Review of AUHotel transit hotel in Abu Dhabi Terminal A

[Mattg]

I recently had an overnight layover at Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi (AUH) and decided to book a room at the transit hotel in Terminal A.

I couldn't find a huge amount of information online about this hotel, which doesn't seem to even have its own website, so I thought I'd put together a quick review here.

Hotel location​

The AUHotel is located airside in Terminal A at Abu Dhabi's international airport, next to the Pearl Lounge which is roughly in the middle of the terminal. It's fairly well signposted.

I was in transit, having flown in from Singapore just after midnight and connecting to Istanbul at 9.30am the next morning. I had to clear transit security and enter the international departures area of the terminal to reach the hotel.



The entrance to the hotel is shared with the Pearl Lounge entrance. But instead of turning left and going up the escalator towards the Pearl Lounge, you can check in to the hotel at the desk on the right.



Once checked in, you can head up the escalator and then take the lift to the right to get to your room. The hotel has four stories.

Booking & price​

As the hotel doesn't have its own website, and didn't appear to be on Qantas Hotels, I booked on Booking.com. The cost was around AUD117 for six hours, and there's another rate you can book for a 12-hour stay.

This was more expensive than booking a hotel outside of the airport, but given the late arrival time in AUH I was prepared to pay a bit more for the convenience of staying in the airport. Is the hotel good value for money? Well, probably not if you compare it to other hotels in Abu Dhabi... the room is pretty small. But the main thing is the location.

Another Australian couple arrived when I was checking in and didn't have a booking. They enquired how much it would cost for a 6-hour stay and were quoted USD130 (approx. AUD193). This was a lot more than I paid, and they commented that they could book a lower rate online. The staff just told them that USD130 was the fixed walk-up rate and they could book online if they wanted, but would need to wait 15-30 minutes for the room to become available if they did that.

So, pre-book online. After booking, you'll need to inform the hotel of your expected arrival time.

I checked in at 00:30 and was told I would need to check out at 06:30. That was the time block that I had requested, but I'm not sure what would happen if your inbound flight was delayed.

When I checked in, I was asked for my passport and boarding pass. The staff member could not find my booking in their system, so also then asked for a copy of my booking (which I had printed out).

The room​

The room was fairly basic, but about what I expected for an airport hotel. It was pretty small, but had a comfortable bed, desk, TV and bathroom. Free Wi-Fi was available. The room didn't have a hairdryer but someone brought this to my room after I requested it.




I could hear some noise from the hallway during the night, with people coming and going at all hours. Maybe bring some earplugs. Other than that, I slept well for a few hours.

Service​

The staff on the front desk were nice enough, but didn't seem to have much authority to take initiative with things. There were only two people working on the desk the whole night, so the queues to check in were quite long.

I requested a wake up call at check-in, which never happened.

 

[Sprucegoose]

It Looks comfortable in any case; at midnight, you just need a comfortable bed and rest.

 

[ChaseThePoints]

The convenience is of it being in the airport is hard to beat and worth a premium in my opinion. Thanks for the review.

 

[Blinky]

I’ll be staying there next March. We have a 16 hour layover, and as good as Etihad F lounge is, we will need a proper kip.

 

[jase05]

I’ll be staying there next March. We have a 16 hour layover, and as good as Etihad F lounge is, we will need a proper kip.

With that length layover I’d definitely look at heading into town or even close by. Plenty of quality accommodation around

 

[Melburnian1]

I recently had an overnight layover at Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi (AUH) and decided to book a room at the transit hotel in Terminal A.

I couldn't find a huge amount of information online about this hotel, which doesn't seem to even have its own website, so I thought I'd put together a quick review here.

It only has two brief reviews on TripAdvisor.

Neither are complimentary. One is from a Sydney-based Australian.

The room looks extremely small. Better to book an hotel outside, near the airport, though I understand if arriving at midnight and departing at 0930, this would eat into the time.

Mattg, why not post a detailed review on TripAdvisor? This would help many prospective travellers rather than the small number who read your comments on AFF.