When told I was going for a weekend at The Yas Hotel, the prospect of pampering and lounging by the pool was too tempting to refuse.
This was the first time I would see the hotel at night. The drive across Yas Island towards the purple-lit lonely-looking armadillo, although exciting, made me feel a little sorry for the peculiar structure perched all alone in the distance.
As my husband, who had a fractured leg, and I rolled up to the main entrance, we were immediately struck by the bright white interiors.
Porters struggled to disembark our over packed bags — OK, just mine — as we walked slowly to the reception. What would take a healthy individual a few brisk strides took us much longer, as my husband hobbled along on his crutches. However, we later found that wheelchairs are available upon request. The check-in was swift, despite people pouring in for the WWE fight the next night. The staff at the reception was friendly and efficient but when they handed over the room key and pointed us in the direction of the lift, I felt slightly disoriented.
The interior ground floor, except the lobby area, is made up of two connecting corridors with abstract art — one of which leads to the Marina Wing of the hotel.
A taste of India
We lunched at the hotel's Indian restaurant, Angar, ideal for weekend meals. After much indecision, we settled on prawn curry and grilled lamb with steamed rice. We were treated to a selection of four dips — the tastiest of which was the mango and mint chutney — with crispy poppadoms. To cool our palate half way through a fiery meal, we ordered a side of mint yoghurt dip, which was delicious with the fluffy warm naan bread, baked in-house in a tandoor oven. Diners have the option of sitting indoors or outdoors on the terrace with a view of the racetrack. However, outdoors the flies seemed to enjoy our food as much as we did because we ended up eating with one hand and shooing away the buzzing nuisances with the other.
A taste of Italy
Amici is the hotel's Italian restaurant, complete with an antipasti buffet, wood-fired pizzas and fresh seasonal salads and pastas. Located in the main building of the hotel, with seating for up to 56 people and an open kitchen on display, the restaurant has a casual ambience, with optional seating on the terrace under the LED lights of the hotel's exterior. The restaurant also has a summer promotion called the Tutti a Tavola until September, including appetisers, main courses, desserts and unlimited house beverages for Dh250 per person and Dh190 per person for the unlimited soft-drink selection.
A taste of the ocean
Nautilus is a high-class dinning venue, overlooking the F1 racetrack, the yacht club — not open — and the marina, with outdoor views of the glittering night sky. Ideal for a romantic dinner, the service is impeccable and the wide selection of seafood on the menu is mouth-watering. The seafood is prepared to taste — grilled, steamed, poached or stir-fried. However, the scallops to start followed by the mixed seafood dish, complete with Omani lobster, comes highly recommended as it truly is delicious.
Sunset views
Skylite is probably the ideal place for an early-evening or late-night beverage at the hotel. As the name suggests, it is on the roof of the hotel, offering refreshing views of a beautiful sunset or night sky.
Chilled out in ambience, with a cabana feel, it comes complete with lounge chairs. Serving house beverages and light snacks, Skylite is open every evening from 6pm.
The gym
Besides sampling the food, I did manage to get a 30-minute workout with a personal trainer. The Yas Hotel's fitness club is fully equipped by Technogym, offering a true world-class workout experience. I am a member of a gym in Dubai but the equipment at the Yas's fitness club tops any I have ever handled.
Our focus was toning, so the trainer put me on to a piece of equipment everyone should have but probably cannot afford.
Technogym's Kinesis wall-mounted pulley system allowed me to do a simple full-body toning workout. Although most of us do these with machines designed for specific exercises, the Kinesis machine provided a great experience because my workouts have not been the same since.
The pools
The hotel's main rooftop pool for guests is located in the Marina wing but is non-operational now. However, the fitness club does have a covered rooftop pool.
Yet, with a husband on crutches and what looked like a wall of skewed steps for him to handle, my vision of a weekend by the pool, topping up my tan, crumbled before my eyes.
The spa
The luxury spa, set to open towards the end of the year, will be home to ten treatment rooms and sauna and steam rooms on two floors. It also has a traditional Arabian hammam in the rotunda room with a glass ceiling. The spa also offers two-day packages for guests who want a weekend of pampering.
Snooze
Our deluxe standard room overlooked the blue-bend part of the Formula 1 racetrack, which almost made it feel like a sea-view room in daylight.
Separated into two parts, the bedroom and the lounge area, the room — like the hotel — is nothing short of chic-meets-futuristic.
So much so, we could not work out how to turn the bathroom lights off on the first night, which was not an entire disaster as the comfort of the bed made up for our interrupted sleep.
There are two sliding-door entrances to the box-shaped bathroom — with a separate lockable toilet area.
However, those who like to shower in private may find it difficult if sharing the room with another, as the transparent shower and central bathtub leave you feeling a little overexposed.
In true ecofriendly style, the room-service menu and excursion information (which, in the old days, would be leaflets spread out at reception) are all stored in the TV, easily accessible at the touch of a button on the remote, which we later discovered also controls the room lighting, giving you a choice of different moods.
Ordering in a DVD and PlayStation 3 with games was our main source of entertainment, as most facilities had not opened but the entire facility does offer free WiFi connections for all guests.
Summer offers
The Yas Hotel is a 30-minute drive from Abu Dhabi's City Centre; a ten-minute drive from Abu Dhabi's International Airport and a 50-minute drive from the Dubai Marina area.
The Dine and Stay Package, starting from Dh779, includes:
- One night's accommodation for two people
- Three-course set menu in a choice of one of four of the hotel's restaurants
- A beverage for two people
The Exclusive Golfing Packages for the Yas Links Golf Course, starting from Dh730, includes:
- Accommodation for two guests
- A round of golf for one person at the Yas Links Golf Club or the Abu Dhabi Golf Club
- Transport to and from the hotel
- Room-service breakfast for two or in Origins, the hotel's all-day dining venue
Mr & Mrs Summer Getaway, starting from Dh1,750 includes:
- One-night stay for two people
- An option of room-service breakfast for two or in Origins
- One round of golf — 18 holes — at the Yas Links Golf Club
- A 90-minute in-room massage for one
- A romantic dinner for two in one of the hotel's restaurants
Visit www.theyashotel.com
