permanently docked at Dubai's Mina Rashid port. In 2020, it opened its bridge to the public for the first time in 52 years with one-hour tours.

While there were previously heritage tours of the QE2, the Bridge tours differ by going into detail about nautical facts, while giving visitors a behind-the-scenes look at the commanding station of the ship and its old maritime equipment.

What is the 'Queen Elizabeth 2'?

The floating hotel opened in 2018 with 224 refurbished rooms and suites, 13 restaurant and nightlife venues, a shopping arcade and 25 meeting rooms and conferencing facilities.

QE2 was built by the John Brown shipyards in Clydebank, Scotland, and was launched on September 20, 1967, by Queen Elizabeth II.

The length of the ship (294 metres) is a third of the height of Burj Khalifa, while the diesel engines once produced enough energy to power Fujairah. She had completed more than 800 Atlantic crossings and carried more than 2.5 million passengers before she was sold to Dubai in 2007.