"Set amid dunes and date palms, Bab Al Shams reveals itself slowly with a sandstone, fort-like exterior and a much-photographed infinity pool that drops into a vast sandy expanse; I appreciated the resort’s restrained spectacle and absolute quiet as the sun set in pinks and mauves. Fresh from a ten-month renovation and now part of the Rare Finds collection, the rooms (my terrace garden room) marry subtle traditional touches—mother-of-pearl on arched mirrors, brass studs, majlis-style seating—with teal accents and lighter interiors, while dining ranges from the theatrical Al Hadheerah with nightly Arabian performances to more sedate Mediterranean Zala and Pan-Asian Anwā at sunset." - Laura Ratliff