И невозможное возможно!!! And the impossible is possible!

I never thought that this could happen, let alone happen to me, but I won the competition (hooray-hooray!!!! ! ! ) held by JA Ocean View Hotel and became the lucky owner of a voucher for accommodation (6 nights) and meals on a half board basis! ! ! Having received such news in the mail, at first I was wildly delighted, and then doubt crept in ....or maybe it's all a hoax, or maybe it's all just a hotel's PR, well, is it really so easy to win? ? ? And it turned out that the impossible is possible! ! ! After 2 weeks, I had the original voucher in my hands, delivered directly from the UAE. Of course, I still had doubts, the expectation of some kind of deception, a trick, I confess honestly, right up to the very registration, but everything went just fine.
And I also thought that one of the administrators would definitely come up to me and ask me to write a positively laudatory review, or maybe there would be some special meeting, but no, I was mistaken, I rested on a par with all those who paid for accommodation in this hotel out of your own pocket. Therefore, I am writing a review about the hotel the way I saw it, with all its charms and shortcomings. We are in the UAE for the second time. Last year, my husband and I were here, we visited a lot of interesting places on our own, without involving tour agencies, since the transport infrastructure allows, which brings unusually interesting impressions of the country. This year we were with my daughter (3 years old), so our plans included getting the solar-sea charge as much as possible, visiting Abu Dhabi (the mosque, the new Yas Waterwold water park), of course, once again looking at the singing fountains near the Dubai Mall and showing them daughter. Here are some modest plans for 6 days.
In general, of course, 6 days are very few to get to know this wonderful country (it’s good that it wasn’t the first time), you need at least 10, and preferably 14. So, I’ll start with the settlement. We arrived at the hotel at 14:00. We filled out a questionnaire. We were asked for a deposit of 300 dirhams (I breathed a sigh of relief, because I didn’t count on a large amount at all, moreover, it’s not known whether to return it yet). You can’t refuse a deposit in any way, even the arguments that we have half board and we don’t need a mini-bar (and it’s quite mini, our food barely fit, although we had a lot of them) did not work. By the way, drinks at dinner, even water, are paid, so it’s very convenient not to carry cash to a restaurant, but just sign a check. We asked for a higher room, we had a superior. We were told to wait a bit, as a result, at 14.30 we were already inspecting our room 1707.17th floor! The room is excellent, modern design, quite spacious, as in the photo of the hotelier. Wonderful view of Palm Jumeirah.

Yes, there is construction going on under the window, but it didn’t bother us at all (the music from the pool bar hammered harder), it was even curious, sitting on the balcony, to observe how quickly the scenery of the construction site was changing. In the room we had 2 combined beds, one double sofa, a safe (instructions are included, it will not be a problem to figure it out), led TV, hair dryer, mini fridge, it is also a mini bar, hair dryer, wine glasses, bathrobe, slippers - 2 pcs. . , a tea-coffee set with a kettle, water in the amount of 1 bottle per person, Elemis cosmetics in the bathroom (shower gel, shampoo, conditioner, body balm), towels in sufficient quantities. There are 8 clothes hangers in the closet. Cleaning in the room is excellent, I would even say fast, we used to leave for breakfast, and the room is already absolutely clean and tidy. In general, the staff is helpful, unobtrusive, attentive, very friendly to children, well done.
The hotel has 4 high-speed elevators at once, so up and down without problems, waiting for a maximum of a minute. About food. Breakfast is served at Le Rivage from 7 am to 11 am. It is better to come before 10.00, because after the influx of people is huge, and the administrator has a queue, like in a mausoleum. All dishes are regularly replenished, both at breakfast and at dinner, so you definitely will not stay hungry. Every day is the same, but the range of dishes is very large, you can diversify your breakfast according to your taste (here it depends on the skill and desire). Drinks are all free, at the entrance to the restaurant there are welcome fresh juices, there are fresh wheat germ. Eggs in all forms, bacons, sausages, beans, one kind of porridge (porridge), vegetables, slightly salted red fish, several types of cheeses, sausages, salads. Fruits - pineapples, melons, watermelons, citrus fruits. At the entrance there is a showcase with whole fruits (bananas, plums, apples, pears, tangerines), you can take them with you.
