Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, The Palm, Dubai — Hotel in Dubai

Outstanding, exceptional service at the Taj! I am currently staying here (room 166) and I am just over half way through my holiday. I have come with my 9 month old son and my mum for 8 nights. I am writing this review unusually early because it is thoroughly deserved and recognition needs to be given to the fantastic staff for the excellent service we have received so far. Staff are polite and soo acommodating and throughout our stay nothing has ever been too much - every single member of staff has catered to our needs. No one has ever said NO!! Always a smile from all members of staff, wanting to help in any way they can, going above and beyond.

The duty manager Bassem really charmed us! He has been excellent, he listened to our needs and kindly upgraded us to a better room with a view and space for my little one to crawl! The room is spacious and comfortable and is immaculately cleaned twice a day. House keeping do a wonderful job!

I have a 9 month old who has specific dietary requirements . I would put a request in each day via whatsapp to the restaurant manager at Palm Kitchen and everything would be packed, ready for collection so I can feed my little one. Nothing was ever too much! The little one enjoyed his food so I was a very happy mummy! Special mention to all the staff - in particular Samriddh, Shashi, Shubanker, Sudhir, Nima, Ibna and Vineeta and the executive chef Sonu. A big thank you to you all for being so kind and considerate to my son and taking care of his needs. You made this very stress free for me! And the special touches remembering our favourite things and bringing to the table. It does not go un noticed and is very much appreciated.

We also recently visited the indian restaurant Varq and wow! We have been twice already as the food is excellent and again the service is outstanding. Special mention goes to Mayank who took our order and made superb recommendations. We really enjoyed the dishes and loved the special twists with each dish. Really amazing flavours that work so well. Another special mention goes to Pankaj and Jitendra the chefs, Rishabh the restaurant manager and Haris. All very welcoming and made our visit twice so enjoyable. We will definitely be returning before we leave! Strongly recommend those staying at the Taj to dine at the Varq - it is brilliant and food is delicious!

The pool and beach are great too, very clean - sun lounges very comfortable and plentiful. Life guards and pool staff again very helpful. Move umbrellas when you need shade, bring cold water in a cool bag, bring lollies / lassi daily at 3pm by the pool. No complaints!

The only thing I would say is a shame is the spa! There is no indoor pool or water circuit and use of jacuzzi is only limited to private treatments which is a shame. My mum and I would have loved to have used the jacuzzi especially with our bad backs! The steam room was also out of service so the only thing that could be used is the sauna. I would have loved to use the indoor facilities especially when it got super hot in the afternoons.

The other things is the location is very quiet so not busy like jbr/marina, but with a little one we didnt mind this as much as we preferred staying in the hotel. The hotel does offer shuttle buses to the malls. We took the shuttle and it is an excellent facility for those that want to get out and do something different.

Overall, I would rate this hotel very highly and will be returning again in the future for sure! Thanks to all at Taj for making this trip so special for us. We want to make the most of the remaining nights left and will be...

This hotel has been one of the best hotels I have ever been fortunate to stay in terms of property decor, room style/cleanliness and the service is beyond world class. From the point we arrived, we felt this was going to be a special place. At check in, Pallavi amongst other staff members were efficient, very communicative by setting the scene and expectations from the start - we were also fortunate for the team to prepare our room with our celebration in mind along with a chocolate mousse cake - I managed to devour half of it.

The rooms are large, with great luxury amenities. Beds are large and comfortable with a large desk area if you needed. All the rooms appear to have balconies so was nice to step out to enjoy the heat. The housekeeping staff were quick and thorough everyday to ensure our room was ready - we aren’t messy guests so I hope we made their life easier too. There were different members every day and I could see they were always busy but I would have loved to interact with them more.

I managed to use the Gym and spa faculties which are well maintained and have a great ambience with beautiful views towards Jumeirah.

