Rixos Marina Abu Dhabi

Arrival is by the Marina Mall waterfront, where the tower rises above Abu Dhabi's Ring Road with the Gulf on one side and the city skyline on the other. Rooms and suites run from 130 to 488 square metres, most facing either the sea or the marina, with a handful looking straight into the city below. It is an all-inclusive stay, and the pace shows in the range on offer: paddleboarding at sunrise, tennis by midday, a Turkish hammam by afternoon. The Naturelife Spa keeps its steam room and sauna free for every guest, a rarer courtesy than the treatment menu beside it. Families get their own track, with a supervised kids' club running craft sessions and a splash tower called Aqua Tower for the hotter hours. Dinner moves the compass again. Isla Beach Bar works the sand itself, healthy bowls by day and a seafood table after dark. You can hear the pool crowd from the upper lounges most evenings, though the private beach stays quieter. Check-in runs from 3pm, checkout at noon, and the whole operation sits close enough to Yas Island that longer stays come bundled with a theme park ticket.