Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay

Rooms and decor

Cross the short bridge off King Faisal Highway onto the private island and the two 50-story glass towers, joined by a skybridge, fill the windscreen — this is the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, a Manama landmark since it opened in 2015. It was designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the firm behind Dubai's Burj Khalifa. What makes the building special is that skybridge linking the two towers at the very top, where the pool and cabanas sit. Inside are 273 rooms and suites in a warm cream-and-gold Four Seasons palette with contemporary Arabian touches, every one with floor-to-ceiling glass over the Manama skyline or the Persian Gulf. Standard deluxe rooms start around 50 square meters, noticeably bigger than most 5-star rooms in this region, with a king bed that reviews call easy to oversleep in, a marble bathroom that splits the rain shower from the jacuzzi tub, and a desk by the window. Upgrade to a suite and you get roughly 100 square meters or more with a separate sitting room, and some suites come with a private butler.

Food and amenities

If one thing gets this hotel talked about, it is the Pool Deck on the 50th floor — an outdoor pool set on the skybridge between the towers, ringed by private cabanas and a pool bar, with a 360-degree view of Manama and the Persian Gulf that many reviews agree you cannot find anywhere else in Bahrain. At dusk the sun slips behind the high-rises and the sky turns gold to pink over the city. Downstairs sit six restaurants: Re/Asian Cuisine for contemporary Japanese-Thai-Chinese fusion, CUT by Wolfgang Puck, the renowned steakhouse from chef Wolfgang Puck that opened its first branch in this part of the Middle East here, the Bay View Lounge for English afternoon tea with a bay view, Bahrain Bay Kitchen for international buffet at every meal, and Byblos, a Lebanese spot many guests call the most genuinely Middle Eastern of the lot. Down one building and you have eaten across every style without stepping outside. On another floor is The Spa, large and high up, with single and couples treatment rooms, a steam room and a Middle Eastern hammam that uses real Bahraini rose oil in its signature treatment. The 24-hour gym comes fully kitted with trainers by appointment, and there is a small private beach by the bay downstairs.

Location and getting there

What sets this hotel apart from other 5-star addresses in Manama is that it is an island — road noise barely reaches it, yet you are only about a 5-minute drive from the Bahrain World Trade Center and the downtown financial district, and roughly 10 to 15 minutes from Manama Souq, the traditional gold market. From Bahrain International Airport (BAH) it is about a 15 to 20 minute drive to the lobby. You get quiet seclusion and a location that puts everything within a short hop.

Things to know before booking

Plainly, to help you decide — the trade-off you hit most often here is the island itself. You cannot walk out for dinner, the market or Bab Al Bahrain; you call a taxi or use the hotel car almost every time, which can feel cut off if you like exploring a city on foot. Second is the price of food and drink inside the hotel: several reviews complain that breakfast outside the package, the minibar and room service add up faster than expected. The easiest fix is to book a rate that includes breakfast from the start. Then there is the newer business district around the hotel, which goes near-silent at night — if you expect a Middle Eastern scene with markets, shisha cafes and Arabic music under your window, this is not that. Finally, the towers and the floor-50 pool photograph beautifully, but the Pool Deck gets fairly busy on weekends; for a quiet cabana, head up before 10 am when it is emptier and the light is better.

Our take

After reading through hundreds of real guest reviews, the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay sells its status as the icon of the city with full confidence — twin 50-story towers on a private island, a sky pool with a 360-degree view, six renowned restaurants in one building, a spa that uses real Bahraini rose oil, and Four Seasons service that remembers names. If your picture of a Bahrain trip is waking up to swim on the 50th floor, a spa soak in the afternoon, then dinner at CUT by Wolfgang Puck before heading back to a bay-view suite, this is the cleanest fit there is. But if you want to walk the gold market, soak up old Manama and step out easily every evening without a taxi, an island stay may feel a touch removed from the city. Overall we give it 9.0/10, best for couples, luxury travelers and business guests who want the best address in town with a destination-resort feel.