The breakfast and dinner options are endless here - we spent most of our evenings at the Palm Kitchen as food was catered for all cuisines on different nights - with a focus on Indian cuisine as their staple menu items. Rajmohan one of the chefs, along with other chefs was always out on the floor ensuring the food was available and presentable. He also went out of his way by making me a portion of their chicken tikka which I was looking forward to trying. Sunil made the best omelettes for me which I enjoyed every day. The waiting staff are exemplary at this hotel - during breakfast and dinner, on some occasions we were attended to by familiar faces everyday and we really warmed to them. Abdul in the mornings was always someone I looked forward seeing as he had a shy demeanour but one of the most politely soft spoken people. Dari was always full of life every time and explained the food and remembered my wife’s particular coffee every morning. Bishal was always quick, attentive and made sure we had everything and asked if we ever wanted anything that wasn’t available and out. My only observation during breakfast is perhaps to enforce a dress policy - Indians from India seem to think it’s okay to attend breakfast in pyjamas. This isn’t just in Dubai but I have noticed this is the case in supermarkets, retail outlets, general public places in U.K. too - I am strong advocate to respect the countries and culture of where you are visiting. Bear in mind, I am a British Indian - so there are vast differences.

The pool area is very well maintained with lots of sun beds, cabanas available. There are sufficient amount near the beach also which is backed to the pool area. I had a few days with interacting with Umesh who was friendly and we were able to exchange stories about overall life. Again, I did notice the few Indian clientele to be very loud at the pool area with their children and lacked common decency and a good level of etiquette for other guests who are visiting to relax and unwind.

Overall, I loved this hotel and what made it even better were the people that worked there. Especially when you spend a few minutes talking to them like equals - which a lot of people unfortunately lack. We were recommended this hotel by family and glad we stayed here and in fact would return here again - I have already recommended this hotel to friends and family. Amazing Taj Hotels - you guys really have done...

Our recent stay at Taj Exotica Resort & Spa was beyond spectacular. We originally checked in for one night however ended up extending our stay!||Our check in was quick and easy, we were welcomed with some refreshing drinks and a beautiful shell necklace. Ankita assisted us with the check in procedures while we were comfortably seated, as well as very kindly upgraded our room to the Palm/Pool View. The room was spacious, smelt lovely with a gorgeous view of the sea/palm. In the evening, we returned to a beautiful surprise for my 4 yr old daughter, arranged by Ankita. I happened to mention to her that we were celebrating my daughters belated 4th birthday during this staycation. Balloons, rose petals and her favourite cake, my little girl was ecstatic. ||Housekeeping did a decent job and made sure to keep our preferences in mind every time they cleaned the room. There was a sofa bed in the room which the housekeeping team is happy to set up upon request. ||The main pool was beautiful and perfect temperature for families to enjoy, that stays open until 8pm! There is a kids pool too, for the little ones, in a quiet and shaded area alongside it was a little playground with slides and monkey bars. The Popsicle kids club was next, which was nice and clean and offers a variety of activities. Taj also boasts of a lovely private beach which was clean and calm. Chilled water and warm towels were offered both at the poolside and beachside. ||Chef Sonu Koithara and his team were exceptional! The food at Varq was delicious. Indian fine dining at its best. The food was presented beautifully with authentic Indian flavours! One of our absolute favorites! The breakfast buffet at Palm Kitchen was top-notch. They had a selection of International, Arabic and Indian breakfast, fresh juices and made to order eggs, dosas, french toast, crepes, etc. Needless to say, the Indian spread was the best! We tried the Asian lunch at Palm Kitchen too which was lovely. Overall the food was exceptional at the hotel! ||At the spa, I opted for the Indian Aromatherapy suggested by Dr Arun Aravind. Shyamini was my therapist and she did such a fabulous job, the treatment was meant for relaxation and she did just that. A few minutes into the soothing massage with fragrant oils, I slipped into a deep, uninterrupted sleep for 60 mins! The spa is an experience that everyone must try! ||We were grateful to Rishi for the late check out. We were able to leave our luggage at the reception and continue to use the hotel amenities until we were ready to leave! The kids enjoyed a good 2 hours at the pool before we finally headed home! They have fantastic changing rooms by the poolside for a quick shower after a swim! They came equipped with all the essentials - lockers, toiletries, hair dryer and even a swimsuit water-extractor. ||All in all, our stay was the perfect getaway right before summer break ends, and we left with beautiful memories to cherish. We are definitely going to be returning in the future! The food is delicious, outstanding amenities, beautiful room with gorgeous views but nothing beats the warm hospitality from each and...