Over the past few years, the development of hotels in Dubai has gone from strength to strength. A combination of high net worth individuals, year round sunshine and the competitiveness of business has seen the development of luxury hotels rocket – and go sky high too.

Hotels in Dubai continue to get taller and taller, pushing the limits of habitable architecture. The Burj Al Arab broke hotel records for its 60 floors, but has been outdone by the Burj Kalifa, standing at 828m – officially the tallest building in the world.

In total, Dubai – or The City of Skyscrapers as it is often known – is home to 63 buildings taller than 200 metres. The skyline is impressive, and the views from hotel rooms even more so: 5 star hotels in Dubai are like those nowhere else in the world.

That Dubai has burst onto the scene in the 21st century dictates that it is a cosmopolitan and thoroughly modern city, with luxury hotels to match: the possibilities are endless, and it seems that in Dubai, anything is possible.

Hotels in Dubai have built their reputation on outstanding service and attention to detail: with so much hotel development occurring in such a relatively small area, the boundaries of the hotel experience have to be pushed in order to succeed. 5 stars is no longer enough: 5 star hotels in Dubai have become 7 star, room service has become personal butler service, and everyday guests are kings and queens.

The development boom has not stopped on land either: the coastal location and shallow Persian Gulf means that developers have squeezed into prime locations by reclaiming land and creating artificial archipelagos: The Palm Islands, and The World made headlines worldwide for their manmade nature and extreme take on building.

More recently, the development in Dubai has slowed, reflecting the worldwide financial climate, though the region continues to enjoy year-round popularity, attracting sun-seekers, lovers of luxury and shopaholics alike – with the 5 star hotels has come enormous shopping malls and a huge industry to support the influx of holidaymakers.

So too, while Dubai’s skyscrapers fly high, local attractions are developing at a similar speed. A feast of waterparks and Michelin-star restaurants – and even an indoor snow-dome – has appeared across the city, becoming famous in their own right: luxury in Dubai doesn’t stop at the hotels. Excursions are endless, and the landscape varied – guests can be in a 4×4 on a desert safari in the morning, and snowboarding in the afternoon.

The potential for holidaying in Dubai is huge: where development in the Middle East as a whole has exploded, tourism has come flooding in – and Dubai has at the heart of the action from the start.