Five-star Khor Al Maqta, Abu Dhabi
Shangri-La Qaryat Al Beri, Abu Dhabi
A hotel built like a low Arabian village on Khor Al Maqta, where abras cross a canal through the gardens and the domes of the Grand Mosque fill the view from the pool.
Opens the hotel's own website. We have no arrangement with the hotel.
- Rooms
- 213, each with a balcony or terrace on the water
- Beach
- About one kilometre, private
- Pools
- Four, including one for adults only
- From the airport
- About 15 to 20 minutes from Zayed International
The hotel
A village between the bridges.
Qaryat Al Beri sits on the mainland side of Khor Al Maqta, the channel that separates Abu Dhabi island from the rest of the emirate, between the bridges that cross it. Northpoint, a firm of architects from Johannesburg, laid out the hotel, serviced apartments and villas across about eight and a half hectares. Shangri-La announced the opening for February 2007. Its private beach runs for about a kilometre along the water.
The plan follows an Arabian village. A waterway of some seven hundred metres winds through the grounds, and wooden abras carry guests along it to the souk and to Traders, the sister hotel next door. All 213 rooms look over the water from a balcony or terrace, and from the north wing the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque stands directly across the creek.
- The canal and the souk Traditional abras run along the hotel's own waterway to the souk, and a boat shuttle crosses the Maqta canal each evening.
- Pools facing the mosque Four pools, among them an infinity pool and one for adults only, all looking across the water to the Grand Mosque.
- A spa building of its own The spa and health club sit apart from the hotel, with a Turkish bath, a sauna and a fourth pool.
Dining
Cantonese, French and Levantine on the creek.
Restaurants and bars as listed by the hotel. Shown for information.
- Shang Palace Cantonese The hotel's signature restaurant
- Bord Eau French Under the name of chef Nicolas Isnard
- Sofra bld Seafood night a speciality Carved tuna and local hammour
- Al Hanah Bar Bar Facing the Gulf and the Grand Mosque
- Amalfi Beach Lounge Lounge Listed among the hotel's bars and lounges
Good to know
Before you go.
- Arrival Check-in from 2 pm, check-out by noon, according to the MICHELIN Guide.
- Children Welcome at any age. Under-12s sharing existing beds stay free.
- Pets Not accepted.
- October The hotel hosts Abu Dhabi's dragon boat festival each October and tends to fill up that week.
Getting there
Flying to Abu Dhabi.
Zayed International is about 15 to 20 minutes by car, and the hotel arranges airport cars and helicopter transfers. Private jets land at Al Bateen on the island, about 20 minutes away by our estimate.
- Doha 45 min
- Riyadh 1 h 20
- Mumbai 2 h 55
- Paris 7 h 15 long-range jet
- London 7 h 35 long-range jet
Questions
What guests ask first.
- Can you see the Grand Mosque from Shangri-La Qaryat Al Beri?
- Yes. The hotel faces the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque across Khor Al Maqta. The pools and Al Hanah Bar look straight at it, and rooms in the north wing have the clearest view.
- Does Shangri-La Qaryat Al Beri have a beach?
- Yes, a private beach of about one kilometre on calm water, with four pools behind it.
- How far is Shangri-La Qaryat Al Beri from the airport?
- Zayed International is about 15 to 20 minutes by car. Al Bateen, for private jets, is about 20 minutes by our estimate.
- Can SkyCourtage arrange the flight to Abu Dhabi?
- Yes. We arrange Business and First Class seats on scheduled airlines and private jet charter to Abu Dhabi, with one final price, our margin included. The hotel is booked with the hotel or through our booking partner.
Also in Abu Dhabi
Other hotels worth the trip.
- Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental Domes by the hundred over a 1.3-kilometre private beach, two starred restaurants, and the only hotel in the city with two MICHELIN Keys.
- Rosewood Abu Dhabi A knife-edged tower on Sowwah Square, its shape taken from the art of falconry.
- Four Seasons Hotel Abu Dhabi at Al Maryah Island One bridge from the business district, with a rooftop pool over the water.
- Conrad Abu Dhabi Etihad Towers Glass towers above Corniche Beach, with a whole sixtieth floor given to one suite.
- Jumeirah Saadiyat Island Rooms and villas on a beach away from the centre, with three infinity pools.
- Rixos Premium Saadiyat Island An all-inclusive resort of 288 rooms with a waterpark and villas with their own pools, holding one MICHELIN Key.
- The St. Regis Abu Dhabi In Nation Tower on the Corniche, where the Abu Dhabi Suite takes up the 48th and 49th floors.
- The St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort, Abu Dhabi Five pools and 376 rooms on the beach, with the Saadiyat Beach Golf Club alongside.
- The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal Fifty-two acres on Al Maqta Creek facing the Grand Mosque, with the Bedouin Spa in a building of its own.
- Fairmont Bab Al Bahr At the entrance to the island, with a private beach facing the Grand Mosque and a steakhouse under Marco Pierre White's name.
- Grand Hyatt Abu Dhabi Hotel & Residences Emirates Pearl At the western end of the Corniche, 368 rooms and suites and sixty serviced apartments with balconies.
- Andaz Capital Gate Abu Dhabi Inside the slanting Capital Gate tower beside the exhibition centre, with its pool deck and spa on the 19th floor.
- Saadiyat Rotana Resort & Villas Thirteen beachfront villas with their own pools sit beside 327 rooms on Saadiyat's nine kilometres of sand.
- Sofitel Abu Dhabi Corniche Its 280 rooms look over the Gulf from Corniche Road East, and the grill restaurant is on the eighth floor.
- Sheraton Abu Dhabi Hotel & Resort Open since 1979, one of the first international beach hotels in the emirate, with a lagoon pool and a British pub.
- Khalidiya Palace Rayhaan by Rotana A dry hotel of 443 rooms opposite Emirates Palace, on a private beach of two hundred metres.
- Beach Rotana Abu Dhabi Linked directly to Abu Dhabi Mall, between downtown and Al Maryah Island, with a private beach and some twelve bars and restaurants.
- Le Méridien Abu Dhabi Resort A city resort on a 200-metre beach close to Abu Dhabi Mall.
- Park Rotana Abu Dhabi Behind Khalifa Park on the Eastern Ring Road, a business hotel of 318 rooms.
Staying at Shangri-La Qaryat Al Beri, Abu Dhabi?
Book the room, then the flight.
Rates and availability come from the hotel itself. For the journey to Abu Dhabi, a Business or First Class seat or an aircraft of your own: tell us the date and we come back with one final price, our margin included.
Opens the hotel's own website. We have no arrangement with the hotel.