First Look: Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island opens at Yas Bay

The five-star waterfront family-friendly resort is welcoming guests from Thursday

The new Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island at Yas Bay in Abu Dhabi. All photos by Victor Besa / The National

Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island is the first hotel to open at Yas Bay.

The entrance lobby at the newly opened Hilton Yas Island Abu Dhabi.

The luxury resort has 545 guestrooms, including 59 suites.

Rooms have an ocean-inspired color scheme and ocean, bay or pool views.

Safety is a priority at the new five-star family resort.

Osmo Lounge and Bar serves afternoon tea, coffee, snacks and sundowners. It also has a lovely terrace option.

The hotel's fully equipped fitness suite.

The hotel makes the most of its waterfront location.

Live cooking stations at Graphos Social Kitchen allow a level of interaction and theatre, in a socially distanced manner.

Socially distanced check-in with compulsory face masks, protective screens and a hand-sanitising station.

Chefs at Graphos Social Kitchen, the upmarket food-hall style all-day dining restaurant.

Rooms have some clever design features including sliding doors and concealed wardrobes.

Suites have a lounge, pull-out sofa bed and full-sized dining table creating a home from home.

The sleek modern design carries through to the bathrooms.

More than half of the rooms at the new Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island have balconies.

A deluxe two-bedroom suite at the new Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island.

The first attraction at Yas Bay has opened on Yas Island.

The waterfront five-star Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island is now open for overnight stays.

Located in the hotly anticipated Yas Bay development, the new Hilton resort is a family-friendly waterfront property with 545 guestrooms, including 59 suites.

Making the most of its island location, the resort blends a marine-inspired palette with a sleek design that fuses simplicity and modernity. Right on the water's edge, the resort has a huge outdoor pool complex lined with palm trees and water features. On one side of the temperature-controlled outdoor pool is a relaxing area with a Jacuzzi for guests seeking downtime. The other side is perfect for families with a children's splash pool, play area and access to the kids club.

A floating beach club

A new beach club will also open here later in 2021. It will resemble an island surrounded by water and with its own beach floating in the bay. The beach club will be accessible for hotel guests via a walkway, and will also accept day visitors.

When it comes to dining, the hotel is home to Osmo – Lounge and Bar, where guests can have coffee, snacks, afternoon tea or sundowners. Graphos Social Kitchen is an all-day dining eatery that’s reminiscent of a stylish European food hall with a variety of international cuisine on offer. Live cooking stations dotted across the restaurant allow a level of interaction and theatre, all in a socially distanced manner.

At pool level, guests can dine at Capila – Pool Bar and Grill, where shisha will also be served. In the future, two new dining outlets will join the resort and guests also have direct access to the soon-to-open Yas Bay Waterfront Promenade, where there will be a host of cafes, restaurant and stores.

Visit Yas Island theme parks free of charge

Visitors checking in at the hotel will receive passes to Yas Island's theme parks. With one pass, per theme park, per day, guests can explore the nearby Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi, Ferrari World Abu Dhabi and Yas Waterworld Abu Dhabi.

The hotel will also be home to the first eforea Spa in the UAE, set to open in the next few weeks.

Rooms come with views of the Yas Bay, the waterfront, the pool or the plaza, and more than half of all rooms have private balconies for making the most of the vistas. Expect some clever design elements such as concealed interconnecting doors in the dressing room areas, pullback screens between bedrooms and bathrooms, and workstations on wheels that can be manoeuvred into guests’ preferred location.

Safety first

Each room also implements the Hilton CleanStay programme and is sealed shut after being sanitised. Throughout the resort, this emphasis on safety is visible with clear social distancing markers in place in public areas, face masks worn by all staff and hand sanitising stations throughout.

The resort implements high-tech, sustainable design with solar panels used to generate electricity. Lighting is automatically adjusted according to the time of day and water conservation comes courtesy of taps and shower heads that limit water usage without affecting pressure.

What else is happening at Yas Bay?

Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island opened in January to a select group of VIP guests in town for the UFC event on at the recently opened Etihad Arena. Guests were able to walk from their room to the big event in less than five minutes, making the hotel on track to be a favourite with anyone attending any of the music, arts, culture, sporting or business events scheduled to take place at the entertainment venue.

Yas Bay Waterfront is an ongoing project by Miral that will soon see the opening of a walking promenade that will have around 40 cafes and restaurants plus retail outlets. Siddharta Lounge, Bushra, Asia Asia and Lock, Stock & Barrel are among some of the new outlets set to open in Yas Bay which will also be home to the new Yas Creative Hub.

Stays at Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island are start from Dh665 per night, Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island, Yas Bay, Abu Dhabi; www.hilton.com