Atlantis, The Palm

Atlantis, The Palm is the Dubai hotel to pick for a holiday built around children: every night includes unlimited entry to Aquaventure World, which the hotel bills as the world's largest waterpark, and to The Lost World Aquarium. The resort has more than 1,500 rooms and sits at the apex of the Palm Jumeirah crescent, the palm-shaped island, with its own beach, pools and 34 restaurants. Forbes Travel Guide, the American guide that rates hotels after inspection, gives it four stars.

The short answer

• Best for: families with children of any age, teenagers who love slides, and three- to five-night stays where nobody wants to get in a car.
• Less suited to: couples looking for peace and quiet, who will be happier at One&Only The Palm or at neighbouring Atlantis The Royal, which is newer, pricier and more focused on fine dining.
• Price: in October 2026, for a stay in March 2027, the cheapest room was offered at around €595 a night for two adults, refundable, including taxes and fees, with a possible per-night tourism fee on top.

What's included and what costs extra

Included in the room rate:

• daily entry to Aquaventure World: more than 105 slides, rides and attractions, including a 2.3 km river and the 27.5 m Ziggurat tower;
• unlimited access to The Lost World Aquarium, built around the Ambassador Lagoon and its 65,000-plus marine animals;
• the beach and pools reserved for hotel guests;
• one daily session at the Atlantis Explorers Club, the kids' club with ten play spaces.

Extra: dolphin and sea lion encounters at Dolphin Bay, diving in the lagoon, the AWAKEN spa, and meals, unless you book half board, full board or the Extraordinary Package, which covers three meals a day for stays of three nights or more.

On arrival day, reception stores your bags and gives access to the beach, pools, waterpark and aquarium from 10 am; on departure day, guests can still use the waterpark and aquarium in the afternoon, with changing rooms and showers at the park until sunset.

Planning the day

A typical family day: the waterpark at opening time, lunch at one of Aquaventure's restaurants, a pool break during the hottest hours, the aquarium in late afternoon, then an early dinner. The signature restaurants only take young children early in the evening (see below).

To add more parks and outings to your stay, see our family and theme parks pages.

Which room for which family

A couple, or one parent with a child, takes the King Room with its king bed; two adults and two children, the Queen Room with two queen beds. For up to six people, the Family Room joins two connecting rooms, and the Terrace Suite adds a terrace and access to the Club lounge.

Rooms face either Palm Jumeirah or the sea. The Underwater Suite, whose bedroom and bathroom look straight into the lagoon, comes with a 24-hour butler and in-suite check-in. Suites include transfers from Dubai International Airport (DXB). The hotel also has smoking floors, on request.

Where to eat with children, and without

The hotel lists 34 restaurants, including celebrity chef venues Nobu, Bread Street Kitchen and Street Pizza, the last two by Gordon Ramsay.

With children: Wavehouse, with its games arcade, En Fuego, Bread Street Kitchen, Street Pizza, the Saffron and Kaleidoscope buffets, and every restaurant in the waterpark. On Fridays, Bread Street Kitchen runs a family brunch.

Age rules worth knowing:

• Nobu, Seafire and Hakkasan: children aged 4 and over at the 6 pm and 6.30 pm sittings only; after 8 pm, aged 10 and over;
• Ossiano: aged 10 and over at dinner;
• En Fuego: family seating from 5 pm to 8.30 pm;
• Saffron brunch: 21 and over;
• Wavehouse bar: 21 and over after 9.30 pm.

For two: Ossiano, facing the glass of the Ambassador Lagoon, Nobu, Japanese-Peruvian cooking with views of the Palm and the Marina, Hakkasan for Cantonese, or Ayamna for Lebanese. These restaurants expect smart dress, and flip-flops are refused at Hakkasan and Seafire. For more ideas, see food and dining.

Who is the Imperial Club for?

Imperial Club rooms and suites come with a private lounge: separate check-in, continental breakfast from 7 to 11 am, afternoon tea from 3 to 5 pm, drinks and canapés from 5 to 7 pm, a reserved beach with its own bar, kids' club sessions and an AED 50 (UAE dirham) games card at Wavehouse. It suits families who want a quieter beach and snacks without booking a restaurant.

Practical information

• Check-in and check-out: 3 pm and 12 noon, local time. You must be 18 or over to book.
• Deposit: AED 500 per night at check-in if you want to charge extras to the room.
• Getting there: by taxi, 40 to 60 minutes and about AED 120 from DXB; 1 hour 20 minutes and AED 200 to 300 from Abu Dhabi airport. See getting around Dubai.
• Health: guest clinic open 9 am to 10 pm, paramedics 24/7, pharmacy in the West Tower.
• Season: October to April. In summer, highs hover around 41 °C, so go to the waterpark early (see Dubai in summer).

Sabaro's view

Who it's for: families, above all. With the waterpark and aquarium included, the stay is simple and the price easy to read.

Strengths: unlimited Aquaventure; plenty of child-friendly restaurants; the six-person Family Room; a 9.2 out of 10 rating on Booking.com (18,834 reviews).

Good to know: this is a very large hotel whose waterpark and restaurants also welcome day visitors; entry-level rooms are smaller than at Atlantis The Royal; age rules at the signature restaurants mean eating early with young children.