Four Seasons Hotel Kuwait at Burj Alshaya

Rooms and decor

The moment you step into Four Seasons Hotel Kuwait at Burj Alshaya, you can tell this is not an ordinary city hotel — the lobby rises through several floors in cream and gold marble, designed by Yabu Pushelberg, the Canadian studio that gives Four Seasons properties worldwide a shared feel tuned to each location. Here that means modern Arabic lines, a large crystal chandelier and a central fountain that lands somewhere between palace and contemporary gallery. A concierge in traditional Kuwaiti dress walks over and greets you by name before you have to say a word. It is the kind of Four Seasons service returning guests describe as remembering everything. Upstairs, the rooms are the work of Pierre-Yves Rochon, the French designer behind the rooms at Four Seasons Paris and the George V, done in warm gold, brown and cream with a residential feel. You get a soft king bed dressed in Egyptian cotton, smooth hardwood floors, and a wide marble bathroom with a separate tub and a rain shower. Best of all, the big windows open onto the Kuwait City skyline, Al Hamra Tower and the Persian Gulf — a view many reviews call the highlight of the stay, especially from the high-floor suites in the 25-floor tower that see all the way to the sea, Kuwait Towers and the old town. Open the curtains in the morning to sunrise over the bay.

Food and amenities

At this level the heart of a city hotel is more than a pretty room — it is everything behind the door, starting with Burj Spa, which takes up several floors and which reviewers describe as a standalone resort spa in the middle of the city. There are treatment rooms including couples' rooms, a sauna, a steam room and a hydrotherapy pool, and the real bonus is an indoor pool and an outdoor pool upstairs — the indoor one stays usable even when it hits 50°C outside, while the outdoor pool with its city view waits for the cooler days. The 24-hour fitness centre is fully kitted out with trainers on request. Then there are the six restaurants under one roof. Leading them is Sintoho, an Asian fusion room locals rate among the best in the city, blending modern Chinese, Japanese and Thai with a teppanyaki table and an open sushi bar. Dai Forni turns out Neapolitan pizza and fresh pasta from a real wood-fired oven; Elements is the popular all-day international buffet; Al-Bustan serves traditional Kuwaiti and Arabic food where you can try machboos and harees in a classic majlis setting; Burj Cafe stays easy all day; and the Arabian-style tea lounge does afternoon tea with baklava and traditional Khabeesa sweets. You never need to leave.

Location and getting there

The hotel occupies the 25-floor Burj Alshaya tower in the middle of downtown Al Mirqab, on Al Soor street, a main artery of the old city. A location this central is rare in Kuwait City — a few minutes on foot from the lobby gets you to Souq Sharq, the seafront mall with restaurants and a bayside promenade for evening walks, and a 10 to 12 minute walk reaches Al Hamra Tower, Kuwait's tallest building at 414 metres, with a Sky Lounge and outlets inside. A 5 to 10 minute drive takes you to Kuwait Towers, the three-tower icon everyone comes to photograph, and Avenues Mall, Kuwait's largest, is about 10 to 15 minutes by car. The cafe and restaurant scene in Salmiya is roughly 15 minutes away. For travelers, the airport (KWI) is about 20 km, a 25-minute drive, with a Mercedes or BMW limousine transfer as standard. It suits business travelers flying into Kuwait or couples who want to make the most of the capital — every landmark in town is within a 15-minute drive of the lobby.

Things to know before booking

Straight talk to help you decide. The first thing to prepare for is that Kuwait is a dry country — alcohol of every kind is banned by law, so Four Seasons Kuwait has no wine, beer or cocktails in any restaurant, even Sintoho and Dai Forni, which in other countries are known for their wine pairings. Here it is premium mocktails, fresh juices, tea and high-quality coffee instead, so wine-with-dinner or a nightcap is off the table. The second is price: this is the top of Kuwait's range for both rooms and food. Rooms start around $430 a night and suites climb past $860, and a meal at Sintoho or Dai Forni runs roughly $85 to $145 per person, so budget accordingly if you mean to enjoy it. The third is the downtown location: central and walkable to the landmarks, but denser than the seafront in Salmiya or Messilah, with no private beach. Anyone after a beach-resort feel may find it too much in the middle of the city. Finally, Kuwait's summer (June to August) hits 45 to 50°C, making walking outside almost impossible — the indoor pool and spa let you spend the whole day in the hotel, but if you plan to explore the city and its landmarks, come October to April when it is cooler.

Our take

After reading through hundreds of real guest reviews, our read is that Four Seasons Hotel Kuwait at Burj Alshaya is the top city hotel in the country, where Four Seasons service meets the renowned design of Yabu Pushelberg and Pierre-Yves Rochon. It stands out for service that gets every detail right, suites with Persian Gulf views, the large Burj Spa with its indoor and outdoor pools, and Sintoho, which Kuwaitis themselves rate among the best restaurants in the city. The central Al Mirqab downtown spot on Al Soor street puts Souq Sharq and Al Hamra Tower within walking distance and Kuwait Towers and Avenues Mall within a 15-minute drive. It is best for business travelers who need a working location, couples who want a luxury base in the capital, and anyone who loves a Four Seasons city hotel and will trade the high price and lack of alcohol for service and design on par with the Paris or Tokyo branches. Overall we give it 9.0/10 — if we could pick only one hotel in Kuwait City, this is the one we would choose first.