JA Palm Tree Court is part of the JA Resort complex on the outskirts of Dubai and is a unique destination for travelers looking to get out of the hustle and bustle. We had the chance to experience everything JA Palm Tree Court and the surrounding complex has to offer so read on to learn everything this unique resort has to offer.

Location: 4/5

JA The Resort is located about 45 minutes from Dubai International Airport (DXB) and sits right behind Jebel Palm Ali, one of the many palm projects in Dubai, though this one was unfortunately stopped mid construction. The resort comprises the Lake View Hotel, Palm Tree Court and the JA Beach Hotel and extends over 1 million square meters of nature, beachfront and amenities. While the view from the beachfront is somewhat apocalyptic with its half built overpass on the palm, the property is quite the opposite. Rich green lawns, towering palm trees and dozens of colorful peacocks make up the unique landscape of the resort. Guests have full access to the amenities across the three hotels and can either wander the grounds by foot, or get carted around via buggy. 

The Resort is an ideal location for those looking to get away from the chaos of the big city and relax in more of a tropical “countryside” escape.

Lobby & Check in experience: 4.5/5

We arrived at Palm Tree Court around noon to find out our room was available early. The lobby is reminiscent of the mid-century modern architecture you typically see on the California Coast of Big Sur. Towering ceilings of wood and floor to ceiling windows facing the beachfront greet guests as they walk into the lobby. There’s ample seating areas, including at the front desk. We were checked in promptly, given a map of the property as well as a welcome beverage.

Due to the villa-style property layout, we were escorted by buggy to our room and given a full tour of the amenities inside the room, including the most incredibly unique and personalized welcome gift we’ve ever received! Upon entering our room, there were multiple decorated chocolates with our brand and pictures from our instagram. The gift was so thoughtful and well-done! If you remember our review from the Hilton La Romana, we had a similar welcome, though this one took it a few steps further! Overall, it was a very pleasant check-in experience.

Rooms: 4/5

There are 212 suites at JA Palm Tree Court, ranging from Garden View Junior Suites all the way up to Seaview Residences. We were in one of the 24 Beachfront Terrace Junior Suites that come in at 668 square feet.

The beachfront rooms allow for great access to the property without climbing stairs and you are still able to see the view of the water from the room. The terraces feature chaise lounges as well as a dinette for enjoying room service or an afternoon beverage in the room. 

The room is spacious, with high arched ceilings and a beautiful arched window facing outdoors. While the rooms are certainly on the older side, we have heard whisperings that they will begin a full renovation in the coming year. 

The bathrooms feature a soaking tub, shower with Elemis products, toilet & bidet and a double vanity. Being on the first floor we did experience some critters on the bathroom floors, but were promptly taken care of when we called. 

The king bed is comfortable and faces the flatscreen television and minibar.  Water is complimentary and can be requested at any time. They collect and bottle their own water, so guests can have as much as they want in the room.

One note on rooms to keep in mind when booking is that the peacocks do tend to spend most of their time near the garden view rooms. If you’ve ever heard a peacock make sounds, you’ll know it’s pretty loud. We recommend bringing ear plugs if you are a light sleeper.

Overall, we liked the small building feel of the property and loved the peaceful mornings spent on our terrace. Palm Tree Court has a very peaceful, zen vibe to it that we love and we look forward to seeing the modern amenities post renovation.

Service: 4/5

Dubai is a wonderful city that brings talent from all across the world, allowing for diversity in service experiences and staff trained across the world at some of the best hotels.

Across every experience we had, we loved connecting with various members of the service staff, whether they were waiters, activities people, the amazing head of sustainability and more. Coming out of COVID-19, it’s incredible to see the influx of service staff that really make you forget all about the understaffed days of COVID. Every employee we encountered was polite, helpful and knowledgeable about the area and the hotel. 

The property also does offer housekeeping daily as well as turndown, which is always a treat.

Dining: 4.5/5

JA has 25 dining outlets, 23 of which were open during our stay. The property does offer an all-inclusive package when booking direct. We had wonderful meals across the board and loved having all the different options in terms of types of cuisine and styles of dining. We had the opportunity to try a number of outlets that we will detail below:

Eighty One (81):

Located inside the Lake View Hotel, Eight One features a breakfast and dinner buffet. We had breakfast at Lake View and loved the selection of fresh, healthy options as well as the fresh egg station and coffee choices. The setting is lovely indoors with its towering ceilings and nice view of the golf course. 

La Fontana:

La Fontana is the main buffet restaurant for Palm Tree Court and we did try it out for breakfast. While the kind staff treated us to a very exquisite fruit platter and eggs benedict, the buffet featured a good selection of American and Middle Eastern cuisines. 

Republik:

Republik is a funky casual pub style restaurant set in a very stylish outlet in the Lake View Hotel. They serve a variety of sandwiches, burgers and casual dishes and is a great spot to grab lunch. I highly recommend the brisket grilled cheese!

The Anchor:

This outlet is located at the Beach Hotel and is set at the edge of the water in an outdoor setting. The pigeons were a bit of an annoyance and would fearlessly attack your table constantly. The hotel staff did the best they could to ward them off. Regardless, the food was very good and we recommend this as a great location to share some Arabic appetizers like Hummus and Tabouleh.

Captain’s Restaurant:

This was our favorite lunch outlet due to its fantastic location beachside as well as the incredible food prepared by the chef. The Goat Cheese Salad was by far at the top of our list and we really enjoyed the whole grilled fish. This is a must-do if staying on property and if you enjoy dining in a lowkey setting right at the edge of the beach.

