Dubai: The Atlantis Just Got A Lot More Royal

If Dubai’s Palm Island wasn’t already fabulous enough; just wait until you see what they have planned for 2017. The Atlantis has become a Dubai staple attracting huge crowds to their 1,539-room hotel. As with all things Dubai, it simply wasn’t big enough. Now enter The Royal Atlantis, an entirely separate and more upscale property just down the beach.

The $1.4 billion resort expansion will have 800 rooms and 231 residences, making it the first building in the complex to have residences. Guests who choose Royal Atlantis will also have access to amenities in both of the resorts. The new resort will have five-star facilities including a Sky Pool 90 meters above The Palm, private gardens, new top restaurants with menus from celebrity chefs like Gordon Ramsay and panoramic views of the ocean and Palm Island. I almost forgot to mention plans for a luxuriously lavish Givenchy Spa and high-end retail boutiques. Living here will literally feel like a permanent vacation. Which begs the question; shouldn’t life be more like a permanent vacation?

The Royal Atlantis will also boast a uniquely a different architectural style from The Atlantis. In place of a palatial aesthetic you will find a modern and minimal design. The new resort will appear as a series of glass boxes arranged on top of one another. Kerzner International Holdings Limited and the Investment Corporation of Dubai supported the new high-tech venture; who expect the opening in December of 2017. Which is surely no coincidence with December being a peak time for tourism in the city.

The opening has Ravini Perera, Senior VP for sales and marketing for Atlantis, hopeful that the different experience will bring in different tourists. Perera has plans to attract more tourists from the U.S., who as of now only comprise of 5% of the resort’s guests. For many U.S. travelers Dubai remains a 4-5 day stopover on the way to destinations in Asia. Perera and The Royal Atlantis hope to change that. With 23 top dining venues, pristine beachfront, a waterpark, aquarium, marine experiences and the new luxury Royal Atlantis they should have no problem in driving those numbers up.