We dined in the same restaurant, so, unfortunately, I can’t say anything about other restaurants in this hotel. Dinner from 18.30 to 23.00. Dinners are themed, every day is dedicated to a certain country, so the dishes are different every day, although there are dishes that do not change depending on the type of cuisine, except that they change the set of spices with which they are flavored. There is plenty of meat (beef, lamb, chicken), fish, very tasty, many types of salads, vegetables of course, rice all the time, steamed vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, beans), delicious desserts. On the day of Mediterranean cuisine there were crabs, mussels, sushi. One day the pork ribs were good. All in all, a great menu in my opinion. The only drawback is paid drinks, even water. And I really didn’t have enough soups, every day there was something like broths, only once there was something decent for my taste.
And yet, an interesting point: after dinner, the waiter brings 2 checks for signing, in one the price for dinner (for three we had about 372 dirhams), and in the second the price for drinks, he asks to sign both. At first, I was a little shocked, but what if they show me at the check-out? Do not be afraid, these are checks for reporting the waiter, feel free to sign. I found out about this moment at the reception - this is not a check for payment (not for pay, as they say). There is live music in the restaurant which is great. Yes, and you don’t need to reserve a table for dinner, as it was before, just tell the room number and your last name at the entrance. I have no right to advise where to dine and dine outside the hotel, I confess we didn’t happen to visit a single restaurant on Walk Street, on which the JA Ocean View Hotel is located, but there are a huge number of establishments for every taste and budget. By the way, there is a small shop on the territory of the hotel.

To get into it, you need to leave the hotel, go to the right without crossing the street, along the wall you will see the Lobby lift door, go into it, there will be an elevator, you will go up to floor P, if I don’t confuse anything, there will be a whole street with a pharmacy, dry cleaning, a shop with groceries and basic necessities, and also, they say, there is a playground for children, it seems that it is near the Amvazh Rotana hotel, I didn’t see it myself, I found out after leaving. Pool and beach. At the reception, upon arrival, they give a card that must be presented by the pool in order to be given a set for the beach (umbrella, mat, towels). The pool is located on the 3rd floor, the pool is excellent, the depth is shallow and stable, which is very important for me, because I swim very badly. Children's pool covered with an awning. By the pool you can sunbathe all day and not be afraid to get burned, there is just no scorching sun all day, because the building was built with the letter G and high enough to block the path of the sun's rays.
Maybe not always the case, but for 6 days, the pool was great. The pool is open until 21.00. The lifeguard sits all day on the tower like an owl, which is also good for me. There are plenty of sun loungers by the pool at any time, in general it is not typical for a hotel that at 5-6 in the morning someone takes sunbeds, everyone sleeps until 9-10 in the morning, like normal people on vacation. If you want to fry, then Dubai Marina beach is waiting for you. You can get to the beach by taking the elevator near the pool to the first floor, and then when you exit the elevator to the right, follow the signs, you probably need to walk 250-300 meters along the construction site. There are a lot of shells on the Dubai Marina beach, the sea is warm, clean, despite the construction, it was very pleasant to swim even in the evening. And the construction is going well, especially opposite the Sheraton hotel, another island is being built there with a huge Ferris wheel and various entertainment, so what will be the prices for the hotel after the construction is completed, one can only guess.