Bibé rooftop:

At the top of the Lake View Hotel is my favorite spot at the resort, a stunning rooftop bar with a gorgeous sunset view. The cocktails were exceptional, as was the service and the vibe is amazing. There is great music playing and the lighting is stunning, with ample seating for many groups of friends or couples. This is a spot not to miss on your trip.

Kinara:

Kinara is by far our favorite restaurant in the resort, also located at the Lake View Hotel. Kinara features gourmet Indian cuisine in a stunning setting with outdoor fire pits, plush velvet seating and exceptional service. The menu is varied with delicious meats, fish, curries and traditional Indian dishes. We absolutely loved that the wine menu features wines from India, which we had never tried before and found to be fantastic. Kinara has topped our list as the #1 Indian restaurant we have enjoyed up until now anywhere in the world and we would come back to the hotel just to have another meal at Kinara. Note that Kinara is not included on the all-inclusive meal plans. If you are on the AI plan, I think it’s worth stepping off the plan to dine here.

Sports Cafe:

The Sports Cafe is a casual eatery on the marina and they have a large outdoor screen that plays different sports games each night. We enjoyed a light bite here and would recommend it for a snack or light dinner. We do wish they had a larger beer menu to really lean into the sports cafe theme, but found it a pleasant experience all around. In the high season, we hear this is a very lively spot.

White Orchid Restaurant: 

The White Orchid Restaurant is located inside the Palm Tree Court hotel and features delicious Thai cuisine indoors and on their outdoor patio. We enjoyed a delicious meal and can highly recommend it if you are looking for upscale Thai cuisine. 

Room Service:

Room service is also a great option that is available for guests on property and we really enjoyed having a nice breakfast on our outdoor terrace. Room service pricing was not a huge upsell and is a fantastic choice, particularly for those on a romantic vacation.

Facilities: 4.5/5

JA The Resort comprises over 800 meters of private beachfront, a 9-hole golf course, 3 hotels and a massive amount of activities and unique excursions guests can access. If there’s anything to say about JA as a resort destination, it’s that you will NOT be bored here. From swimming with horses, to shooting clay pigeons in their shooting range to an early morning golf game or hitting the spa, there’s really a lot to do here. It comes as no surprise to me that this is a very popular destination for staycationers and vacationers alike. 

We had the chance to experience the Calm Spa located underneath the Beach Hotel and we had an amazing massage. While the spa isn’t huge, we were the only two guests and had a wonderful experience both during and after the massage when we had the chance to relax in the room overlooking the resort with hot tea and warm neck pillows. 

The shooting range was so much fun and a first for us! The offsite range is about 10 minutes driving from the resort via a complimentary shuttle. Guests can sign up for 50% off the published rates to shoot both indoors or outdoors. The attendants were very helpful and seemed like they actually enjoyed teaching us how to shoot. There is a restaurant onsite as well, which we did not try this time. This is clearly a popular activity in the area as it was very busy when we arrived and left.

The beach has very calm water thanks to the Palm island in front of the resort that blocks any and all waves from breaking on the shore. This makes for a gorgeous swimming beach as well as a great water sports area. The activity center has wakeboards, e-foils, kite equipment, paddle boards and more. 

There is an equestrian center on property and guests can partake in horseback riding or swimming with horses. We did a swimming with horses activity and enjoyed learning about the horses and the center. I would have preferred to do the activity in the early morning or sunset time for a more pleasant temperature for both the horses and us.

There are two fitness centers at the resort: the older facility in the marina and the brand new fitness center in the Lake View Hotel. I personally preferred the views, A/C and equipment at the Lake View hotel and the quick access to a delicious, healthy breakfast in the hotel right after. However, between the two facilities, there are hundreds of machines and fitness related features like squash courts. 

On property, there is also an aviary and they do presentations and teach guests about the various birds on site. 

One of our favorite features of the property is the sustainability facilities they have. The resort does its own desalination, filtration and bottling of water and provides the water to their properties. We did a tour of the facilities with Samuel, the head of sustainability and we learned so much from his passion and knowledge. The work they do on property to create a more sustainable tourism for the future is very impressive and interesting. We highly recommend requesting a tour of these facilities if you are interested as it’s truly fascinating. Also, as we learned, when on property, be sure to request JA water instead of paying for the bottled water at restaurants ;).

Overall, there is a tremendous amount of activities to do onsite, we didn’t even come close to scratching the surface. Being on property reminds me of being at summer camp- constant activities and new adventures around every corner. If you’re looking to try new things or to be entertained on a vacation, this is a great place to do it. 

Style: 3.5/5

The Resort is a compilation of 3 hotels built in three different eras of design and architecture. The Beach Hotel is one of the first hotels in Dubai and features an old, fairly dated opulence whereas the Palm Tree Court was built a number of years later and features a more mid-century modern look. The Lake View Hotel is the most recent property and features a completely different, stunning modern design. Therefore, the style is a bit all over the place in terms of being a cohesive resort. That being said, if the Lake View Hotel is an indication of the level of quality design and style that the ownership group is capable of, we see a very bright future for JA Resorts.  

Overall: 4.1

When we arrived to the property on our first day, we had no idea what to expect and by the time we left, we had learned new skills, eaten delicious food learned about a lot of incredible initiatives the property is putting forth to improve how hotels and resorts in Dubai see tourism in a more sustainable way for the future. If you are looking at the resort and deciding which hotel in the collection to book, my recommendation is to either book the JA Palm Tree Court thanks to the small-hotel feel and access to the beach or the Lake View Hotel property thanks to the spectacular design and cool vibe. If you’re looking to escape the hustle and bustle of the big city and retreat to a peaceful, quiet and quality destination, JA The Resort is a fantastic option.