Dubai, United Arab Emirates · Five-Star · ★★★★★
Raffles The Palm Dubai
Versailles on the Palm. Shameless, comfortable, surprisingly serious.
Versailles on the Palm. Shameless, comfortable, surprisingly serious.
"Opened in late 2020 as Emerald Palace Kempinski, then taken over by Raffles in 2022, this 389-key palace on the Palm's West Crescent is the loudest expression of Versailles-grand-classical that Dubai has produced — and behind the gilt, a quietly excellent five-star with one of the city's strongest beach footprints."
Raffles The Palm Dubai opened in late 2020 — originally as Emerald Palace Kempinski — and was taken over by Accor's Raffles brand in mid-2022, when the property was rebranded and re-launched. The architecture is, deliberately, French neoclassical at scale: gold leaf in the lobby, hand-painted ceilings in the ballroom, Murano chandeliers in the corridors, and a porte-cochère that would not be out of place at the Hôtel de Crillon. The 389 rooms are spread across a single grand-classical palace footprint at the western tip of the Palm Jumeirah, opening onto a 500-metre private beach with a direct view of the Burj Al Arab on the horizon.
There are five room categories. The Diamond category — 70 square metres, a sea-facing balcony, double bath, and a writing desk on the balcony — is the entry. The Sapphire suites are 130 square metres with separate living rooms. The Imperial suites, at 220 square metres, have a butler call and a private cinema. The Royal Suites, on the top floor, run to 1,000 square metres. The Presidential Suite, at 1,500 square metres on the resort's eastern wing, has a nine-seat private cinema, a 14-seat dining room, a 200-square-metre private terrace, and a separate hand-painted ballroom — the largest single suite on the Palm Jumeirah.
Of the 11 restaurants and bars, Sirene by Yannick Alléno is the resort's anchor — a Mediterranean tasting room run by the three-Michelin-starred Parisian chef. Matagi, the contemporary Japanese restaurant, is among the city's most considered. Piatti, the resort's Italian, is the casual Sunday brunch room. Cinque, by the marina, is the resort's lounge bar. The Cigar Lounge, on the lobby level, is a Davidoff-curated room with a humidor and a Cuban-cigar-only programme.
Raffles The Palm has earned, in 2026, an unexpected reputation among Dubai-experienced advisors: behind the deliberately maximalist façade, the property runs a quietly precise five-star service standard. The staff training is the most thorough of any of the post-2018 Palm openings; the spa, run by Cinq Mondes, is more considered than the Versailles-pastiche room would suggest; and the children's club, while not as ambitious as Atlantis next door, is genuinely calmly run for the family-anniversary market. For a guest who wants Dubai's most photogenic palace stay without sacrificing service, this is the answer.
The 1,500-square-metre Presidential Suite, with its private hand-painted ballroom, is genuinely a celebration setting. Brief the team 96 hours ahead — they will arrange a private Sirene by Yannick Alléno tasting menu in the suite ballroom, a violinist, and a private boat transfer from DXB direct to the resort's marina.
The Sapphire Sea View Suite, dinner at Sirene, a Cinq Mondes hammam, and a private cabana at the resort beach is the considered Raffles The Palm honeymoon week. The Diamond category is the right entry-level booking; the Sapphire upgrade is worth making for the separate living room.
Two connecting Diamond rooms, the resort's children's programme, and a private cabana at the beach. Less ambitious for kids than Atlantis next door, but considerably calmer — for families wanting a beach-luxury Palm Jumeirah stay without the volume of Atlantis, this is the deliberate alternative.
Rates checked May 2026. Price varies by date and view.
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