JA Ocean View also provides a free shuttle service to the 5-star JA Jebel Ali Beach Hotel (11.00, 12.10, 14.10, 15.40, 17.10, 18.45 - from the JA Ocean View hotel, back 11.30, 12.40, 14.40, 16.15, 17.45 - back) , the transfer takes 30 minutes, you need to pre-register the day before departure, and before leaving, take vouchers for towels in the same place where the appointment is made. The JA Jebel Ali Beach Hotel has a huge “dressing room”, so to speak. The hotel itself is certainly not new, but the area is excellent. After entering the hotel, you need to go down the stairs, get towels, and then turn left and walk 100 meters, there will be 2 changing rooms (men's and women's, respectively). It has everything you need and even more (shower, soap, shower gel, shampoo, hair dryer, toilet, there are even lockers, but I don’t know where to get the key from them). Peacocks walk all over the hotel, they are not at all afraid of people. There are 3 or 4 pools at the hotel, we were only in 2. Well, there are a lot of sun loungers. The sea is so-so, muddy, as they wrote, we did not look for a better piece of the sea.
I was frightened by the signs that there might be some living creatures, I don’t like such surprises. At the entrance to the hotel, pay attention to the mini-zoo, where you can, if you wish, bring (bring in a mini-car) children. In general, a vacation at the JA Jebel Ali Beach Hotel is an amateur: someone goes there every day, and for someone even once is enough, we, of course, had very few days. Everyone is taken back from the hotel without exception, so if you do not get on the first bus, the second one is served. Transfers. In addition to the transfer to the JA Jebel Ali Beach Hotel, the hotel provides transfers to the old city area, where the gold market, the spice market, the Dubai History Museum, the Dubai Creek, where you can ride an abra boat, are also nearby Nasser Square with its numerous fur coats and telephones . The schedule of all transfers is given at the reception.

There is also such an interesting transfer: from our hotel, the bus goes to Ibn Batuta Mall, then to Emirates Mall, then to Dubai Mall, then it goes from the side of the old city (this circle completely rejected my body) to Burjaman Center, and then passing by Dubai Mall returns first to the Oasis hotel, and then to ours. What I want to say is that a free transfer is a good thing, but not with such whirlwinds. I recommend returning by taxi or subway. The metro is a very affordable mode of transport, in Dubai it is a mez driver, especially since it is near all the malls. The nearest metro station to our Jumeirah Lakes towers hotel, 5-7 minutes walk. Leaving the hotel to the right, we go along the street across the bridge, at the big interchange to the left, there will be a supermarket on the corner, go another 100 meters and you will see the metro. Taxi to metro 10 dirhams. But the fact is that in the area of ​ ​ u200bu200byour hotel there are such holes, which is sometimes easier on foot. Trip to Abu Dhabi.
She was completely independent. Like my husband, I am against organized excursions, because on your own it is much better to see what you want, as much as you want, and no one will rush you anywhere. At first, the plan was as follows: by 10 am, arrive at the mosque, and then go to Yas Island to the water park, and then take a taxi to Ibn Batuta Mall, inspect the mall and take the metro home. But we were late with the morning preparations, and therefore, the plan had to be changed. By taxi (10 dir) we got to the metro, then by metro (9 dir. for two) from Jumeirah Lakes towers station to Ibn Batuta station (2 stations), got out of the metro and after a couple of meters from the exit we saw buses, one of which went to Abu Dhabi (a ticket for one 25 dirhams, a child is free in her arms, if there are places, you can sit next to it without any problems), we drove for about an hour, already on the road it was decided to first go to the water park, and in the evening visit the mosque, t .
according to the information from the website of the mosque, the mosque is definitely open for tourists from 10-11.30 in the morning, and in the evening from 17.00. The nearest and first bus stop to Yas Island, on which the water park is located - Sahama, I do not recommend going to the final one, only if you intend to visit the mosque first. There are illegal taxi drivers near the stop, they will take you (for 40 dir) to the water park without any problems, just choose a decent car, they wanted to put us in a complete wreck, it didn’t work out. Safely we got to the water park by 11.00 hours, and it opens from 10 in the morning. We were on Wednesday specifically so as not to stand in lines, and indeed, there were few vacationers, excellent! Tickets to the water park 225 dirhams.
