Inside the biggest sleep pod lounge at Dubai International Airport


Nilanjana Gupta
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With an area of about 600 square metres and capacity for 46 people, the biggest sleep lounge at Dubai International Airport has just made napping during transit easier.

The new facility, which is called "sleep 'n fly" and opened at Terminal 3 last month, consists of double, bunk and family cabins, FlexiSuite pods and power nap pods. It also offers business pods and Lounge Lite seats for passengers hoping to relax, get some work done or hold meetings ahead of their flight.

The National visited the newest lounge at concourse B, one of four sleep ‘n fly lounges at the airport.

“We opened our first sleep lounge at concourse A of Terminal 3 in April 2017,” says Oliver Schulz, the managing director of Onground Hospitality, part of Airport Dimensions, which operates the sleep pod lounges.

“We've got another three premises at concourse C, at Terminal 1 in concourse D, and here we are today at concourse B, which is our new flagship lounge at DXB."

The lounges at concourse A and C at Terminal 3 can sleep 34 and 22 people respectively. The one at Terminal 1 in concourse D has a sleeping capacity of 19 people.

Besides four lounges in Dubai, Airport Dimensions also operates a sleep pod lounge at Doha Hamad International Airport in Qatar.

The lounges are in the airport’s transit area. Guests must either be in transit or departing from Dubai in order to access them and must hold a boarding pass for a flight departing from Dubai International Airport.

The new sleep 'n fly offers pods, cabins and lounge access for travellers. Photo: Airport Dimensions
The new sleep 'n fly offers pods, cabins and lounge access for travellers. Photo: Airport Dimensions

Unlike regular hotels, you can pay by the hour with specific check-in and check-out time slots. The minimum duration of stay is one hour, but there’s no maximum.

The newest lounge was built in an area previously used by Emirates as gate B16, Schulz explains.

“It was decommissioned because of a new bus gate terminal which is right outside here, which no longer left any space for the aircraft to dock. We have happily occupied this space and repurposed it," he says.

“It's a very challenging shape because it's very long, up to 70 metres, and narrow. It’s an unusual and challenging layout. But I think it has turned out very beautiful.”

Lounge Lite seats and business pods

While the key focus of the lounges is to provide sleeping services, the newest has launched Lounge Lite.

Lounge Lite offers privacy instead of requiring passengers to book a full pod. Pawan Singh / The National
Lounge Lite offers privacy instead of requiring passengers to book a full pod. Pawan Singh / The National

“Apart from a 46-bed sleep capacity in this particular location, we also have 14 Lounge Lite seats. We have four business pods for business travellers who need to get some privacy or maybe have a little meeting,” Schulz says.

The business pods come with foldable desks and charging points for electronic devices. With the press of a button, a divider can be removed and the pods can convert into a compact meeting room.

All the guests have access to unlimited non-alcoholic beverages from the on-site bar. The Lounge Lite seats are currently selling on an introductory offer at Dh99 ($26.95) for three hours.

Power Nap Therapy pods

The lounge offers six Power Nap Therapy pods for guests on a quick transit. The maximum duration of stay in these is two hours.

“It is not just a regular pod or a bed, it comes with vibration technology built into the mattress. Every guest gets a noise-canceling headset. The vibration of the mattress goes in line with the music that people will be hearing through the headset,” he says.

The therapy pods, where the vibration of the mattress follows the sound of the music. Pawan Singh / The National
The therapy pods, where the vibration of the mattress follows the sound of the music. Pawan Singh / The National

“It's a little bit like the Dubai Fountain where the water moves according to the music. In our case, the vibration of the mattress follows the sound of the music.”

Current prices start at $30 for a one-hour stay at the pods during the day. The night prices start from $35 an hour.

Double, Bunk and FlexiSuite pods

The FlexiSuite pod is similar to a first-class airline seat in a box. It is typically used for sleep, but passengers can use it for a meeting or just to have a private space. It comes with controls for adjusting the seat, separate air-conditioning, space for storing carry-on baggage and a sliding door. The current prices for a FlexiSuite pod start at $26 an hour during the day and $35 at night.

The double cabin is for a couple or two adults and an infant. The bunk cabin has two beds on top of each other without space for any further children. The family cabin can accommodate up to six people, including an infant and a small child.

The prices for family cabins currently start at $123 for two hours. Bunk cabins and double cabins cost upwards of $78 for two hours.

Shower access costs $20 for in-house guests and $25 for walk-ins.

Bookings can be made in person or by visiting the lounge’s website www.sleep-n-fly.com.

Scroll through the gallery to see more of Terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi

Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.

Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en

ESSENTIALS

The flights

Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.

The hotels

Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.

The tours

A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages. 

RESULT

Esperance de Tunis 1 Guadalajara 1 
(Esperance won 6-5 on penalties)
Esperance: Belaili 38’
Guadalajara: Sandoval 5’

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Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion

The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.

Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".

The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.

He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.

"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.

As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.

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