A perfectly non-exciting trip.
Was it ironic that I was reading The Day I Became a Runner by Sohini Chattopadhyay while I was buried in bed? I didn’t even make the effort to trudge to the couch two feet away. I was at Atlantis The Palm, Dubai for three days and I wasn’t going to waste even an ounce of energy on un-relaxing activities. I was a silent (albeit inactive) follower of Chattopadhyay’s women athletes.
I may be an interesting person, but I’m a boring traveler. The kind who goes for historical walking tours, sits charmingly in a museum cafe, stares at the Eiffel, and snuggles in the hotel bed instead of checking off anything on the list. I don’t know how to swim. I don’t do adventures. I rarely eat red meat or seafood. I am a brunch girl, and you will not see me in a club after 11 p.m.
I’d hoped that a tattoo would give me an edge, but it’s a fine outline of cutesy tulip to signify my time in Amsterdam, which may not be as provocative as say, a lion.
In short, I’m basic.
It’s possible Atlantis The Palm was expecting someone more suave and worldly as a journalist to appear. Like my boss, who hilariously orchesteratred a heist at its sister property to steal gold toothbrushes. Me? I fluttered from restaurant to lounge to the beach like a short, Indian soldier armed with a set of hotel stationery to find the best places to stare into the abyss.
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Dubai Glitters
This was my third trip to Dubai—each different from the last. I celebrated a milestone birthday in Dubai once; then I stopped over during a regal cruise through South Asia; this time Atlantis The Palm tempted me with a do-nothing holiday. The fishing village had come a long way since the 1960s with a transformation that seems surreal. Yes, everything is manufactured, including the man-made Palm Islands where I was stationed, but it is a discovery even for the most reluctant traveler.
Friends, former colleagues, and even my doctor from India have relocated to Dubai in the last few years. What had people been seeking in Dubai?
1. View of the resort from its private beach.Apeksha Bhateja; 2. Dale Chihuly sculpture in the lobby made with 3,000 handblown pieces of glass.Apeksha Bhateja
Travel motivations are difficult to understand, but academics have persevered. Graham Dann, in 1977, noted that an individual experiences push and pull factors that encourage them to go somewhere. Push factors such as an escape from daily life or the promise of relaxation and pull factors like culture or affordability of the destination. Many destinations war with each other to pull people to them, and Dubai won over 18.72 million international travelers in 2024.
I would be stating the obvious when I say that the weather in the UAE is unbearable for the better part of the year. You can’t do the typical activities in the summer that encourage people to pay exorbitant prices for a European holiday. It still blows my mind that tennis ace Roger Federer used to fly to Dubai to train in unfavorable, sauna-like conditions in July. That’s one negative to its count, yet the emirate has made a name for itself as a travel destination. It is safe, it is accessible from the remotest corners of the world, and it has the allure of attainable luxury. You order an Uber here and a Mercedes comes to pick you up. Ferraris can have their own Instagram account; they are spotted in the city like cats in Greece.
More than anything else, it is the gateway to the Arab world, a promise that the Middle East isn’t a desert, but a fascinating world of age-old culture, modern architecture and bold ambitions. Such is its charm that it has demanded its own franchise of millionaires playing footloose on camera, and as a die-hard reality television fan, I am hooked to Dubai Bling.
Give Me Nothing
Everything is larger than life at the ocean-themed Atlantis The Palm. Like the sculpture, Dale Chihuly, standing as a testament to its opulence in the lobby. Made with 3,000 handblown pieces of glass, it sets the tone for this magical kingdom inspired by the sea. The resort opened in 2008 and it sprawls over 46 hectares—almost the size of Vatican City. With 34 restaurants, bars, and lounges, four swimming pools, an aquarium, and an aquatic theme park, you expect the resort to be sweeping, but each step extends the red carpet further and further.
1. View from a room at Atlantis the Palm.Apeksha Bhateja; 2. An album filled with selfies.Apeksha Bhateja
The Lost Chambers Aquarium was just a walk away from my tower. Without expectations of much—aquariums are for kids—I went one day on one of my many walks because I had access. Turns out, I love the underwater world. The aquarium that hugs another tower of this resort is home to 65,000 marine animals, and the exhibits go on and on. While exploring, I wondered about the ethics of an aquarium, and made notes to research if this is a healthy life for the marine animals, but I could not deny that it was a beautiful setup that brought me child-like glee.
My travel motivations are also attached to food and at Atlantis, there was plenty to keep me cravings in check. It was, however, at Hakkasan that I knew I had an experience that is reserved for the higher echelon. It was my last dinner and the one-Michelin-starred restaurant delivered. I’m mad for dumplings and they served four varieties, along with hot and sour soup and lotus stem and edamame fried rice. My server was surprised and disappointed that I didn’t finish any dish—I warned everyone I’m a small eater—but this was my favorite meal in Dubai, all three times included.
Eating alone is an art, I wrote in my notes. I didn’t want to look sad or draw pity from fellow guests who were coupled up or traveling with families. But it was incredibly beautiful to not have to talk to anyone. I didn’t have feign enjoyment when a friend joined me one evening for a meal at Studio Frantzén, where a special menu was crafted for us. Then post-dinner drinks sent us on a hunt for Nobu Prive, which is tucked away on the 22nd floor of the resort. Our cocktails were delicious, sure, but what I remember the most of this exclusive nightclub are sparkling views of the city’s skyline that enthralled both of us.
Prove Me Wrong
In Scandinavian countries, winter bathing has a cult following. You will see people jumping into the freezing waters in the cold, unbearable winter months, battling icy winds on the coast. Later, to save themselves from hypothermia, they would go to the sauna and warm up—it may seem paradoxical but it does wonders to the body (or so I have been told). When I lived in Denmark, I stayed far away from such ideas that my tropical brain couldn’t comprehend while my friends vouched for the health benefits and the mindfulness of the practice.
The Lost Chambers Aquarium.Atlantis The Palm, Dubai
At Atlantis the Palm, I was again confronted with this dichotomy: the spa had a plunge bath and a steam and a sauna. Twice, I braved it and ran to the sauna or sat in the jacuzzi. I can confirm that it’s refreshing and I might volunteer to do it again, not in the snowy winter season, but in a sheltered spa where I might be attended to if my fragile heart gives out. Couple that with a full-body, hour-long massage and I made good progress on my promise to do nothing.
The chasm between this holiday and my daily life was so large that even when I look at the album, I’m amazed. The photos are various selfies in front of the full-size mirror in my room: beach day look, smart casuals for dinner, spa day outfit, Michelin-star worthy persona. I had many pre-conceived notions and judgements. I will get bored at the resort if I don’t venture out. What will I do at lounges when I don’t even drink? But at Atlantis, I re-learned another valuable lesson: ditch the productivity B.S. and stay open to experiences.
These hot evenings in Dubai thawed my chilly soul. I sat with a drink at the Imperial Club Lounge, where in the distance, palms lined up to say goodbye to the sun as it disappeared, leaving behind a trail of oranges and reds in a watercolor-worthy picture. Change couldn’t be that far behind, the scene reassured me.