United Arab Emirates
Hotels in Abu Dhabi
Quieter and usually cheaper than its neighbour up the coast, with the same seasons and a more spread-out set of islands.
Abu Dhabi is the calmer alternative to Dubai an hour and a half down the same coast, and for most of the year it is cheaper for a comparable hotel. The trade is atmosphere and density: there is less to walk to, the districts are further apart, and a car or taxi is assumed rather than optional.
The city is spread across several islands, and they serve genuinely different purposes — the older centre with the corniche and the mosque, the leisure island with the theme parks and the racing circuit, and the cultural island with the museums. Which one you book on shapes the trip more than the hotel category does.
The seasons match the rest of the Gulf: rates climb through the cooler months when the weather is good and events fill the city, and fall sharply through the summer, when the heat pushes almost everything indoors. Race weekends and major concerts are the sharpest local price spikes.
Where to stay in Abu Dhabi
The area you book in changes the price and the trip more than the star rating does.
The corniche and the old centre
The waterfront promenade and the city's original core, with the highest concentration of hotels and the easiest walking. Closest to the grand mosque and the most convenient base without a car.
The leisure island
Resorts clustered around the theme parks, the water park and the racing circuit. The obvious choice for a family stay or a race weekend, and self-contained rather than walkable to the city.
The cultural island and the beaches
Newer hotels near the museums and along the quieter beaches. The best-appointed rooms in the emirate, furthest from the older centre, and priced accordingly.
Stay near
Most people pick a hotel by what they want to be next to. Each of these searches Abu Dhabi for stays around that spot.
Properties in Abu Dhabi
A sample of what is bookable. Open one for photos, rooms and live rates for your dates.
Radisson Blu Hotel & Resort, Abu Dhabi Corniche
Corniche Road
Exceptional
14,752 reviews
Jannah Burj Al Sarab
Mina Street
Sheraton Abu Dhabi Hotel & Resort
Corniche Road
The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal
Al Maqta Area
Exceptional
3,674 reviews
W Abu Dhabi - Yas Island
Yas Island
Park Rotana Abu Dhabi
Al Salam St., Eastern Ring Road
Crowne Plaza Yas Island by IHG
Yas Island
Al Wathba, a Luxury Collection Desert Resort & Spa, Abu Dhabi
Al Wathba District
Sofitel Abu Dhabi Corniche
Corniche Road East
Excellent
3,145 reviews
Conrad Abu Dhabi Etihad Towers
West Corniche
Exceptional
3,449 reviews
Aloft by Marriott Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre
Excellent
4,208 reviews
Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental, Abu Dhabi
West Corniche Road
Browse all 12 hotels in Abu Dhabi — every property we can book, listed A–Z.
Abu Dhabi: common questions
Is Abu Dhabi cheaper than Dubai?
Usually, for a comparable hotel in a comparable position, though the gap narrows during major events. Abu Dhabi has less international leisure demand outside race and concert weekends, and that keeps ordinary rates lower.
Which island should I stay on in Abu Dhabi?
The corniche and old centre if you want to walk and be near the grand mosque; the leisure island if you are here for the theme parks or the racing circuit; the cultural island for the museums and the quieter beaches. They are far enough apart that it matters.
When are hotels in Abu Dhabi cheapest?
Through the peak of the summer, when the heat keeps most activity indoors. The cooler months are the high season, and race weekends and major concerts produce the sharpest short spikes of the year.