There are certain things I genuinely appreciate about large international hotel chains. The quality of service, the consistency, the comforting knowledge that wherever you are in the world, you can expect a particular standard. You know what the room will look like, how the breakfast will work and, more or less, what sort of experience you are paying for. There is something reassuring about that predictability.

But there is also something missing. Too often, these hotels feel as though they could exist anywhere. Different city, different view, same furniture, same lobby, same carefully perfected idea of luxury. Everything works beautifully, but nothing really stays with you.

That is why I have always been drawn to boutique hotels and unusual places to stay. I want a hotel to have a personality, a history, an atmosphere that couldn't simply be replicated somewhere else. I want to notice the furniture, get curious about the architecture and discover something unexpected while wandering around. Most importantly, I want to feel that somebody has thought about the place as a whole, rather than simply assembled a collection of expensive things.

After spending two days at Erth Abu Dhabi, I think I have found exactly what I have been looking for in the UAE.

What makes Erth particularly interesting is that it wasn't originally conceived as a luxury resort. Its story goes back to 1983, when Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan envisioned a recreational space for officers of the UAE Armed Forces and their families. The Armed Forces Officers Club was officially inaugurated in 1997, and in 2003 it opened its doors to the wider public as the Armed Forces Officers Club and Hotel.

In 2021, the property began a new chapter under the name Erth, meaning legacy in Arabic. Rather than abandoning its past, the transformation built on it, turning an important part of Abu Dhabi's history into a contemporary hospitality destination.

And you can feel that history in the architecture. The original building, associated with French architect Roger Taillibert, has a distinctive, almost monumental character. Its sweeping form, generous proportions and expansive grounds belong to a different architectural era, one when buildings weren't necessarily designed to squeeze the maximum number of rooms into every square metre.

The redevelopment introduced renovated accommodation, new dining experiences, beach villas, landscaped gardens and recreational facilities. Yet Erth hasn't lost the feeling of an institution with a previous life. It still belongs to a larger complex with sporting, social and community functions, rather than existing as a hotel sealed off from the rest of the world.

That, to me, is part of its appeal. You are staying somewhere that has been important to Abu Dhabi for decades, but you are experiencing it through an entirely new lens.

Now, let's talk about the interiors, because this is where I completely fell in love.

There are hotels where you walk into the lobby, register that everything looks expensive and move on. At Erth, I kept stopping to look at things. A lamp. An armchair. A stool. The proportions of a table, the texture of a wall, the way a particular piece of furniture sits within the space.

I genuinely wanted to examine every little detail.

What impressed me wasn't simply the quality of the individual objects, but the feeling that they had been chosen with intention. Nothing seemed interchangeable. The furniture, lighting, materials and decorative details create an atmosphere that feels contemporary without becoming cold, sophisticated without trying too hard to impress.

The design draws on an earthy palette and tactile materials, with references to Emirati craftsmanship and traditional forms. Yet it doesn't feel like a themed interpretation of heritage. It feels like a confident, modern design language that happens to belong to this particular place.

And then there is another discovery for design lovers: Fount, the wonderful concept store created by our friends at Ripple Collective, is located within Erth itself. It is a destination for beautifully considered objects, furniture and contemporary product design, and exactly the kind of place where you can lose track of time looking at things you didn't know you needed.

The connection feels completely natural. Erth is the sort of hotel where even the furniture makes you curious about who designed it, and Fount is a place dedicated to answering precisely those kinds of questions.

One of the things I realised during my stay is that describing Erth simply as a hotel doesn't quite do it justice.

The property is part of a much larger destination, combining accommodation with recreational facilities, restaurants, landscaped public areas and spaces used by the wider community. It feels less like a conventional resort and more like a small neighbourhood with a particularly good hotel attached.

And if you are an active person, the possibilities are almost ridiculous.

Etizan Fitness, the enormous sports and wellness facility within the complex, includes extensive gym facilities, indoor and outdoor padel courts, tennis and squash courts, football pitches, and a proper 50-metre, eight-lane indoor swimming pool. There is also bowling, dedicated studios for different types of training and organised running and cycling activities.

Yes, you can come here for a staycation and still train properly. Not the usual hotel-gym experience involving three treadmills, a suspiciously unstable bench and a collection of dumbbells that stop at 12 kilograms.

We are talking about serious sporting infrastructure.

For someone who likes to build a holiday around movement, that is a very attractive proposition. You can swim in the morning, head to the gym, play padel or simply explore the grounds. You don't have to choose between an active weekend and a relaxing one.

And when you have had enough exercise, there is Al Waryah Pool & Beach, with two oasis-shaped pools and a 350-metre stretch of private beach. It is peaceful, spacious and wonderfully suited to the very important activity of doing absolutely nothing.

I spent enough time there to confirm that the transition from ambitious athlete to horizontal poolside creature can happen remarkably quickly.

A good staycation needs a certain rhythm, and at Erth it is remarkably easy to create one around food.

Mornings begin at Al Rimal, the hotel's all-day dining restaurant, where breakfast combines international favourites with flavours inspired by the region. There are live cooking stations, freshly prepared dishes and the sort of generous selection that makes you reconsider your original plan to eat something light before heading to the pool.

Lunch belongs outside. Asrah, the poolside venue at Al Waryah, is the place to settle in with something refreshing and enjoy a relaxed afternoon without feeling particularly compelled to check the time. And if the mood calls for familiar holiday comfort food, pizza and burgers are exactly the sort of things I want to eat between swimming and sunbathing.

Calories consumed beside a swimming pool don't count. I am fairly certain this is established science, although I wouldn't recommend asking a nutritionist.

One of the more distinctive experiences is the Emirati high tea at Al Rayeh Lounge. Rather than simply reproducing a British afternoon-tea tradition, Erth has developed its own interpretation, drawing on local ingredients and Emirati culinary heritage. The lounge itself is a beautiful, quiet space, designed around the regional tradition of gathering in the shade to talk, work and spend time together.

It is a small but meaningful example of what makes Erth different. Even something as familiar as afternoon tea becomes an opportunity to discover more about the place you are visiting.

And for dinner, I would head straight to Ergon Deli & Café.

The restaurant takes its inspiration from Greek and Mediterranean cuisine, with a menu built around the kind of food I could happily eat every day: fresh salads, mezze, pasta and beautifully simple dishes designed to be enjoyed rather than overanalysed. The waterfront setting makes it particularly lovely in the evening, when the light changes and the entire place slows down.

There is something very satisfying about ending a day like this with good food, a sea view and absolutely no plans afterwards.

What I love most about Erth is that it doesn't demand one particular kind of guest.

You could come here for the sports facilities and spend your days swimming, running and training. You could come for the architecture and interiors, exploring the building and its beautifully considered spaces. You could come for the food, the beach or simply the pleasure of switching off for a couple of days.

Or, like me, you could attempt to do all of it and realise that two days aren't nearly enough.

But beyond the facilities, the restaurants and the design, there is something else that makes Erth memorable. It feels connected to Abu Dhabi in a way that many international luxury hotels simply don't. Its history is local, its identity is distinctive, and its transformation has created something contemporary without erasing what came before.

That is what I mean when I talk about a hotel having soul.

Five-star service is wonderful. Beautiful rooms are wonderful. A private beach and a proper swimming pool certainly don't hurt. But what makes me want to return to a place is the feeling that there is still something left to discover.

And Erth has plenty of that.

I arrived expecting a relaxing two-day staycation. I left already thinking about when I could come back.