per person, they didn’t take money from the child (we have a daughter of 3 years old), 35 dir is the smallest box for clothes (it’s more than enough), 150 dirhams were put on an electronic bracelet that adults wear to use money in the water park, for example , when buying food, if you do not spend it, they return it back. The food is mostly fast food, ice cream. They took a map from the cashier to make it easier to navigate. The water park itself is not bad, but not so huge that you can get lost, as some write. We didn’t ride the most extreme slides, to be honest, it was scary for me, because we were with a child, so we studied all the children’s entertainment, and by the way, they are excellent and varied, the little one also liked the lazy river. And we were also not easily brought on a pirate ship (the first suspended water roller coaster on the planet). There is no smell of water there, but just hanging slides, but we had enough adrenaline well, and with the whole family.

We spent 5 hours in the water park, took a taxi at the exit, all taxis in Abu Dhabi are silver, and went to see the Sheikh Zayed Mosque. The taxi cost us 68 dirhams, while the taxi driver discouraged us from going to the mosque, allegedly we chose a bad time, and offered to take us to Dubai for only 240 dirhams (generous kind uncle). But the time turned out to be successful 17.00! ! ! A visit to the mosque is free, at the entrance women are given an abaya, you must also take off your shoes. The mosque is certainly magnificent and worth seeing. After the mosque, our path was to the main bus station of Abu Dhabi. Tried to get a taxi. Taxi to the bus station 30 dirhams, taking into account all traffic jams. Taxi drivers disappointed me a lot this year, they cheat and deceive a lot, so I recommend that you know the approximate cost of the trip, the route, and also have small cash so that you don’t have to wait for change from these miracle taxi drivers, or threaten them with the police (they are very afraid) to get it at all.
Arriving at the bus station, we bought a ticket in the building, although when we traveled from Dubai, we bought a ticket on the bus itself. We jumped into the first standing bus and drove off, it turned out that the bus did not go to Ibn Trampoline, but to Burj Dubai (Burj Khalifa and Dubai Mall area), so we had to travel an extra hour, wow. So ask where the bus goes. But in general, the trip to Abu Dhabi was excellent, there were a lot of pleasant impressions. Of course, we could not fail to visit once again the beautiful Burj Khalifa and the fountains near the Dubai Mall and not show such a show to our daughter. We arrived by transfer, looked at the aquarium, wandered around the shops (the assortment and prices are much nicer in the Emirates Mall), and at 18.00 we watched the show itself, the first music is always oriental. The second show for some reason at 18.30 did not take place. We did not wait for the third, we got on the transfer back to the hotel. We took off at 9.00 from Sharjah airport. We got up very early at 5.
00, beforehand in the evening I ordered a light breakfast at Caf? Via, just didn’t understand why pre-order it, because it consisted of coffee and a croissant, and the child was given juice and cookies, although in the early morning you really don’t need more. A taxi cost 140 dirhams, we were on the road for 45 minutes, there were no traffic jams at all early in the morning, we flew with a breeze. This year they canceled a separate registration for tourists with children, they had to stand in a general queue, but it moved very quickly. They flew with Air Arabia, although it was a budget one, but quite good, Airbus planes, takeoff and landing are super, food is so-so on board. The UAE is a country that you need to visit at least once, to see all the luxury, the grandeur of buildings built with oil money and for the benefit of citizens, to feel the quality service, the hospitality of the local population, the pleasant velvety warmth of the Persian Gulf.
And the JA Ocean View hotel is just a great place to stay, unfortunately we stayed there for very few days. Sea, sun, beach, attentive staff, excellent food, good location - the key to your good rest. For me, the UAE is a country where the impossible becomes possible!! ! ! ! But now, I think, I will not return here soon, many more countries are waiting for me, which I really want to visit.