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Dubai budget accommodation (Cheap Hotels in Dubai)
If you are flying to Dubai, usually the cheapest way to organise accommodation in Dubai is to try and get a package deal with the airline you are flying with. Trying to blag a bed with a mate or relative who already lives in Dubai is an alternative cheap accommodation option.
See the hotels in Dubai page for a list of more expensive hotels in Dubai.
Online hotel booking websites
Prices don't seem to vary so much across booking sites unless a special offer is available to registered members.
- www.agoda.com
- www.airbnb.com. Not a hotel booking site but popular for longer term cheaper stays. Charges additional fees after booking for currency conversion.
- www.booking.com. Register to get "Genius" member offers, occasionally worthwhile.
- www.google.com/hotels/. Redirects to www.google.com/travel/hotels/. Not a hotel booking site but hotel searches will result in a list of price options from other booking sites. Similar to Google Flights.
- www.hotels.com. Register to get a deluge of email special offers.
- www.hotelscombined.com.
Previous suggestions
- [Offline?] www.asiatravel.com
- [Search form not secure, some hotels missing, not a hotel booking site anymore, aggregates results from other booking sites] www.directrooms.com
Online hostel booking websites
Note that in Dubai and the UAE there are a limited number of hostels with dormitory-style accommodation. The YHA ones have segregated male and female dormitories. Mixed gender dormitory-style accommodation commonly found in other countries is presumably not permitted in the UAE due to laws restricting unmarried men and women sharing a room, however, there are hostels in Dubai which advertise mixed dormitories, and prices less than AED 100 per night.
- www.hihostels.com - Hostelling International, lists YHA hostels in UAE but not independent private hostels. Sharjah Heritage Hostel is YHA?
- www.hostelbookers.com
- www.hostels.com
- www.hostelworld.com
Some private hostels in Dubai with male, female, possibly mixed dorms
- 7 Capsules
- At The Top Hostel (no, it's not in the Burj Khalifa).
- BackPacker 16 Hostel
- Capitol 14
- Domme
- Dubai Beach Hostel
Update needed (sections below last updated Dec 2013)
Tips for finding cheap accommodation in Dubai
There are a few cheapish hotels in Dubai but not many that most travellers would call a bargain or budget range. The Dubai Youth Hostel charges less than 100 dhs per night per person for a shared room but if there are two of you travelling, then you can get a basic cheap hotel room for not much more than that - about 250-300 dhs, and sometimes less with a bit of hunting around.
Hotel Apartments and short-term apartment rentals are another option but not a bargain. A one-month stay in a good furnished 1 bedroom apartment will cost around 15,000-20,000 dhs. If you're lucky, you may find something less salubrious through Dubai newspaper classifieds for about half that.
For shorter stays, Emirates Airlines do a stopover package with cheap hotel rooms in Dubai. Otherwise, ask whichever airline you're flying with if they have some sort of stopover package.
The price given is more than likely for the room (usually, but not always, including breakfast) whether there's one or two people in it. An additional 10% service charge and 10% municipality tax will be added to your bill. Check in time is about 2pm and checkout at noon but late checkouts are often easy to arrange.
You'll have to show a passport when checking in for the hotel to make a copy. It's not a good sign if they want to keep it. Legally, unmarried men and women are not supposed to share a hotel room, but it would be very unusual for a hotel to ask if their guests are married, and only one passport is ever asked for. No one will raise their eyebrows if there are two different surnames being registered since in Arabic culture, it is normal that the wife keeps her own name after getting married.
Some hotels can arrange a tourist visa for Dubai for guests, also airport pick-ups and drop-offs. These additional services are less likely for the cheaper hotels though and you may find it is worth paying a little more for a hotel that can arrange your visa - assuming you need to pre-arrange one. Check the list of countries that can get visas on arrival in Dubai.
Hotels often have better deals in the summer months because it's too hot to do normal outdoor activities. Especially in June, July, August and September, and often May and October also.
If you're working in Dubai or elsewhere in the UAE, the company you work for may have negotiated special rates with some hotels. You could try phoning a hotel direct and asking what the corporate rate is for the company you work for.
