Sarai Apartments, Palm Jumeirah
Al Osaimi Group developed Sarai Apartments, a seven-storey building on Palm Jumeirah that was completed in 2019. If you want the sea close without climbing into a tall tower, this is the scale to look at: the nearest beach is 0.31 km from the building.
The homes range from one bedroom to three bedrooms, which gives the building a wide set of readers. A couple on a long weekend needs the one-bedroom and nothing more. A family of five, or two couples travelling together, will want the three-bedroom, and you can park the hire car in the building because parking is provided for residents.
Developer
Al Osaimi Group
Completed
2019
On this page
- A week with the family or a month at a desk
- From the gym to the garden bench
- Friday prayers and the island's shape
- The beach and the running track
- The drive in from DXB
- Where the pool beats the sea
- Dinner out and a nearby clinic
- What a month in the one-bedroom feels like
- Why apartments sit where they do
- An afternoon that starts at the pool
- The tram stop and the bus route
- Atlantis Mall and the weekly shop
- If you own here
- Sources
- Frequently Asked Questions
A week with the family or a month at a desk
A family with children gets the most from the three-bedroom and the swimming pool. Swimming is the plan for most of the day, and the pool sits inside the building. Children get a clear routine that way. For under-sixes, Jumeirah International Nurseries takes children from about 45 days old up to 6 years.
If you work from the flat, the pairing of a gym and on-site cafes or restaurants does a lot of the daily structure for you: a workout before the first call, a coffee downstairs after the last one. The one-bedroom keeps the desk and the bed in the same room, so a two-bedroom is the better pick for a long working stay.
A couple on a short break needs less. A reception desk, plus security and CCTV cover, and retail units on site for the small errands will do. That is the case for the one-bedroom. It is a fair one.
From the gym to the garden bench
A day inside Sarai Apartments can stay inside for a long time. Morning belongs to the gym and noon to the cafes downstairs. The afternoon is for the pool, and the evening is for the garden. Residents have a gym inside the building, so a morning workout needs no taxi and no membership across the island. The swimming pool is there for the hot part of the afternoon, and landscaped gardens give you somewhere to sit once the sun drops.
Retail units and cafes or restaurants are on site as well. A coffee or a small errand does not mean leaving the building. A reception desk serves residents, which matters when you arrive late and want a person rather than a lockbox.
Friday prayers and the island's shape
Mosque Sheikh Rashid bin Mohammed and Abdulrahman Siddik Mosque are both on the Palm, so Friday prayers do not mean leaving the island.
The beach and the running track
The boardwalk and beaches along the Palm are used for jogging, walking and yoga by the water, and many properties have direct beach access. At 0.31 km from the building, the nearest beach is the closest thing here to a front garden. A running track on the trunk between Shoreline and Golden Mile has play areas and exercise machines along it. A park lies 2.19 km from the building if you want grass underfoot.
The drive in from DXB
Dubai International (DXB) is 42.6 km from the building, about 45 minutes by road. The island joins mainland Dubai by a road bridge that connects to Sheikh Zayed Road, so the final stretch is the same whichever way you come. One taxi ride covers the whole route.
Cars can drive on and off the island freely along the trunk. Sheikh Zayed Road and Hessa Street are two of the links to the rest of the city.
Where the pool beats the sea
Winter is the season for the boardwalk. Winters in Dubai are mild to warm, with January highs around 24 C and lows around 14 C, the season for boardwalk walks and beach days. Summer belongs to the pool. The pool matters more than the sea between June and September, and that is when a building with its own water earns its place. In the cooler months the beach and the boardwalk take over from the pool, and the building stays a quiet base between outings.
Dinner out and a nearby clinic
Nakheel Mall has Cheesefarm and Gatsby Dubai among its dinner venues. For coffee and a lighter meal, Golden Mile Galleria has Caffe Nero and Wagamama among its cafes and restaurants.
Medical care is close: the nearest clinic is 1.48 km from the building. Emirates Hospitals Clinic Palm Jumeirah and Dubai London Clinic are at Nakheel Mall. Al Zahra Hospital is within a short drive.
What a month in the one-bedroom feels like
Stay for a month and the sums change. The second bedroom of a two-bedroom becomes a study, and the third bedroom of the larger homes becomes a place for a visiting relative. Security and CCTV cover run through the building, and maintenance services are provided on site, so a tap or a light that stops working is handled by the building and not by you. Parking provided for residents matters more on a longer stay, when a hire car sits unused for days between trips.
It suits you less if you want the buzz of a high-rise with a long list of facilities, and then Azure Residences and Oceana Residences are two other Palm buildings to compare. Seven storeys and one pool are a quieter proposition. You will notice it at the weekend, when the whole building shares the same water.
Why apartments sit where they do
Construction of Palm Jumeirah began in June 2001. Nakheel is the developer and Van Oord was the dredging contractor. Each frond villa has its own beach. Apartment buildings sit mostly on the trunk, while villas and townhouses occupy the fronds, which is why the two parts of the island suit different kinds of stay. Fairmont The Residence North is another Palm building with its own guide.
An afternoon that starts at the pool
Start the afternoon at the building's pool, then go out when the sun drops. Nakheel Mall has five levels of shops, restaurants and attractions, a 15-screen Vox Cinemas complex, and its own Palm Monorail station. Palm Jumeirah is calm, with waterfront views, running and cycling along the sea, and a view of Atlantis The Palm.
If the building gym is not enough, you can drive 2.34 km to Monty's Rowing School and spend the morning on the water.
The tram stop and the bus route
The Dubai Tram has eleven stops running from Jumeirah Beach Residence 1 to Al Sufouh, and Palm Jumeirah is one of them. Bus route 8 links Deira Bus Station and Ibn Battuta Metro Station and runs along Sufouh Road, close to the Palm's tram stop. If you are carrying luggage from the airport, a taxi to the door is the simpler option, and the tram and the bus are for day trips once you have settled in.
Atlantis Mall and the weekly shop
A film and a browse make an easy evening. Atlantis Mall sits 2.07 km from the building, and you reach Reel Cinema after 1.95 km. Spinneys and Choithrams have stores on the Palm, and there is a Carrefour inside Nakheel Mall. Choithrams Palm Shoreline and Spinneys Golden Mile serve daily shopping. Allday Fresh Market is the specialty option.
If you own here
Royale Stays manages homes for owners from a management fee of 15%, covering furnishing, photography, pricing, check-in, guest communication and maintenance. Owners weighing the whole island can start with our Palm Jumeirah overview.
Sources
Sources: Bayut area guide, The National, Roads and Transport Authority, dubizzle blog, Wikipedia, Bayut, Nakheel, Property Finder, What's On, Property Finder blog, dubizzle Property blog, Propsearch.
Questions