DUBAI
The first to open outside Europe, in the Middle East, 25Hours Hotel - One Central, is the latest addition to the 25Hours collection in the heart of the Dubai. A Stay at 25Hours brings you art collaborations, enchanted surroundings, and a quirky style of living, new to the Middle East, nestled in the heart of downtown Dubai.
The Future Downtown Dubai
From Europe to The Middle East
The first 25Hours Hotel outside Europe has landed in Dubai, located at One Central, the latest addition to the Dubai World Trade Centre, and in close proximity to key districts like the Burg Khalifa and the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).
To know what to expect when visiting the latest 25Hours Hotel One Central in Dubai, you must first understand what this brand, of it’s own imagining, sets out to do.
My first visit to a 25Hours hotel had been in Berlin. A city where everyone is too cool, for anything to qualify as cool, and 25Hours rose to that occasion. It was the first time I had ever seen a hammock in a hotel lobby, and I knew instantly that I would love everything that followed. The Berlin hotel’s famous Monkey Bar overlooking Berlin Zoo, has also opened in the Dubai hotel, this time overlooking Dubai’s Museum of the Future. As always, the Monkey Bars boast unique views, artisinal drinks, and the most social seating structure in the form of giant steps and beanie bags.
My second trip to a 25Hours hotel was to visit the Christmas Markets in Frankfurt, where I distinctly recall being welcomed at the front desk by a robot on wheels (really!). So with a healthy understanding of what I could expect when I received the pleasant surprise that 25Hours were taking on Dubai, I jumped at the opportunity to quell my curiosity and experience their take on the city of excess and luxury myself.
So with a healthy understanding of what I could expect when I received the pleasant surprise that 25Hours were taking on Dubai, I jumped at the opportunity to quell my curiosity and experience their take on the city of excess and luxury myself.
The Brand that Gives You 25Hours
It is important to understand that 25Hours does not set out to out-do the luxury of its neighbouring Dubai establishments through gold-leaf painted ceilings and rooms with two bathtubs, ‘just because’.
The 25Hours brand was created to cater to the playful traveller with a love for culture, art and exploration. With that said, if you are the kind of person who chases the term “Art” with the word “Basel”, then 25Hours may not have been designed for you, and that comes down the brand’s ethos of non-pretentious, laid-back luxury, inviting all to “come as you are”.
Each hotel created by this brand seeks first to be inspired by its location so that no two hotels are exactly the same, and secondly to create social hubs of creativity and cosmopolitan motion; whether that means staying as hotel guests or visiting their infamous restaurants and bars including the renowned “Monkey Bar”.
The brand’s ethos of non-pretentious, laid-back luxury, inviting all to “come as you are”.
Location
Let’s talk about the location.
Whilst 25Hours One Central obviously doesn’t set out to be a beach hotel, it is well positioned for day trips to Dubai’s notorious beach clubs. Alternatively, it invites you to explore a different side to the 21st Century’s city of innovation, starting with the Museum of the Future. Seven years in the making, this masterpiece was finally unveiled to the public in 2022, and prime views of it can be enjoyed from every corner of the hotel. Whether that be from the stunning rooftop pool and unrivalled rooftop bar, the Monkey Bar, or even your room, the Museum of the Future is a sight to behold both outside and within, and there is no better place to enjoy it from, than during a stay at 25Hours One Central.
Relax & Recline At 25Hours
25Hours invests in creating a memorable, sensory and invigorating experience for all who step into it, again whether as guests or day visitors: as we soon found out, both will flock to it. The hotel was full to the brim when we arrived, a testimony to a new dawn of Dubai’s visitors.
On arrival, you are greeted by a striking, spanning, galactic piece of art called ‘Under the Same Sky’ by Dominik Bulka – inspired by the constellations, in a playful manner that revives the inner child in us all, with our glow in the dark stars in our childhood bedrooms and makeshift tents as we explored our imaginations at night, too excited to sleep. Below the sky, quirky collectibles fill the centre of the lobby, and walls are covered with antiques gathered from the city’s souks, all inspired by the culture and traditions of the region. And just like my love for hammocks, 25Hours pleasingly brings giant swinging souk baskets to their Dubai hotel, inviting all passers by (even those in suits!) to stop for a playful swing in one of Muriel Gallardo Weinstein’s pendulum baskets.
The seemingly endless ground floor space of the hotel is occupied by social areas, and workstations including what can best be described as a cascading multi-level centerpiece, topped by a spinning globe, and lined with books from around the world.
Guests can take a seat on each level of this circular stage, and take in the buzz and excitement of this ever-alive hotel.
Game on, 25Hours, I was ready to stay up and explore each and every corner, from my very introduction to the hotel so far.
Food At 25Hours
To one side you have working spaces, an outpost for remote workers or business clients, and to another you have the “Nomad Bar” where you can grab your morning coffee and pastries if you are not staying in. If you are staying however, then please grab a seat at the open-roof conservatory area outdoors with Bedouin-style seating which insists on three things only: that you recline, socialise, and slow down. The Nomad Bar was our daily recalibration zone.
The ground floor doesn’t end there; Tandoor Tina, their signature restaurant which comes alive each night, takes you through a culinary journey of Indian cuisine with a British influence. Every evening the restaurant is full, alive, and as I write this I have the simple problem of wishing to be back there instantly.
The 25Hours Rooms
The rooms at the 25Hours Hotel One Central come in tiers, and your choice should come down to the type of holiday you wish to spend. For business travelers, or those wishing to explore the city, I advise on the Medium Bedouin, Glamping, and Farmstay rooms; king sized beds, rain showers, hammocks, and in our case a free soft drink mini-bar, suffice perfectly for those not planning to spend the entire day in their rooms (and why would you!).
For those opting for more space, the Hakawati Suite is the most coveted room in the house. It’s 228 sqms feature a sheikh ‘triple-king’ sized bed and the best views of the Museum of The Future, a double bathtub (I did tell you that was a Dubai thing!) dance floor, 2 private bars, and a photo booth. Just saying, in case you’re planning on celebrating a birthday/quinceañera/bar mitzvah/your general wealth, because anything’s possible in Dubai after all.
Monkey Bar
The age old adage tells us to save the best for last, and so I did. The Monkey Bar alone, I would fly to Dubai for. Somehow, it outdid its sister outpost in Berlin. An inviting ambience, menu, rooftop view, and DJ to boot make this bar one of the hottest in Dubai.
My main concern from here on out is who to call if I want to get in, because a Friday night saw a queue as long as the hotel’s circumference itself, and signalled to me that this is what Dubai has been desperate for all along: the best of the old, with a touch of the new; uncompromising quality which welcomes all, without pedastaling itself, instead allowing you to make up your own mind, as to why this hotel is the ultimate escape, the ultimate home away from home
Rooftop Views
If the multiple layers and levels of 25Hours have not impressed you thus far, then the rooftop pool and bar will seal the deal for you. Escape everything, and meet me at the pool, with a breath-taking view of Dubai’s latest cultural addition, The Museum of the Future. This is 25Hours, bringing you quirky interiors, but never forgetting the views too!
This is a place that revives nostalgia, excitement, youthfulness and creativity, in one fell swoop, and invites you to do it over and over again.
You must experience 25Hours One Central in Dubai for yourselves. It will whisk you away to a different type of futurism – a dreamlike one verging steadily into reality.