A list of cheap hotels in Dubai and the UAE
These are some of the hotels in Dubai worth trying for a reasonable or cheap rate - it is not a comprehensive list. Expect to pay at least 250-600 dhs per night for a room in one of the hotels in this list (2006 prices, add 20% for 2007). Note that most hotels advertise rates as ++ meaning you have to add 10% Dubai Municipality Tax and another 10% Service Charge to the given price.
- Admiral Plaza Hotel - near the Bur Dubai souk area.
- Al Khaleej Hotel
- Al Khaleej Palace - Deira
- Ambassador Hotel
- America Hotels & Resorts, Dubailand, 300 rooms, 3 stars, opening date unknown
- Astoria Hotel - iconic hotel in the middle of the Bur Dubai souk area. Ancient by Dubai standards.
- Avari Hotel
- Capitol Hotel
- Carlton Tower Hotel
- Centro by Rotana - tel +971-2-6994555 (Abu Dhabi) might have hotels open by end of 2008. Room sizes about 22 sq m, hotels have swimming pool, business facilities, gymnasiums, cheap restaurants.
- Centro by Rotana, Diyafa / Satwa, Dubai (360 rooms) supposed to be open by end 2007.
- Centro Barsha by Rotana, Al Barsha, Dubai (264 245 rooms) supposed to open mid 2008. Actual opening announced 11 July 2010. General Manager is Sherif Madkour. Facilities include executive center, meeting rooms, gymnasium, swimming pool, 'C.Taste' restaurant, 'C.Mondo' bar, and 'C.Deli' cafe (sort of).
- Centro by Rotana Airport Road, Abu Dhabi, open early 2008.
- Centro by Rotana Hamdan Street, Abu Dhabi, open mid 2008.
- Centro by Rotana Sharjah Airport, together with Air Arabia, opening date unknown.
- Another 25 Centro Hotels expected to open across the Middle East by 2011.
- Citymax Hotel Al Barsha - open June 2010, tel 800-2489629 (800-CITYMAX) toll-free in UAE, email reservations@citymaxhotels.com, location next to Mall of the Emirates, facilities include buffet restaurant, coffee shop, rooftop swimming pool, gym. Room rates from AED 255 per night (in June 2010).
- Citymax Hotel Bur Dubai
- Dubai Park Hotel
- Dubai Youth Hostel
- Four Points Sheraton - Bur Dubai.
- EasyHotel (associated with EasyJet) - up to 26 hotels planned for the UAE by end of 2008 and another 12 the following year hotels. As the developer is Nakheel Hotels, a company with a reputation for property delivery delays of 1-2 years (the Palm Islands in Dubai for example), don't rush out and make your bookings just yet. There is at least one under construction at the start of 2008.
- EasyHotel Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA) - opening date 01 August 2010, opening offer rooms from AED 99 per night, 216 rooms, near Jebel Ali metro station.
- Emirates Airlines - Whitbread partnership
- Express by Holiday Inn - see Holiday Inn Express hotels below
- Hawthorn Hotel, Al Rigga Rd, Deira tel +971-4-26662527, www.hawthorn.com. Advertising rooms for 375++ dhs/night during July & August 2007.
- Holiday Inn Al Barsha, near Mall of the Emirates, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai - 310 studio, 1, 2 bdrm rooms, WiFi included. Open early 2008.
- Holiday Inn Express Dubai Airport, Al Garhood, open mid-2009, 381 rooms
- Holiday Inn Express Dubai Internet City is actually located in Dubai Knowledge Village. Open 16 July 2007 with room rates about 370 dhs per night, total of 244 rooms in 4 floors. Another 3 Express by Holiday Inn hotels to be opened within 18 months and total of 22 expected to be completed across the GCC and Jordan by 2010. Operated by Ishraq Gulf Real Estate Holding Co. BSC (also the developers) and InterContinental Hotels Group. Tel +971-4-3636865, www.hiexpress.com.
- Holiday Inn Express Jumeirah, open September 2008
- Holiday Inn Express Safa Park
- Holiday Inn Bur Dubai, open 2009
- Howard Johnson Hotel
- Ibis Dubai World Trade Center, open 2003. Small rooms (single or double), good value (300-600 dhs per night depending on time of year and events). Includes airport transfers, car parking, shuttle services and discount vouchers, but not breakfast. Tel +971-4-3187000, www.ibishotel.com, email reservations@accorwtc.ae.
