Five-star Khor Al Maqta, Abu Dhabi
The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal
A resort laid out like a corner of Venice on Al Maqta Creek, with canals through the gardens and the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque straight across the water.
Opens the hotel's own website. We have no arrangement with the hotel.
- Rooms
- 447 rooms and suites, plus 85 villas
- Opened
- March 2013
- Grounds
- 52 acres on Al Maqta Creek
- From the airport
- About 20 minutes from Zayed International
The hotel
Venice on Al Maqta Creek.
The Ritz-Carlton opened its first Abu Dhabi hotel in March 2013, on the creek that divides the island from the mainland. Its planners took their lead from the Renaissance and from the way Venice is laid out: a Venetian-style driveway, canals through the grounds and a private beach on the creek. Across the water stand the white domes of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, and the carpets inside repeat patterns from it.
At opening there were 447 rooms and suites and 85 villas with one or two bedrooms, spread over 52 acres of gardens. The Bedouin Spa has a building of its own with sixteen treatment rooms. Work is now under way to replace the Venetian Village with new villas; the hotel says all of its facilities stay open while it goes on. Eight restaurants and bars run from a steakhouse to a lobby lounge for afternoon tea.
- The Grand Mosque view The lobby looks onto the mosque on one side and the creek on the other, and a shuttle runs guests over to it every half hour.
- Pools and beach A main pool of some 1,600 square metres runs down to the private beach, with an infinity pool on the creek lit in colour after dark.
- Villas with plunge pools One- and two-bedroom villas set apart in the gardens, each with its own terrace and plunge pool.
Rooms & suites
Rooms over the pools, villas in the gardens.
Rooms look over the pools, the gardens or the Grand Mosque. Bathrooms are in marble, with a rain shower and a deep bath by the window.
- Rooms Superior Deluxe King Room About 452 square feet, with Asprey bath products.
- Suites Executive Suite to Royal Suite From 907 square feet up to the Royal Suite at 2,691 square feet, many with balconies over the canal.
- Villas Rabdan Villa and Plunge Pool Villa One or two bedrooms, a private terrace and a plunge pool.
Dining
Steak, mezze and noodles by the canal.
Restaurants as listed by the hotel; the MICHELIN listing is as given by the hotel. Shown for information.
- Mijana MICHELIN Guide Middle Eastern Mezze outdoors, with oud music and shisha
- The Forge Steakhouse Wagyu and USDA prime rib eye
- Li Jiang Southeast Asian A terrace facing the Grand Mosque
- Giornotte Mediterranean All day, known for its Saturday brunch
- Sorso Bar Bar The hotel's cocktail bar
- Alba Lobby Lounge Café Afternoon tea
Good to know
Before you go.
- Arrival Check-in from 3 pm, check-out by noon. Guests checking in must be 18 or over.
- Pets Not accepted in the hotel. The pet policy allows them in the Garden Suite, Garden House, Plunge Pool Villa and Rabdan Pool Villa; confirm with the hotel when booking.
- Building work The Venetian Village next to the hotel is being taken down to make way for new villas. Facilities stay open, though early works may bring some noise.
Getting there
Flying to Abu Dhabi.
Zayed International is about 25 kilometres away, or 16 to 20 minutes by car, and the hotel runs no airport shuttle. Private jets land at Al Bateen, 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 The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal?
- Yes. The hotel faces the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque across Al Maqta Creek, and a shuttle takes guests to it every 30 minutes.
- Does The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal have villas?
- Yes. Alongside 447 rooms and suites there are 85 villas with one or two bedrooms, private terraces and plunge pools.
- How far is The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal from the airport?
- About 25 kilometres from Zayed International, 16 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.
- Shangri-La Qaryat Al Beri, Abu Dhabi Every room has a balcony or terrace on the water, and traditional boats ply a canal through the grounds past the hotel's own souk.
- 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 The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal?
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.