Sanctuary has awakened
the main dance floor, it's still early - © dubaimoves.com
Sanctuary is a super nightclub in the Atlantis Hotel on the Palm Jumeirah island. Having opened in late 2008, Santuary has recently awakened with the weekly feature of top-flight DJ talent from around the world including Sharam from Deep Dish, Felix Da Housecat, Steve Lawler, Armand Van Helden, Sander Klienberg, Danny Howells and Groove Armada.
The place
Sanctuary has been designed by Jeffrey Beers International, which is the same outfit that designed Ronda Locatelli and Rostang restaurants in Atlantis, China Grill in Mexico City, as well as reinventing the Fontainebleau Resort in Miami Beach.
The Velvet Room is a large space with tables situated around the central columns as well as on the edges of the room. Normally, both house and hip-hop are played in this room but the time and day of the week can determine which is played more.
On the left is a bar covering the span of the room, and it has a huge wall decorated by glass squares with Grey Goose and Dom Perignon bottles. On the right is the entrance to the outdoor ever popular outdoor Terrace. In addition, there are VIP rooms on two corners of the Velvet Room for more private gatherings.
The Terrace is an outdoor space with cabanas and an Arabic theme, but because of its popularity it can get quite crowded. It’s also closed in the summer between June and October.
The Main Room features a large sunken oval dance floor with a suspended catwalk on its perimeter. Sanctuary’s own dancing girls take the stage on this catwalk to entertain from midnight. There are tables on the edges of the dance floor as well as all around it. The back of the Velvet Room bar serves up drinks which are pricey by mixed decently.
The party
At Sanctuary, the biggest nights are Movement on Thursdays and Nova on Fridays, with Nova featuring the top-flight DJs. However, the club is open every day of the week.
This place doesn’t get filled up before midnight, with a steady stream of people coming in starting at 11:30pm.
As with any selective nightclub, it is best to get there early (before 11:30pm) so you can avoid the lines and get situated before the rush. Look the part and if possible go in a mixed group of guys and gals. The door policy is also usually more lenient early in the night, but that doesn’t mean that you can show up with 10 guys and expect to be welcomed.
The crowd at Sanctuary usually is very diverse reflecting the diversity of it’s host city. You’ll even see this diversity in the dancing girls on the suspended catwalk.
Music can vary on the nights and we’ve heard people complain of a lack of fresh music. But the recent DJ lineup has been top notch and should easily fix that problem. In addition, for a break from the house music you can visit the Velvet Room where they play a smattering of hip-hop. All of this is delivered via state of the art sound system by Meyer Sound.
Your drink tab can quickly sky rocket so it’s best to pre-game somewhere outside Atlantis before arriving. While the bar staff provide decent service, it can deteriorate later in the night when everyone wants to be served at the same time.
Cover charges for VIP vary from 250 to 150 AED depending on the DJ.
We’ve found the management and security staff to be pretty respectful and accommodating whenever we’ve visited.
The bottom line
Sanctuary is our new favorite nightclub in Dubai. This is so because of it’s gorgeous interior and diverse good-looking crowd, but mostly for the fact that now we get to hear and see the best of the best DJs in world.
The good
- killer sound system
- nice decor
- top-flight DJ lineup
The bad
- pricey
- music can get repetitive (unless on a good DJ night)
- line can get long on busy days after midnight
gallery
All images © dubaimoves.com. Permission is required for use outside this website.
map
Sanctuary Nightclub, Atlantis The Palm, Dubai
related
- Armand Van Helden at Sanctuary
- NYE 2010 with Armand Van Helden
- Have a blast at 360 degrees
- Bang Nightclub
- Cool Summer Nights at Aquaventure
tags: hotel, nightlife, palm jumeirah
