My family and I are big staycation-ers. Living in Dubai there are a plethora of great spots to visit and amazing sites to see. This fine July weekend we decided to head to the Novotel World Trade Center Hotel in Dubai.
The Hotel is part of the Accor family of hotels, so you know you’re going to have a luxurious experience no matter what. The four-star rating was the icing on top!
The Novotel sits adjacent to the Dubai World Trade Center (DWTC) Concourse and is a stone’s throw from places like Dubai Sports World, Modhesh World, Ibis One Central and Ibis World Trade Center.
The hotel is so conveniently located right next to a metro station and is right behind Sheikh Zayed Road, in an area where you are close to Dubai Frame, Dubai Mall, Dubai Miracle Gardens and tons and tons of amazing attractions.
With three days to enjoy the restaurants, pool, Modhesh World and the rest of the amazing sites within walking distance, we were ready to go!
When we arrived we were greeted by the amazing front desk and headed to our room. We were generously gifted a suite for the weekend and while I took my own photos, I wanted to share one of theirs so you can see how gorgeous and spacious the room was!
We walked in, and if the room wasn’t enough, look at what we were presented with. Have you honestly seen such a beautiful spread?
It really touched my heart that a member of the front desk, Bhagya, made this hand made piece of art for me. It was the sweetest thing and set the tone to an amazing 2 days to come.
We started off our day at Cafe Cream at the Novotel and enjoyed burgers and ice cream after which the kids played in the kids’ corner. It is directly adjacent to Cafe Cream so parents can enjoy a cup of coffee, while the kids can play on an Xbox or with more traditional woodblock games. Both Ahmad (10) and Hamdan (3) enjoyed the kid’s corner!
After our delicious lunch, we headed back to the room to work on finishing off our amazing spread – the kids watched cartoons too.
It was finally time for dinner and we had a reservation to Wok and Co. A beautiful Asian restaurant that I had read amazing reviews about, and was excited to try out for myself. My family and I were first struck by the beautiful decor and were blown away.
When it came time to order, we decided to try out three of their most popular dishes: Crispy chili beef (my new favorite!), Kung Pao Chicken and a spicy, Indonesian, fish curry dish that I have forgotten the name of (blogger of the year, I know.)
The kiddos opted for chocolate shakes and nuggets from the kids menu. They had no idea what they were missing out on, but their food was just as delicious.
We will be returning for sure!
After a super restful nights sleep, it was time for the main event (for me at least) the BUFFET BREAKFAST! Breakfast was in the lobby at Entre Nous. All I’m going to say is that it was by far one of the best, if not THE BEST breakfast selection I have tried at a hotel in a long time – and I’ve been to a lot of hotels. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.
Next on the itinerary was pool time. This was definitely a highlight, because not only does being at the pool wear the kids out (haha!) it was such a gorgeous pool too! I love that it is outdoors but also within the hotel grounds, so you feel like you’re outside without all the noise of Dubai in the background. There’s even a book library for you to pick a book to read while your sunbathing, how cool is that?
Sometime later we were off to lunch. Chianti’s and Cubo Restaurant was a 5-minute walk away at the Ibis One Central, part of the World Trade Center Concourse.
It’s a gorgeous Italian restaurant that serves up traditional Italian comfort food.
We started with a Margherita pizza and then I ordered the Spinach Ravioli, Moe ordered the Pasta Pollo et Fungi and Ahmad ordered the Shrimp Arrabbiata pasta. We thoroughly enjoyed the main courses and seriously loved the baked cheesecake!
Beyond the food, the amazing service provided to us was above and beyond. Hamdan fell asleep and instead of leaving me to hold him as I eat, the kind manager and our marketing contact (and now friend,) Rachit, carried in a sofa for him to sleep on so that I could eat comfortably. That was the sweetest gesture, and we are still so appreciative.
Because the kiddos were clearly worn out from swimming, we headed to the room and ordered spaghetti bolognese for dinner from room service. It was delicious.
Saturday came sooner than we wanted and our last day was flying by. Ahmad and I headed down for a light breakfast, followed by a couple of hours of rest before we checked out and headed to Modhesh World.
A less than 5-minute walk down the DWTC Concourse, you will find the entrance to Modhesh World! We were very excited to visit because it was Modhesh’s 20th Anniversary and they were back bigger and better than ever! This year Modhesh World was offering free entry for the entirety of its running season (from June 21st – August 17th, 2019.)
Because it’s an indoor park, it’s a great way to beat the heat this summer and spend time with the family without breaking a sweat!
I added a highlight on my Instagram page so that you can see our full guided tour and fun tips all over Modhesh World. You can check it out here!
I wanted to thank the marketing team, in specific Rachit Shah, for this awesome opportunity.
Have you stayed at the Novotel Dubai World Trade Center? If not, now’s the time! Their summer stays start at AED 189.
Book your memorable stay this summer with Novotel World Trade Center and it’s partner hotels here! http://bit.ly/summerdubai19
Until next time.
Zuzu loves…staycations. xo
