The Burj Al Arab is the building that made Dubai’s skyline recognisable before the Burj Khalifa existed, and it is the one major landmark here that you cannot simply buy a ticket for. Knowing that in advance saves a wasted trip.
Seeing it
The views are free and they are the best part. The public beach at Umm Suqeim, immediately south of the hotel, gives the composition almost every photograph uses: the sail framed across open water with the beach in the foreground. Late afternoon is the moment, the sun sits behind you and the white cladding takes the warm light.
Kite Beach, slightly further along, gives a similar angle with more facilities behind it, showers, food, a running track. From the sea, the speedboat tours that run along this coast pass close enough for a level view, which is the one angle you cannot get from land.
Getting inside
There is no general admission. Access requires a booking of some kind: a restaurant reservation, afternoon tea in the atrium, a spa appointment, or an organised inside tour sold by third parties. All of them carry a substantial per-person minimum, and the causeway is gated, arriving without a confirmed booking means being turned back at the barrier.
The interior is worth describing honestly: it is a very tall atrium in gold, red and blue, more theatrical than tasteful, and it is a genuine period piece of late-1990s luxury design. People who love it and people who find it overwhelming are usually both describing the same thing accurately.
The architecture
The building is worth a paragraph on its own terms. It was designed by the British architect Tom Wright, then at Atkins, and it stands on an artificial island a short causeway offshore, which was built and left to settle before construction began. The shape is a dhow sail: a curved mast wall of white cladding stretched between two arms of structure, with the whole composition arranged so that it reads as a single silhouette from the beach.
At roughly 320 metres it is not tall by the standards of the city it helped create, and it does not need to be. It stands alone on the water with nothing behind it, which is the trick, and it is why it still photographs better than towers twice its height.
The terrace, and the view from the water
A large outdoor terrace was added on the seaward side in the years after opening, with pools, a restaurant and cabanas built out over reclaimed ground. It is accessible on a paid day pass with a minimum spend, and it is the only way to be on the hotel’s own ground in the open air rather than inside the atrium.
Whether it is worth the money depends entirely on what you want. As a day at a beach club, it is expensive for what it is. As the one place from which you can look up at the building from its own sea-facing side, with the coastline running away behind, it is the angle no free viewpoint offers.
The cheaper version of the same idea is a boat. The tours running along the Jumeirah coast pass the island close enough for a level view, cost a fraction of the terrace, and take an hour.
The seven-star thing
It is not a seven-star hotel, because no such rating exists. The phrase came from a journalist’s description at the opening in 1999 and was adopted as marketing. Officially it is five stars, at the top of that band.
Getting there
There is no metro station nearby. Mall of the Emirates is the closest, then roughly ten minutes by taxi; from Downtown allow twenty to thirty minutes by road. It combines naturally with a Jumeirah beach afternoon, not with an inland itinerary.
Whatever you decide about getting inside, do not skip the free version. The beach view at the end of the afternoon is the one that ends up framed at home, and it costs nothing but the taxi.
Opening hours and the best time to go
Burj Al Arab, common questions
Is there a dress code at the Burj Al Arab?
Yes, and it is enforced for any booking inside, smart-casual as a minimum, with no beachwear or sportswear, and closed shoes for men in the restaurants. Check the specific venue when you reserve.
Is afternoon tea at the Burj Al Arab worth it?
It is the cheapest way inside and it does deliver the atrium, the service and the view. Treat it as paying for access to the building, not as a meal and the price makes sense; treat it as lunch and it will not.
Can you swim at the beach near the Burj Al Arab?
Yes, Umm Suqeim and Kite Beach are public, free and lifeguarded, and both give the classic view of the hotel. Kite Beach has the better facilities of the two.
When was the Burj Al Arab built?
It opened in 1999, on a purpose-built artificial island connected to the mainland by a private causeway. It was the tallest hotel in the world at the time.
Can you visit the Burj Al Arab?
Not on a general ticket: none exists. Access requires a booking: a restaurant, afternoon tea, the spa, or an organised inside tour. Everything else is viewing from outside, which is free and genuinely good.
How much does it cost to go inside the Burj Al Arab?
There is no admission price as such. The cheapest routes in are afternoon tea or a restaurant reservation, both of which run to a substantial per-person minimum. An inside tour is sold separately by some operators.
Where is the best place to see the Burj Al Arab?
The public beach at Umm Suqeim, immediately south of it, gives the classic view with the tower framed across the water. Late afternoon puts the sun behind you. Kite Beach works similarly and has more facilities.
Is the Burj Al Arab a seven-star hotel?
No. That rating does not exist. The label came from a journalist's description at opening and stuck as marketing. It is officially a five-star hotel, at the very top of that band.
How do you get to the Burj Al Arab?
There is no metro nearby. Mall of the Emirates is the closest station, then a taxi of about ten minutes. From Downtown allow twenty to thirty minutes by road.
Can you walk onto the island?
No. The causeway is gated and access is limited to guests and confirmed bookings. The viewing is from the public beaches on the mainland side.
