25 UAE hotels in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah named Michelin Key winners

Dubai: The MICHELIN Guide has released its 2026 hotel Key selection, with the UAE featuring 82 hotels across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah. Of these, 58 are new additions, and 25 hotels received a MICHELIN Key.

The Key is MICHELIN's hotel classification system, introduced in 2024, similar to how stars rate restaurants. Hotels can receive One, Two or Three Keys depending on the quality of the stay they offer.

Of the UAE's 25 Key hotels, 19 received One Key, five received Two Keys, and one received Three Keys. Atlantis The Royal in Dubai remains the country's only Three Key hotel.

Dubai has the largest number of Two Key hotels, including One&Only The Palm, Bvlgari Resort Dubai and The Lana, alongside Atlantis The Royal. Abu Dhabi's top result was Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental, also awarded Two Keys. In Ras Al Khaimah, The Ritz-Carlton's Al Wadi Desert property received Two Keys, while Anantara Mina Ras Al Khaimah received One Key. Desert and island resorts also appear on the list, including Al Maha and Anantara Qasr al Sarab in the Liwa Desert.

Gwendal Poullennec, MICHELIN's international director, said the hospitality sector has shown strong momentum this year, with close to 470 hotels added to the Key selection worldwide, as more hoteliers work to offer guests personalised and immersive stays.

Globally, MICHELIN's hotel selection now includes more than 9,400 properties, of which 2,832 hold a Key. This is made up of 155 Three Key, 657 Two Key and 2,020 One Key hotels, an increase of more than 2,200 hotels since the Key programme launched in October 2025.

Across Asia and the Middle East, the 2026 selection includes 600 Key hotels, with 173 new Keys and promotions, and 34 Three Key properties. The programme also expanded into four new markets this year, Mongolia, Myanmar, Armenia and Kazakhstan, and extended its coverage in Saudi Arabia, Japan, China, India, Indonesia, the Maldives, Singapore and Vietnam.