Ramada Hotel And Suites, Ajman

Ramada Hotel & Suites is a 3* hotel situated on the Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Road in the emirate of Ajman, best accessed by car or taxi. It is approximately 25 minutes by car from Dubai International Airport, at a cost of around 80dhs by taxi. The emirate of Ajman is the next emirate east of Dubai after Sharjah.

I booked an 8 night stay at this hotel via lastminute.com in July 2010 at the total price of £304.08 for a single occupancy standard king bed room. Prior to booking I exchanged quick and efficient emails with staff at the hotel to check the facilities of a standard room and also confirm that the room price included breakfast. The price I paid per night was around £38 via lastminute.com and I considered this to be very reasonable for a room that included a kitchenette and lounge area, free internet access and buffet breakfast.

Upon arrival at the hotel I was checked in quickly and efficiently at the 24 hour front desk by a member of staff who spoke good English. I was asked if I required a cable for internet access in my room, and given information about breakfast and the free shuttle bus to the beach. My room was in the third tower on floor 10 and I was assisted to my room with my luggage via the lift. I understand there are three towers at this hotel, all accessible via lifts in the lobby, however I did not visit these.

My room was spacious and well air conditioned, with a separate room for the kitchenette which lead onto the balcony. I found this arrangement quite odd as the fridge was positioned almost in the centre of this room rather than being against a wall, and I'd have preferred the balcony to have been accesible from the bedroom and lounge area instead of the kitchen. The room itself was however well decorated and clean, with polished tile flooring, ample seating and storage, and a large television. The bathroom was also clean, comprising of a shower over bath, toilet, basin, hairdryer and mirrors, however I felt it looked a little tired. There was adequate information in the room, including a room service menu at reasonable prices. Please note that this particular hotel does not serve alcohol.

On the first morning I had a problem with the air conditioning and requested somebody to fix it by phoning the front desk, however this process was slow and frustrating as the maintenance man spoke very little English. A number of members of staff attempted to solve the issue but I was waiting for around 45 minutes not being given enough information. As I'm sure you're aware, air condtioning is vital in such a country during the summer, however I was not offered a change of room at any time during this 45 minute time period. With frustration I phoned the front desk and requested to change rooms myself, and was called back within 10 minutes being offered a suite room on the same floor to apologise for the inconvenience. This suite had a separate bedroom and living/kitchen area, and a separate toilet in addition to the main bathroom. I was happy with this change and experienced no further problems with the room.

The hotel has a cafe in the lobby, which was serving specially themed World Cup food and drink during my stay, in addition to the main restaurant on the first floor where breakfast is served. I understand there is also another restaurant located in a tent opposite the hotel but I did not visit this. The buffet breakfast was very extensive and presented well, offering cereals, juices, toast, croissants and pastries, fresh fruit, and a variety of hot breakfast items. Tea and coffee is served at the table and eggs are cooked to order. I found the waiting staff very friendly, however English was again an issue at times. For example, I visited the restaurant on one occasion at lunch after seeing a 40dhs buffet salad advertised in my room on a flyer, however upon arrival I was informed it was an 80dhs buffet and the salad buffet was no longer available. There was also a misunderstanding with room service at the beginning of my stay, as I'd called to ask if there was a charge for breakfast to be delivered to the room (as there was no written information), and was told that there was no charge. Upon receipt of the breakfast the next morning I was however charged 40dhs, and when I complained about this I was told that there WAS a charge to receive breakfast in your room. I found these communication difficulties frustrating, but overall the staff spoke reasonable enough English and were helpful.

I used the indoor swimming pool and spa facilities on a couple of occasions, which are located down the corridor from the lobby. The swimming pool is very small so not ideal if you wish to swim for exercise, but I can see that it's good for children as there is also a shallow childrens pool attached. There are both male and female changing rooms in the pool area with towels and complimentary shampoo and shower gel for guest use, and the steam room and sauna were of good quality and well maintained. There is also a fitness gym for guest use however I did not visit this.

Wifi is available in the lobby free of charge, but I also used the free internet in my room on my laptop via a cable, both of which I found to be a reasonable speed.

Despite the aforementioned problems I experienced during my stay, which I believe were just unfortunate rather than commonplace, I rate this hotel as very good value for money. If you're looking for a cheaper hotel outside of Dubai itself either for business or leisure I would recommend staying here, and would do so myself again. The staff were friendly, the food was good, and the rooms were spacious and well equipped. If you're visiting for leisure there is a free shuttle bus to the beach, however I did not personally opt to use this during my stay as I found taxis to be very readily available and fairly cheap. There is Ajman City Centre mall nearby, but again I did not visit this as I chose to go to the larger malls in Dubai itself (which I would thoroughly recommend). It costs approximately 80dhs each way via taxi to go to most areas in Dubai, so if you want to be in Dubai every day this could get expensive and you may be better off in a more central hotel. I personally was visiting a friend who lives and works in Ajman and this was therefore ideal.