The Ten Best Hotel Bars in Dubai

Polished, precise, civilised. Dubai's best hotel-bar drinking — picked for craft, not concierge buzz.

Dubai's hotel bars run a quieter, more disciplined kind of drinking. They're rooms designed for travellers who want a precise martini and an unhurried hour, not whoever happens to walk in off the street. This is barsforKings's editor-curated guide to the 10 best hotel bars in Dubai — picked for craft, atmosphere, and the rare quality of being equally good at 6pm and 1am.

Hotel bars solve specific problems. You need a bar near your room. You need somewhere quiet to take a meeting. You want the drink right the first time and you don't want to negotiate a wait. Every recommendation below clears those three bars. Most are open to non-guests; we've flagged any that aren't.

Best for: business travellers, late-checkout drinks, hotel-room negotiations made civilised, anniversaries that deserve a hotel jacket. Pricing skews higher than the city average — that's the trade. The rooms below justify it.

The Ranked List

Ten hotel bars, ranked

Civilised, polished, not pretending to be a club. Pick by neighbourhood and proximity to where you're sleeping.

No. 01 · Hotel Bar
Eve Penthouse & Lounge
Marina · $$$$
Eve Penthouse & Lounge draws a steady local crowd in Marina. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
No. 02 · Hotel Bar
EVE Penthouse Dubai
City centre · $$$$
EVE is the rooftop penthouse atop SLS Dubai with two infinity pools, a glass-floor lookout and a view that takes in both the Burj Khalifa and the Marina skyline
No. 03 · Hotel Bar
Cabana Rooftop
JBR · $$$$
Cabana Rooftop draws a steady local crowd in JBR. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
No. 04 · Hotel Bar
Cassette Lounge
Marasi Bay · $$$
Cassette Lounge draws a steady local crowd in Marasi Bay. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
No. 05 · Hotel Bar
Cigar Lounge at Couqley
JLT · $$$$
Cigar Lounge at Couqley draws a steady local crowd in JLT. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
No. 06 · Hotel Bar
Cielo Sky Lounge
Festival City · $$$
Cielo Sky Lounge draws a steady local crowd in Festival City. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
No. 07 · Hotel Bar
Penrose Lounge Dubai
City centre · $$$
Penrose sits inside Banyan Tree Dubai's lobby — an under-known cocktail room that takes its programme more seriously than most hotel bars in the city.
No. 08 · Hotel Bar
Pisco Rooftop
Madinat Jumeirah · $$$
Pisco Rooftop draws a steady local crowd in Madinat Jumeirah. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
No. 09 · Hotel Bar
Q43 Rooftop
Dubai Marina · $$$
Q43 Rooftop draws a steady local crowd in Dubai Marina. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
No. 10 · Hotel Bar
The Lounge at Rove Downtown
Downtown · $$
The Lounge at Rove Downtown draws a steady local crowd in Downtown. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
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Photos via Google Places. Editorial selection by Bars for Kings editors. Source