- Ibis Mall of the Emirates, Al Barsha, open June 2009, 153 double rooms, 49 twin rooms, 2 special needs rooms, 204 rooms total. Facilities include flat-screen TVs, high-speed internet and WiFi in rooms and public areas, underground car park, free airport shuttle, Italian restaurant (Amici), bar (Ezaz).
- Imperial Suites Hotel - 'friendly' ladies seem to congregate here.
- Jumeirah Rotana Hotel - just behind Al Diyafah St.
- Majestic - Bur Dubai (opening special about 400 dhs in 2007)
- Metropolitan Hotel - another well-established hotel in Dubai. Opposite Safa Park on Sheikh Zayed Road.
- Marco Polo hotel
- Novotel - next to the Dubai Conference Center. Rooms (single or double) for 450 dhs per night from 14 June to 12 October 2007, subject to availablility. Includes breakfast, airport transfers, car parking, shuttle services and discount vouchers. Tel +971-4-3187000, www.novotel.com, email reservations@accorwtc.ae.
- Pacific Hotel - opposite the Sabakha bus station on Al Sabakha St in Deira. Room rates around 150 dhs.
- Premier Inn Dubai - UK based budget hotel chain plans to open 16 four-star hotels in the UAE by 2016, with 8 in Dubai (and a total of 80 in the Middle East). Five Premier Inn hotels are expected to open in the UAE in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras Al Khaimah in 2009 (might include the DSO and DIA Premier Inns). Information from Emirates Business 10 March 2008.
- Dubai Premier Inn Customer Care tel +971-4-8850999
- Premier Inn Abu Dhabi Capital Center / ADNEC (opening date 2009?)
- Premier Inn Dubai Al Jadaf (opening date 2010?)
- Premier Inn Dubai Investments Park (308 rooms), in the Green Community area, due to open 30 March 2008, standard room rate AED 450 (might be AED 650 during major events). Special rate AED 350. Tel +971-4-8850999.
- Premier Inn Dubai Silicon Oasis - open May 2009, tel +971-4-8850999, 230 rooms, bar, restaurant, Costa Coffee, rooftop pool, free internet wifi, meeting room. Location near the Silicon Oasis Headquarters Building.
- Premier Inn Dubai International Airport - opening date September 2009. Room rate about AED 450 ($122.50) at time of opening. Total 281 family size rooms, rooftop swimming pool, restaurant - Bedouins, bar - The Retreat, Costa Coffee.
- Premier Inn Fujairah (opening date 2010?)
- Premier Inn Ras Al Khaimah (opening date 2010?)
- Premier Inn Umm Al Quwain (opening date 2010?)
- Ramada Hotel Bur Dubai - one of the older hotels in Dubai, near the Bur Dubai souk area.
- Ramada Continental - Al Ghusais area near Al Mullah Plaza.
- Renaissance Hotel - Deira.
- Regent Palace Hotel - in Bur Dubai opposite the Bur Juman Shopping Center.
- Regent Beach Resort - good value for money beach (almost) hotel near Open Beach in Jumeirah (closed in 2009?)
- Riviera Hotel
- Rydges Plaza
- Seashell Inn Hotel - one of the older hotels in Dubai, near Bur Dubai souk area.
- Sea View Hotel - near Dubai's Port Rashid.
- Sheraton Deira - on the Deira side of Dubai Creek.
- St George Hotel - in the Bur Dubai souk area, seems to have been there forever.
- York International Hotel - near the Bur Dubai souk area on Bank Street. Somewhat infamous due to the very hospitable nature of the female patrons in the bar.
- Yotel - airport hotels to be developed by IFA Hotels & Resorts, one open in London, which is not much use to travellers to Dubai but there are some planned for the Middle East.
There is a hotel in Dubai International Airport for transit passengers where rooms can be rented on an hourly basis (or per night) but it's not exactly cheap.
Budget hotels in Abu Dhabi
Budget hotels in Sharjah
- Citymax Hotel Sharjah.
Last update Saturday 27-Apr-2019
Related pages
- Dubai for tourists - practical information about travelling to Dubai.
- Hotels in Dubai - list of some hotels in Dubai to consider.
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