West Zone Pearl Hotel Apartments

I like Bur Dubai's neighborhood, food and metro convenience, which made this experience all the more disappointing. I lived in Dubai for 20 years, but this was my first time staying in Bur Dubai. The hotel felt very average and showed no concern for guests who arrived and were left without accommodation. I booked through Agoda 2-3 months ahead for a 7-night stay over New Year. I paid in full and received confirmation. On December 30, I arrived to check in alone with my two children, and the hotel refused us, saying it had no record of the reservation. I showed proof of payment and the confirmation, but they said it was Agoda's problem, had nothing to do with the hotel, and told me to contact Agoda myself. As a tourist and former Dubai resident, I still had a local phone number and internet. I spent seven hours communicating with Agoda while waiting with my children. Agoda eventually offered a refund or a hotel change. I urgently needed somewhere for the children to rest, so I had no real choice but to accept the change. The replacement hotel was much lower quality, and the breakfast included in my original booking was removed. This was the first time I'd experienced this kind of treatment in Dubai. Normally I would have filed a formal complaint with the Tourism Authority, but my priority then was finding accommodation for my children. On the fourth day of the New Year, the hotel's rates on Google were still over 500 AED per night, while many newer, better nearby hotels cost just over 200 AED.