What do you imagine an airport hotel to be like? Simple and basic, just enough to rest before or between flights. What if you could stay at a hotel that is everything you expect from a 5-star resort and I still just 2 minutes away from the gate? Mövenpick Bahrain has the solution. Awarded Best Airport Hotel in the Middle East by Skytrax, 3 years in a row and for good reasons.

One very clear criteria for most airport hotels is to save space as much as possible. Therefore, lobbies and other public rooms are compromised to save space. First thing you will notice at the Mövenpick in Bahrain is that the lobby is large with revealing elevators and a ceiling that reaches all the way to the top floor. After a warm welcome you will be escorted to your room, that is again larger than you might expect. Some offer a large balcony with a beautiful view over a lagoon

Amongst other facilities you would not expect in an airport hotel are a large spa, outdoor garden with infinity pool and a magnificent restaurant. The restaurant is something special. Not because of its décor but for how it uses the space and transforms the place into something different almost every day. You could have a seafood night with fresh caught fish and sushi, a Friday brunch with international cuisine, or the new Kababna night with a selection of 16 kebabs that will be grilled for you on the spot. Because not only the food changes every day but the restaurant itself too, this hotel is perfect for a multiple day visit if needed.  If you fancy a drink after dinner, pop into the Flamingo Bar, enjoy a flavorsome shisha and relax.

One of the other facilities that blew us away, was the spa. You would expect a small humble spa. Guess again. Full size spa for both woman and man with multiple treatment rooms, hammam, sauna and steam room. Because it is so close to the airport you could literally walk from the airport into the Mövenpick for a treatment while waiting for your layover.

All in all, an incredible hotel. Keep in mind that it is still an airport hotel and you should not compare it to a resort, although, with the facilities they offer in the way they offer them, you are tempted to do that. If you stay here in the winter months, when the temperatures are reasonable, have a walk around the lagoon. It is worth it.