Hatta Fort Hotel - Hatta, UAE

Hatta Fort Hotel, for me, resembles a hotel that has come straight out of the 80s - charming and quaint, made up of chalets on the side of the mountain with a touch of old school... It felt like i was on the set for Dirty Dancing. For some reason I always thought Hatta Fort would be ultra luxury, however there was definitely a more homely feel to the hotel, rather than extravagance. The lobby was rustic and welcoming with a small souvenir shop sitting in the corner. After a rapid check in, we were handed a lofty key which was a nice change to the small cards one is so often given when going to a hotel.. which 9 times out of 10 I lose within the first hour.

We were then directed to our chalet - which I was a bit apprehensive about - however turns out they were more than satisfactory. Each chalet for starters is HUGE with a lovely bathroom decked out with a bath and shower. The rooms come equipped with a TV, large rustic cupboard, massive bed and balcony fitted with two chairs and a table. Adhering to the chalet theme, the majority of the room had a wooden finishing, with grey stone walls, and the views of the balcony were breath-taking, looking straight out over the Hajar mountains. It almost felt like I was on a ski holiday in the Alps - if only there was snow in Dubai! The hotel is also equipped with a swimming pool, tennis courts, a small (and rather dated) mini golf course, and a play ground. In addition to this, for the walkers among you, there are certain walking trails available to get a better view of the mountains on offer.

The site plays host to two restaurants, the first accommodating people who are looking for a light snack or drink called Cafe Gazebo, and the second is more of an all day dining place. Jeema is where you go for breakfast, where they serve up a large selection of both hot and cold breakfast specials including an eggs station - however, avoid the hot chocolate... overly sickly and watery, this is one thing they could definitely work on improving. Jeema also does a fantastic dinner with a vast international menu and a great wine list. We dined on a fantastic starter of snails followed by Chateaubriand which was 5 star - the service was splendid and it was obvious that dinner was one of the main specialities of the hotel.

Even though our stay was short, i thoroughly enjoyed our trip mostly due to the charming rooms, fantastic dinner and friendly/smiley service. Only an hour from Dubai, its a great place to go and relax away from the city smoke, or additional, a great stop off point on route to Oman and is a mere 10 minutes away from the Hatta/Oman border.