To break the journey from Sydney to Dublin we are stopping for almost 48 hour in Abu Dhabi on the way.

The last time we stayed there we only had about 12 hours so we stayed in the Radisson on Yas Island but this time around we'd like to stay in the city and we should have time to go to see the Souks and do a bit of shopping.

Just wondering if anyone can recommend a good hotel in the city centre? Preferably one that isn't just like stayin in a hotel in London or New York but somewhere that actually has local cuisine and a bit of life would be nice!

Thanks

post on the middle east site - they should know some hotels - i didn't live in Abu Dhabi - but my brother stayed in Sheraton 2 years ago - he found it okay - there is 2 i think - he stayed at the one on the end of the Corniche.

enjoy.

we arrived in sydney a few weeks ago - it really cold here - just like an Irish summer

Thanks for that - just posted there.

More like a ******' Irish autumn these days or else I'm just acclimatising!

Hilarious - the polite, Irish version of the 'f' word was asterixed out..

we stayed in the shangri-la which is halfway between the city and the airport. Beautiful hotel but a bit pricey.
we were meant to be doing 1 night but the volcano made us stay 4!
after 2 nights we moved to the traders hotel which is on the same road . It's a more contemporary sister hotel to the shangri-la and is just as nice but half the price.

Don't get upset if you get a snotty reply though. Most of the posters in there are welcoming.

I can't think of any hotel that 'does local' as they tend to cater for expats and holiday makers. The hotels all then to be quite samey, upmarket and impersonal, but the service is excellent!

Enjoy

I've been checking that one out actually - it looks really nice. Is it easy to get taxis in and out of the city if we stay in this hotel? I didn't want to stay too far from the city but really just want to be able to get in and out easily to do some shopping and have a look around..

Did either of the places you stayed in have facilities for people flying late? Our flight out is at 2.30am so we don't want to book a room for the second night but it would be great to be able to have a shower etc.. before we head to the airport..

I'm guessing as Abu Dhabi is pretty much a stopover destination a lot of hotels must cater to people flying at unearthly hours..

it takes about 10 -15 mins to get to the city and the reception will sort the cab out. once you're in town there are cab ranks outside all the big shopping centres. I cant remember the prices (not expensive) but the per mile costs are on a sticker in the cab and they have to switch the meter on, just make sure they do.

they hotel do a half day rate and i'd assume if you were flying at 2.30am you'd be checking out around midnight so you might be ok with that. you'd probably be better emailing them to double check.

If you really want to treat yourself and you can afford it , stay at the main shangri-la and have the buffet breakfast and evening meal (no need for lunch) , the sweet section will blow your mind......and your waistline.
you can go to the shangri la for your meals even if you stay at traders and they have a courtesy golf buggy shuttle between the two which is a laugh in itself.